Film fest highlights lives reflected in documentaries

The international jury of the film festival includes French filmmaker Yves Jeanneau (third left) and Chinese director Fu Hongxing (center). [Photo provided to China Daily]

For the international jury, led by French filmmaker Yves Jeanneau and Chinese director Fu Hongxing, the festival promotes the significance of documentaries.

China has seen a rise in documentaries in recent years.

Last year, China's documentary expenditure totaled to 3.47 billion yuan ($504 million) and generated a value up to 5.2 billion yuan, respectively up 15 percent and 12 percent year-on-year, according to a report released on April 17 by Beijing Normal University's documentary research center.

In 2016, documentaries on TV channels were aired for 77,600 hours, a 1.6 percent rise compared with 2015, the report adds.

Fu, an award-winning documentary director behind the historical hits Zhou Enlai's Diplomacy Legends and Mr Deng Goes to Washington, says now is the "best time for documentaries" in China.

"A documentary shows the world things in a non-fictional, authentic way," says Fu, the jury's Chinese head.