The 2025 China Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival and the 38th China Golden Rooster Awards opened Tuesday evening in the city of Xiamen, east China's Fujian province.
The opening ceremony included the lighting up of the golden rooster, as well as creative performances and the promotion of new films. Chinese actors Huang Bo and Zhou Dongyu led the lighting ceremony, presenting a modern, minimalist and poetic opening show.
This year marks the 130th anniversary of world cinema and the 120th anniversary of Chinese cinema.
During the festival, events such as film screenings, academic forums and the Golden Rooster Film Venture Capital Conference will be held, with the winners of this year's Golden Rooster Awards set to be announced at the awards ceremony on Nov 15.
"I feel that Xiamen is like a garden by the sea. It offers a profoundly romantic setting for a rendezvous with cinema. The city's cultural ambiance and natural beauty evoke the essence of an artistic masterpiece," said actress Wan Qian.
Concurrently, the Golden Rooster Domestic Film Exhibition will commence, offering 49 captivating screenings over 20 days, along with post-screening meet-and-greets for 12 new films, where key members of the film-making teams will engage directly with audiences to share insights and discuss behind-the-scenes stories.
"This year's film festival is remarkably diverse. At the Golden Rooster Film Festival, we immerse ourselves in films, observe them closely, and reflect in our own unique ways. I believe that cinema will provide us with answers," said Zhang Ji, artistic advisor of the exhibition.
China's Golden Rooster film festival kicks off in Xiamen
China's Golden Rooster film festival kicks off in Xiamen
Tanzanians doing business in the Middle East have been forced to scale down or cease operations altogether, as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran disrupts global travel.
In early March, Tanzanian authorities sent a special flight to bring home more than 200 citizens from Dubai.
Mustapha Khatow, who runs the travel agency Sky Link Travel and Tours, said he has spent nearly four decades in the tourism industry, moving between Dubai and Tanzania, serving both corporate and leisure travelers. But the recent tensions involving Iran and the disruption to flights and business have hit hard, forcing him to relocate his family back to Tanzania.
"Tanzanian travel agents in the whole, they have been hit, because we've had huge cancellations for Eid, people going to Dubai, for Easter holidays, going to Dubai. So, we have lost a big chunk of people who do not wish to go to Dubai at this time," he said.
The impact is being felt beyond tourism. Supply challenges linked to the conflict have pushed up global oil prices, raising concerns for import-dependent economies like Tanzania. Authorities say they are taking measures to cushion businesses and maintain steady fuel supplies.
Aviation and tourism in the Middle East have also taken a hit. In Dubai, more than 80,000 travel bookings were canceled in the first week of the conflict as airports faced intermittent closures and uncertainty, leading to millions of dollars in losses.
Reports indicate that visitor arrivals in the Middle East could decline by between 11 percent and 27 percent in 2026. Travel industry professionals like Khatow view the downturn as collateral damage from the conflict and hope for a swift resolution to help revive tourism.
"Those big traders who bring containers to Tanzania, they have a challenge because of the shipping lines getting delayed, freight charges going up. And again, another issue is Air Tanzania has not been flying to Dubai since then, apart from one repatriation flight," he said.
Khatow said diplomacy will be key to restoring stability, while accurate reporting can help limit further damage to businesses.
US-Israeli war on Iran disrupts travel businesses from Tanzania
