Renowned French actress Sophie Marceau recently expressed her admiration for Chinese cinema, drawn by what she sees the growing influence of China's movies around the world.
Marceau, the ambassador of the sixth Hainan Island International Film Festival, has long been hailed as the "French Rose." She gained international recognition at the age of 14 with her breakout role in the film "La Boum."
In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Sophie expressed her excitement at being the ambassador for this year's Hainan Island International Film Festival and shared her plans for her involvement during the event.
"I have a lot of interviews and master classes to do. I'm enjoying traveling with cinema and meet other movies. I'm happy to be part of it," said the actress.
Marceau's connection to China dates back to 1985 when she visited with her film "La Boum." In 2014, she appeared on the Spring Festival Gala, singing "La Vie en Rose."
Reflecting on her relationship with China, she shared her appreciation for the warm welcome she has received.
"It just happened. 'La Boum' was a great success in a lot of countries and especially Asia and then China, and I was invited to come here. I had no idea of anything. I just followed the flow. I got here and I felt good, people were so welcoming and so nice. Then we kept in touch. We grew together because I've been around for a while now. I did other movies that also were very much appreciated here, and I was curious to come here and know more about [everything], and so to me it's like a natural story actually," she said.
As one of the first people in the French film industry to visit China and a key figure in promoting exchanges between the China and France film industries, Marceau also spoke highly of the growing popularity of Chinese films in France.
"We're very fond of Chinese movies in France. A lot of them are coming to our festivals. A lot of them are well known all over the world, even the most Chinese and historical [ones]. I'm thinking of 'The Assassin', for example, Hou Hsiao-Hsien, it's very like the ancestral part of China. It has its codes and everything. But the cinematography is wonderful. The way he directs actors, the way he sees the movie. It's like a masterpiece, so we can only be amazed and [Chinese movies] somehow influence us," she said.
The sixth Hainan Island International Film Festival is taking place from Dec 4 to 10 in Sanya, South China's Hainan Province, bringing together filmmakers, critics, journalists and movie lovers from around the globe for a cinematic event themed "From Oceans, With Visions".
French actress Sophie Marceau expresses admiration for Chinese cinema
China is ready to work with Argentina to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and bring the bilateral relations to a new level, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday.
This will benefit the people of the two countries and help China and Latin America achieve common development and prosperity, Wang said. He made the remarks during a meeting with his Argentine counterpart Gerardo Werthein on the sidelines of the ongoing Munich Security Conference.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that the Chinese and Argentine people have enjoyed a long-standing friendship, and China-Argentina cooperation is equal and mutually beneficial.
Last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Argentine President Javier Milei held a meeting and reached important consensus on consolidating and developing bilateral relations, said Wang.
China is willing to work with Argentina to implement the consensus reached by the two heads of state and strengthen exchanges at the high level and in all fields, so as to bring the bilateral relations to a new level and better benefit the people of both countries, he said.
Wang also said the two sides should continue to respect and accommodate each other's core interests and major concerns, and continuously consolidate the political foundation of bilateral relations.
Wang pointed out that China does not seek spheres of influence, nor does it participate in geopolitical competition. In international affairs, China firmly practices multilateralism and is willing to work with Latin American countries, including Argentina, to firmly safeguard the international rule of law and the basic norms of international relations, he said.
Wang noted that China-Argentina relations are an important part of China-Latin America relations. Over the past decade since its establishment, the China-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Forum has effectively promoted China-Latin America cooperation and brought tangible benefits to the people of both sides, he said.
China is willing to work with Latin American countries to support the development and growth of the China-CELAC Forum, helping China and Latin America achieve common development and prosperity, said Wang.
Werthein said that Argentina attaches great importance to its relations with China, and looks forward to strengthening high-level exchanges and deepening pragmatic cooperation with China.
Noting that Argentina appreciates China's support for Argentina's defense of its sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands, Werthein said Argentina firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is willing to become a reliable and stable cooperative partner of China.
Werthein also said that Argentina will play an active role in promoting the development of Latin America-China relations on the basis of strengthening bilateral relations.
China ready to push ties with Argentina to higher level: FM