Women Directors Become Important Force in Film Industry

The judges for the short film competition [China Women's University]

The final evaluation of the women-themed short films competing for the KingBonn Awards (Short Film Director Supporting Program) of the 10th China International New Media Short Film Festival was held at China Women's University (CWU) on October 21.

Zhang Li, Deputy Director of the Office of the Women and Children's Work Committee of the State Council, Fang Hua, Deputy Director of the Personnel Department of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, Liu Liqun, President and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of CWU and host of the UNESCO Chair on Media and Gender, and more than 10 experts and scholars were jury members for the evaluation.

The evaluation session is one of sub-contests of the KingBonn Awards (Short Film Director Supporting Program), which was set up in 2018 by the organizing committee of the short film festival, the CWU, the Media and Women's Research Center of Communication University of China (CUC) and the UNESCO Chair on Media and Gender.

The sub-contest's purpose is to discover and publicize women-themed outstanding short films and support their creators in order to raise awareness of gender equality.

This year, it received 808 entries, 20 percent of all competition submissions.

Judges for the short film competition [China Women's University]

The judges were professionals and scholars from UN Women, the Women's Studies Institute of China, the Office of the Women and Children's Committee of the State Council, the CUC Media and Women's Research Center and the CWU.

Twenty-one short films were candidates for the best women films award and 19 short films were candidates for the best woman director award. 

The women-themed short film competition unit not only embodies gender equality but also reflects awakening of women's consciousness and self-liberation.

"In this selection, we appreciated many excellent works and also became aware of the gap between domestic and international short films," said Liu.

"Our next step will be to rely on the excellent resources of the UNESCO Chair on Media and Gender and to motivate the university and social groups to set up more awards encouraging the creation of women-themed films. We will enhance support for women directors, especially women university students. Meanwhile, we will introduce outstanding short films into class, letting more students appreciate excellent short films from all over the world," Liu added.

The judges for the short film competition pose for a photo with students at the CWU. [China Women's University]

"In recent years, with the support of the CWU and CUC, the short film festival set up a university student short film competition and women-themed short film competition," said Sun Jianchun, Secretary-General of the Secretariat of the Office of the China International New Media Short Film Festival.

"It not only enriches the awards of the short film festival but also provides opportunities to more directors. Additionally, it expands the influence of the short film festival in the industry, playing a demonstration role in the creation of short films," she added.

This year's women-themed short films account for 20 percent of the total volume of the competition works. Women directors have become a key force of film creation.

Liu Liqun, President and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of CWU and host of the UNESCO Chair on Media and Gender, delivers a speech during the event. [China Women's University]

The short film festival is organized by the National Radio and Television Administration and the Shenzhen Municipal People's Government. It is the only national and international short film festival in China, with the aims of encouraging domestic and overseas new media short film creation, supporting talents and promoting the integrated development of new media industry. The 10th short film festival will be held in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, on December 2-8.

Sun Jianchun, Secretary-General of the Secretariat of the Office of the China International New Media Short Film Festival, expresses her ideas. [China Women's University]

(Source: China Women's University/Translated and edited by Women of China)