In January 2024, the Chinese segment of the Documentary Film Week of the Golden Tree International Documentary Film Festival was successfully held in Chongqing, China.

The People’s Government of Chongqing’s Wulong City Subdistrict, China Education Television (CETV) and the organising committee of the Golden Tree International Documentary Film Festival arranged a documentary film competition, activities for young filmmakers, a roundtable discussion and meetings on outstanding film works.

This year 3,143 works were sent to the festival. As a result of the initial selection, 21 documentaries were nominated by 38 jury members from six countries (China, France, Italy, Switzerland, Russia and Algeria). After the final evaluation, eight films were selected. The “Golden Tree” (China, Oolong) was awarded the top prize to Guranay, a documentary about an elderly couple growing trees in the desert.

The event generated a lot of interest among Chinese internet users, with more than 300 million people following it.

“This festival helps to develop traditional culture and improve China’s image. Relying on the resource advantages provided by the site of the famous international festival helps to enhance the popularity and credibility of the Wulong Municipal District as a model state-level tourism area both at home and abroad,” said Li Ge, the director of the Golden Tree International Documentary Film Festival.

The main theme and the goal of the “Golden Tree” International Documentary Film Festival is to explore the cultural origins of different civilisations and countries. In total, nearly 30 thousand documentary film directors from 164 countries and regions have participated in the competition over the previous years.

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