A group of young Chinese film directors gathered on Tuesday in Beijing to watch the film The Pursuit of Happyness in hopes of polishing their filmmaking skills.

The screening is the local premiere for the Oscar-nominated American film, which will open in China on Thursday, and was used by the China Film Group Corporation to kick off its director's talent search program.

A representative from the China Film Group, the Chinese distributor of Happyness explains, "We hope fresh directors will appreciate this great film, and use the sustenance absorbed here to enrich their future projects."

Under the company's plan, several inexperienced directors will get financial backing to showcase their artistic talent. Their films are expected to add an alternative style to the Chinese theaters and to feed the growing appetite of the audiences.

At Tuesday's screening it was heard that filming for the program's first movie is already being put on the agenda with a fresh director named Liu Jiang.

(CRI January 17, 2008)