Project helps spread China stories globally

When Christine Jiaqi An, a Chinese-American filmmaker and Boston University graduate, looks back on her trip to China last year, what comes to mind is not only the documentary she helped create, but the quiet moments of connection — sharing meals around village tables, learning traditional songs, and sitting shoulder to shoulder with new friends along a mountain road in Guizhou province.

There, An filmed Timeless Voices, a short documentary featuring members of an indigenous community whose oral traditions have been passed down for generations.

"So much of the experience was about rediscovery," An said at a special showcase titled "15 Years of American Youth Looking China", held during the China-US Film and TV Night on Friday in Los Angeles.

"As a Chinese American, it was disorienting at first — but in a meaningful way. I was reconnecting with my roots. That was priceless to me," she said.

An is one of 106 youth filmmakers from the United States who have taken part in the "Looking China "youth film project over the past 15 years. The program invites young filmmakers from around the world — many visiting China for the first time — to create short documentaries rooted in local communities.

Since its launch in 2011, Looking China has grown from a pilot project into one of the most sustained international youth cultural exchange efforts between China and the rest of the world. Participants have come from leading US universities. Their filmmaking journeys have taken them to 14 provincial-level regions across China.

Among them was Mateo Nikolav, a film student at the University of California, Los Angeles, and director of Sixty Seconds, which follows a young aspiring actor working in a short drama production studio in Zhejiang province.

"I saw how much passion and persistence young creators in China put into their work," Nikolav said.

Meaningful experience

Another US youth film director, Sammi Su, from the University of Southern California, directed Shaxian Snacks, which explores how the identity of an entire city has become intertwined with the nationwide popularity of its signature snack culture.

"Before this, I had only seen Fujian (province) in photos or short videos online, usually the busy streets and fast-paced city life," she said.

"Being able to actually be there, meet people and experience the place in its own rhythm was something completely different and very meaningful to me."

Over the past 15 years, more than 1,400 young filmmakers from 102 countries have taken part in the youth film project, producing 1,150 short documentary films in 27 regions across China. These works have received more than 200 international awards, been broadcast more than 5,200 times, and reached an estimated 600 million viewers worldwide through screenings and media platforms on five continents.

Looking China has become a vivid vehicle for sharing Chinese stories globally, said Huang Huilin, founder of the program and dean of the Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture at Beijing Normal University.

"It allows international audiences to feel the warmth of China, while enabling Chinese culture to be seen through diverse and youthful perspectives," Huang said.

Guo Shaochun, Chinese consul general in Los Angeles, emphasized the continued importance of cultural storytelling in fostering mutual understanding.

He recalled how, more than 80 years ago, US journalist Edgar Snow traveled to northern Shaanxi province and wrote Red Star Over China, offering the world a vivid, firsthand portrait of China during a pivotal historical moment.

"Today, a new generation is continuing the journey of understanding," Guo said.

"Through film and new media, young people are presenting the world with a real, dynamic and multidimensional China."

Hollywood producer Andre Morgan, known for his long-term involvement in US-China film collaboration, also underscored the role of documentary storytelling in building cultural bridges.

"When young people in China and the US meet, work together and share stories, they often find they have far more in common than they expected," he said.

"Those shared experiences can help overcome misunderstandings and create space for dialogue."