Film festival: Cinema as 'vehicle for cultural dialogue'

Film is an art form that transcends borders and a universal language that goes directly to our hearts. From Nov 15 to 24, the Festival of German Cinema will hit the big screens of Beijing. With a diverse selection of the latest and greatest from Deutschland's directors, the festival has attracted a sizable following among local film buffs.

The opening ceremony of the festival took place at the Broadway Cinematheque MOMA, a trendy landmark in Beijing. In this episode of Easy Talk, we meet three guests – the managing director of German Films, the director of the Goethe-Institut, and the cultural counsellor of the German embassy in China – to hear their insights about Sino-German cinematic cooperation and how to introduce Chinese culture to a wider audience.

This year, actor Wang Jingchun has been invited as the ambassador for the festival. At the Berlinale this February, he just scooped a Silver Bear Award for Best Actor.

"The first German film I watched is The Tin Drum by Volker Schlöndorff. It was nothing like any films I had seen. A very powerful experience," Wang said. "Film is the best vehicle for cultural dialogues. As an actor, in my area of expertise, I'd like to support more exchanges in the film industry."

Guests: Simone Baumann; Dr. Clemens Treter; Katrin Buchholz; Wang Jingchun

Reporter: Li Wenrui

Camera: Yang Xiaoyu

Editing: Li Wenrui

Copy Editors: Faisal Kidwai; Jocelyn Eikenburg

Subtitles: Sun Jiao

Producer: Li Wenrui

Executive Producer: Feng Minghui

Acknowledgements: German Films; Goethe-Institut China; German embassy in China

Contact the producer at liwenrui@chinadaily.com.cn