Accompanied by the nostalgic melody of the song Love Is Sprinkled over the Earth written for Sichuan TV Festival in 1991, eighty girls in white dresses slowly gathered at the center of the stage with a luminous golden crystal ball in each of their hands. Through a large screen at the spot, the 4K UHD promotional video The Land of Abundance, Sichuan produced by Sichuan Radio & TV Station was premiered, showing the beautiful scenery and unique culture of Sichuan to guests. In the morning of October 30, 2019, the 15th Sichuan TV Festival & the First "Gold Panda" International Communication Awards officially kicked off in Chengdu Century City New International Convention and Exhibition Center. Guests from thousands of domestic and foreign organizations of the industry gathered to conduct a series of wonderful exhibition and communication activities in the next three days.
Fan Weiping, Deputy Director-General of National Radio and Television Administration, Yan Xiaoming, Deputy Director of China Media Group, Gan Lin, a member of the Standing Committee of and General Director of Publicity Department of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee and Koichi Okumura, Director of Department of Programming of Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union delivered a speech respectively. Yang Xingping, Vice Governor of Sichuan Provincial People's Government, presided over the opening ceremony.
Sichuan is an ideal land for the incubation and development of the film and television media industry. It boasts competitive strength in such aspects as urban atmosphere, talent training and technological research and development. At the opening ceremony, the National Radio and Television Administration also conducted unveiling ceremony for "China Internet Audiovisual Industrial Base (Chengdu)" and "China Ultra HD Application Base (Chengdu)" which have settled in Chengdu, Sichuan, highly recognizing the capability and level of Sichuan regarding film and TV production.
Founded in 1991, Sichuan TV Festival has experienced 28 years of sustained development and accumulation. Now it has become one of the most influential professional film & TV festivals in China and even in Asia, making positive contributions to the exchange and cooperation of film & TV culture between China and the world. This year, Sichuan TV Festival has comprehensively innovated and improved its form, content, effect and other aspects. In short, it has numerous highlights including the weighty awards, professional forums and attractive exhibitions.
The "Gold Panda" International Communication Awards is the most eye-catching highlight at the 15th Sichuan TV Festival. The "Gold Panda" International Communication Awards premiered this year is simultaneously held with the 15th Sichuan TV Festival, making it of ground-breaking significance in the history of Sichuan TV Festival. The "Gold Panda" International Communication Awards are established in response to the motif of "China Story & International Communication". In addition, the Special Jury Award has been established to encourage works that promote the construction of the community of shared future for mankind and make outstanding contributions to enhancing the international communication.
Meanwhile, the professional forums are still highlights of the festival. The Summit Forum on "Convergence for Big Picture ? Integration for the Future" ensuing the Opening Ceremony marks the main forum of the festival, on which national competent departments, industrial experts and film & television practitioners will be altogether invited to focus on the hot issues of industrial development and the overwhelming development trend of media transformation and integration. During the festival, 4 professional forums, namely the Forum on Smart Radio and Television - 5G Empowers Smart Radio and Television, Forum on Ultra High Definition Audiovisual Technology Industry Development , Forum on China Film and Television Overseas Communication and "Recording a New Era" International Forum, will probe into professional fields. It is expected that new ideas and trends be spurted and perceived in the exchanges.
In addition, the 15thSichuan TV Festival has zoned the "Sichuan Pavilion" consisting of such four parts as UHD Exhibition Area, 5G Exhibition Area, Content Production Area and Smart Radio & Television Exhibition Area in Hall 1 of Chengdu Century City New International Convention and Exhibition Center. "Sichuan Pavilion" covering an area of 2,400 square meters will be occupied by 24 film and television institutions in Sichuan to demonstrate the prominent results reached by the quality and innovative development of Sichuan industry of radio, film and television in a stereoscopic manner. Beyond that, the New Drama Project Release Area, the Broadcast Exhibition Area for Outstanding Works of "Gold Panda" International Communication Awards and Characteristic Activities Area have also been designed in Hall 1. On the occasion, audience will have an access to watching the big screen at a close range, enjoying outstanding works and have the chance to conduct in-depth communication with creators. Hall 2 provides opportunities for technology fans to experience the advanced industrial technologies. Here, the Smart Radio & Television Technology Exhibition themed "Super Definition Vision for Smart Radio and Television" will be unveiled, on which such interactive entertainment areas for VR, AR, 5G, AI and big data will be designed. Moreover, various high-tech enterprises like Huawei, Sony, Sobey, RAGE&EAST and Panasonic will establish booths there to display their latest products in the field of radio and television.
The Awarding Ceremony of "Gold Panda" International Communication Awards and the Closing Ceremony of Sichuan TV Festival, the most glaring part of the event, will be held in the evening of November 1. On the site, 13 awards will be announced and issued. The guest lineup of the Awarding Night and the Closing Ceremony is also appealing. It will be led by Chen Baoguo as Chairman of the Jury, attended by stars like Mao Weining, Fan Ming, Gao Yalin, Li Chengru and Zhang Kaili. The ceremony will be hosted by Liu Jing, Li Sisi, Li Kun and Yang Lin. The audience can expect an audio-visual feast that fuses artistry with visual satisfaction. We wish a successful conclusion for the 15th Sichuan TV Festival. The Awarding Ceremony and Closing Ceremony will be synchronously broadcast on platforms including SCTV and "Sichuan Observation" Client.