Culture Beat: Snow leopard film documentary released

Promotional material for Snow Leopards and Friends Photo: Courtesy of Douban

Snow leopard documentary released  

Since the first photo of a snow leopard was shot in 1971, these "hermits of nature" have gradually stepped into the public spotlight. Now the Chinese film documentary Snow Leopards and Friends, released on Friday across China, is giving audiences a chance to see these beautiful creatures up close. 

Other wildlife living on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau such as marmots, brown bears and bar-headed geese can also be seen in the film.

The film's director Xi Zhinong, who is also a distinguished photographer, spent six years on the plateau, some 4,700 meters above sea level, to capture footage of these animals.

He searched and recorded the very precious wildlife in China, especially snow leopards, with three local photographers, who are also local herdsmen living on the plateau.

All of the wonderful images of these animals are now condensed into the film documentary, which this director/photographer with over 40 years' experience describes as an important documentary telling the story of snow leopards to the world.

"I hope the wildlife of China can be seen," he said.

The new film will present the audience with a "touching and picturesque scroll" depicting the wild nature of animals, as well as the magnificent and majestic landscape around snow-capped mountains.

Audiovisual Art Forum held in Beijing

A forum for telling Chinese stories and spreading China's voice, the 2023 China Beijing (International) Audiovisual Conference: Digital Audiovisual Arts Forum, was held on Saturday.

The forum gathered experts and business leaders from various backgrounds. 

Taking the theme "Imagining with Artificial Intelligence," the forum focused on a string of hot topics in the field of digital audiovisual arts with the aim of opening a peak dialogue in the field and enhancing the conference's international influence.

Invited guests also shared their views on hot topics such as the meta-universe and AI art and the health of the digital art IP industry. 

Wang Boqiao, the general planner of the forum, noted in a speech that in the future, digitization will be used in art to create aesthetics that combine the virtual world and reality.

"I hope that this conference will be an opportunity to connect creators and institutes in technology, art and business to boost the development of digital art," Wang said.

He pointed to the Brilliant Central Axis Exhibition held in Capital Museum in March, which used digital devices to enhance the visitor experience. 

"The immersive experience gave visitors a brand-new space for their imagination," Zhang Lie, appointed associate professor at the Academy of Arts and Design at Tsinghua University, said at the conference.