Organizers have announced the Tiantan Award jury panel and additional details for the 15th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF), set for April 18-26 in Beijing.

Organizers reveal the jury panel for the Tiantan Award main competition of the 15th Beijing International Film Festival during a press conference in Beijing, March 27, 2025. [Photo courtesy of the BJIFF Organizing Committee] 

Prominent Chinese filmmaker Jiang Wen will chair the seven-member jury, organizers revealed at a press conference in Beijing on March 27.

Jiang, known for his award-winning works "In the Heat of the Sun" (1994) and "Let the Bullets Fly" (2010), also gained international recognition for his role as Baze Malbus in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" (2016).

His experience includes serving as a competition juror at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2003 and the Venice International Film Festival in 2013. In 2017, Jiang became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The following year, he presided as jury president at the Shanghai International Film Festival.

The BJIFF's Tiantan Award main competition jury will include Chinese American director and actor Joan Chen, British director David Yates, Chinese mainland actor Ni Ni, Finnish director Teemu Nikki, Swiss director and actor Vincent Perez, and Chinese art director Tim Yip from China's Hong Kong. The panel will select winners across 10 categories, including best feature film, best director and best screenplay. All awards will be presented at the festival's closing ceremony and gala.

The competition received a record 1,794 feature film submissions from 103 countries and regions, marking a 19% increase over last year's 1,509 entries. International submissions accounted for 1,608 films, comprising nearly 90% of all entries and reflecting exceptional diversity in genre and thematic scope.

Fifteen films have been shortlisted for the final competition, including three Chinese entries: Hao Ming and Li Peiran's "Better Me, Better You," Li Yongyi's "Deep in the Mountains," and Zhang Qi's "Trapped."

International selections for the competition include Emine Yildirim's "Apollon by Day Athena by Night" (Turkey), Sora Hokimoto's "BAUS: The Ship's Voyage Continues" (Japan), Maria Brendle's "Frieda's Case" (Switzerland), Tim Ellrich's "In My Parents' House" (Germany), Lilja Ingolfsdottir's "Loveable" (Norway), Tobias Schmutzler, Kevin Schmutzler, Apuu Mourine, and Vallentine Chelluget's "Nawi: Dear Future Me" (Kenya/Germany), Sophie Deraspe's "Shepherds" (Canada/France), Andrea Segre's "The Great Ambition" (Italy/Belgium/Bulgaria), Ivan Fund's "The Message" (Argentina/Spain/Uruguay), Charlie McDowell's "The Summer Book" (Finland/United Kingdom/United States), Noëlle Bastin and Baptiste Bogaert's "Vitrival - The Most Beautiful Village in the World" (Belgium), and Hadi Mohaghegh's "Vortex" (Iran/Czech Republic).

The festival is supported by the China Film Administration and hosted by the Beijing municipal government and China Media Group. It will include star-studded opening and closing ceremonies featuring red-carpet shows.

The festival's core forums will delve into key topics, including intellectual property development, industry innovation, audience-driven storytelling and emerging film technologies. Additionally, the event will offer masterclasses conducted by acclaimed directors Jiang Wen and Jia Zhangke, along with French cinema icon Isabelle Huppert.

The official poster for the 15th Beijing International Film Festival, designed by the renowned art director Huo Tingxiao. [Photo courtesy of the BJIFF Organizing Committee] 

The festival also includes the Beijing Film Panorama, a highly anticipated program showcasing nostalgic classics, new blockbusters and previously unreleased films in China. This year, it will celebrate the 120th anniversary of Chinese cinema and the 130th anniversary of world cinema.

It will feature 18 thematic sections with nearly 300 exceptional international films across about 900 screenings at 33 premium venues in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. These venues span commercial theaters, arthouse cinemas and cultural spaces. Initial confirmed films include a Robert Altman centenary retrospective, as well as works by Jiri Menzel, Andrei Tarkovsky and the late David Lynch.

The BJIFF will feature a diverse lineup with hundreds of events, including a film carnival, pitch sessions for emerging filmmakers and cross-industry collaborations that merge cinema with music, fashion and gastronomy.

Additional highlights include cutting-edge tech showcases, programs focused on short films, sports films, works by female directors, and young filmmakers, plus creative markets, an AI-generated film competition unit, and a university student film festival.

This year, Switzerland serves as the Country of Honor to commemorate 75 years of China-Switzerland diplomatic relations, with a special Swiss Film Week. The festival will also introduce its inaugural China Film Global Distribution and Promotion Awards, recognizing 10 domestic and international distributors for their outstanding work in promoting Chinese cinema globally and enhancing both its commercial reach and cultural impact.

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