Forum celebrates film school anniversary

Ti Gong

Experts discussed the cultivation of future film talent at a forum at the Shanghai Symphony Hall as they celebrated the seventh anniversary of the Shanghai Vancouver Film School.

The school, a joint venture of Shanghai University and Vancouver Film School, has cultivated 600 industry professionals in the past seven years, who have participated in the production of 97 films, 25 TV series, 21 cartoons and 28 digital games.

According to the university, the films made with the participation of its alumni have achieved 52 billion yuan (US$8.13 billion) in domestic box office and 62.9 billion yuan worldwide. They have also won more than 100 prizes at film festivals and innovation competitions at home and abroad.

"The achievements of our alumni have not only made Shanghai Vancouver Film School a remarkable icon in Shanghai's film industry, but also created a record in speed and qualification in Shanghai's film education field, which is a miracle," said Jiang Weimin, executive president of the school. "In the future, we will continue to cultivate more outstanding talent. I believe our school will become a light of China's film industry."

Gao Yunfei, director of Shanghai's film administration, said Shanghai was the cradle of China's film industry and has been emphasizing cultivation of film talent.

"Film is a kind of art and a creative talent-intensive industry," he said. "The competition in film industry is a competition of talent and creativity."

He said there was a huge demand for talent in Shanghai to accelerate development of its film industry.

He suggested enhanced cooperation between colleges, research institutes and industry to prepare the talent needed by the industry, which should in turn provides practice opportunities for students.

Chinese composer Tan Dun, an Oscar winner, said the COVID-19 pandemic had affected the film industry in market, production, performance, art and music, and film professionals are now facing new challenges, such as the integration of knowledge, globalization of market and concept of creation with both art and science.

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Chinese film director Teng Junjie, stressed the importance of outstripping consciousness in content and technology application.

He said "Farewell My Concubine" was the first film produced with the 3D panoramic sound technology to show the beautiful voices of Peking opera, which led to its overseas debut at the Dolby Theater in the US, while the world's first film produced with 8K ultra-high-definition technology "He Luting" was made in Shanghai, with participation from many students from the film school, and won the Lumière Awards.

Jia Zhangke, president of the film school, said film is a product of technology and has been reaching peaks after overcoming challenges brought by technology developments, such as the appearance of TV in the 1950s.

"Education in film academies can help students get a comprehensive view of the origin and developments of film and prepare them for the industry despite changes in the world," he said. "The Shanghai Vancouver Film School is dedicated to cultivating global talent in the film industry, which is a global industry with rare film crew from a single nation. For example, I work in Beijing, Mr Tan works in New York while my mixer works in Paris."

He pointed out that the COVID-19 had brought threats to such international cooperation or even mutual trust established in the past.

"At such a moment, I hope film can still be an emotional bond for human beings," he said. "Via film, we hope to tell the world we are a community with shared emotions."

A concert featuring music from famous films was held after the forum to celebrate the seventh anniversary of the establishment of the Shanghai Vancouver Film School and the eighth anniversary of the Shanghai University School of Music.

Ti Gong