Song Ziyue has been working in the film industry for more than five years. She studied film in university and her dreams of being a director have never changed. But it's not an easy path, especially for young people. 

"Often, the market and the industry don't have a high level trust in young directors, so their professional skills are only theoretical. They think using young directors will increase risks for producers," film director Song Ziyue said. 

She said more opportunities are what young directors need the most. "It doesn't need to be a high investment production. Even short films, short dramas are a good option for young directors to gain experience and show their talent, realize their value, and find confidence." 

Talent and good content have been the focus of this year's Beijing International Film Festival. More support measures have been put in place to help those wanting to break into the film industry, such as young directors and those with the potential to stand out in different fields. 

The "Project Pitches segment" is helping to discover filmmakers with potential, providing a platform for investment, production, marketing and so on. Nearly 900 applications were received this year. Nineteen of them have been shortlisted. The judges come from across the industry – directors, actors and production company representatives. 

Yin Xiangjin, the general manager of Wanda Media said: "The future of the film industry must be these young professionals. I hope they can have more opportunities, such as from these film and television companies, directors, screenwriters, and the like... so they can show their talent on stage." 

Judges say only good stories matter. Winning projects will be selected and eventually turned into films.