A four-day Chinese film festival will be held on June 10 at the Shang Cineplex in Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, as part of the celebration of 30th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the Philippines.

Dai Xing Yuan, Chinese Cultural Consular in the Philippines, told Xinhua on Monday that the festival will be jointly held by the Chinese Embassy in Manila, The National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television of China and Shangri-La Plaza in Metro Manila.

Opening the festival Friday evening will be writer and director Feng Xiaoning's Gada Meilin, an epic film about Mongolian history.

Another festival entry is Nuan by Huo Jianqi, a filmmaker who focuses on sincere relationships between people, establishing a unique unaffected style by minimizing the theatrical elements.

Young director Mu Deyuan weaves the entertaining story of teenager Zhang Shuai who was thrown in prison for robbery in Judge Mama. Set free after three years, he plans to take avenge on An Hui, the judge who sentenced him to jail.

Live in Peace, meanwhile, is a heartwarming film by veteran director Hu Bingliu where hot-tempered old lady Ah Xi learns to mellow down and appreciate the value of friendship and companionship through her young worker Ah Shan, whose dream in life she helped realize.

The film The Story of Lotus by director Qi Jian is full of slices of life in rural China that are fast disappearing, capturing the way of life of billions of people before it becomes a faded memory.

Finally, Splendid Season features two sisters who lost their parents at very young ages. Director Song Jiangbo weaves a tale of two searching souls who bond with children as "substitute parents" and in the process, found their true selves.
 
(Xinhua News Agency June 7, 2005)