“Forward Future International Screening Unit” was set up in 2014 which was jointly launched by the Organizing Committee of Beijing International Film Festival and Beijing Film Academy, with a view to encouraging film innovation, stimulating film creativity, discovering and promoting new filmmakers, and enhancing the cooperation and communication among young filmmakers of all countries. Among the 16 works selected for this year’s Forward Future Section,
there are 6 female director's works, of which the virgin ones account for a large proportion.
The “Forward Future International Screening Unit of the 8th Beijing International Film Festival was held in the standard screening hall of Beijing Film Academy on the evening of April 14, 2018. Wu Guanping, director of the Film Department of Beijing Film Academy, hosted the meeting. Huang Huilin, Dean of Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture, Hou Guangming, deputy chairman of Beijing International Film Festival Organizing Committee, director of Beijing Film Academy Committee, chairman of the board of directors, as well as Xie Fei, professor of Beijing Film Academy and head of China Film Culture Institute, Director of the Cultural Research Institute, and Rao Shuguang, Secretary General of China Film Association, and Chairman of China Film Critics Association, attended the event and delivered speeches.
According to Hou Guangming, this year’s Forward Future Section will seek to remove limits on film subjects, types and styles and encourage new directors to fully demonstrate the artistic talents of film newcomers and reflect the artistic trend and aesthetics of the current international films, on the premise of following the screening rules of Beijing International Film Festival.
At the same time, Hou Guangming also pointed out that as the cradle of film talents in New China, Beijing Film Academy will actively carry out international cultural exchanges and cooperation in the next three years. It will not only strive to successfully organize Beijing International Film Festival Awards Unit — “Forward Future”, but also cooperate with the world's outstanding film academies and cultural institutions through multi-channels, disseminate Chinese culture through film education, and cultivate high-level film talents. In his speech, Rao Shuguang pointed out, To build a Chinese film school, we need to have a historical dimension and learn from the development of the Chinese film history. Rao Shuguang also emphasized that we should not only look forward to the future but also look forward to the international community. It is imperative to draw on the development of world movies more effectively and dialectically. And do not close the door to engage in "canned aesthetics”. Only by continuously opening up, embracing, and drawing on the development of all outstanding films in the world, can we more effectively construct the Chinese Film schools and promote the sustainable development of the Chinese films, upgrading China from a big film country to a powerful one.
Huang Huilin, president of Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture, said in his speech that as long as the history gives young people a stage for their dreams, they will be able to present you a wonderful world. Today's China and the world are a pattern of you having me and I having you as well. China has been thoroughly integrated into the whole world. On the one hand, globalization and modernization has connected humankind into a community with a shared future. On the other hand, we are still eager to see each other's diversity and the wonderful artistic individuality of different nations.
In his speech, Professor Xie Fei stated that in the film days, movies could only be shown in cinemas. To see a movie, it would take a long way for the audience. With the advent of the digital age, watching movies has become a very convenient thing. Seeing a movie through a film festival is actually the most important way. He hoped that the organizers of the festival would continue to work hard to rationally and legitimately present the world's movies to the audience. He also hoped that young audiences would enrich themselves and enhance themselves by seeing movies and participating in the film festival.
The opening ceremony organized an interactive discussion by inviting the main creators of the opening film Gabriel and the Mountain, and the young director Lhapal Gyal and music editor Wang Jue for the movie Wangdrak's Rain Boots which ranked into the new-generation competition section of the 68th Berlin International Film Festival.
The films will be screened at Beijing Film Academy's standard exhibition hall from April 14th to April 21st. By then, there will be 9 films’ creative teams to meet and greet the audiences on the scene.