Beijing afloat on April sea of films

Another highlight of the festival will be a retrospective of classic films by legendary masters, including a special screening dedicated to Robert Altman — the late American director who received an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement in 2006.

"The screening selection not only focused on classics but also highlighted cutting-edge new releases. We hope it will serve as a tribute to cinema's everlasting magic and allow the audience to have a more immersive experience (with special facilities like virtual reality equipment)," says Lin.

Ne Zha 2, the most commercially successful Chinese film, which has stormed into the global box-office list as the fifth highest-grossing film of all time, will feature in an exhibition of hand-drawn posters by director Yang Yu, who is better known as Jiaozi.

It was also announced that Chen Sicheng, a filmmaker who has contributed to the industrialization of Chinese cinema, will be president of the final jury for Project Pitches, a section that seeks to identify and nurture promising new domestic creative forces.

Inspired by the coiling dragon caisson ceiling of the Forbidden City's Wanchun Pavilion, the festival poster's kaleidoscopic pattern symbolizes cinema's focus on the many facets of the world, according to the organizers.