The 8th Beijing International Film Festival has wrapped up at the scenic Yanqi Lake. Over the span of a week, more than three hundred events in 7 categories took place, pushing forward the progress of China's film industry.

The week-long festival saw about 15-thousand industry insiders from over 50 countries and regions participate. A total of 659 films from six continents were submitted to the festival's Tiantan Award. Compared to last year, this is an increase of 235. 

WANG JINSONG, DEPUTY DIRECTOR PERFORMANCE INSTITUTE OF BEIJING FILM ACADEMY "Beijing is also the capital of films in China, a leading force of the film industry. The Beijing International Film Festival is in its eighth year now. It has become a wind vane for China's film industry."

The Film Market Section of this year's event witnessed agreements worth over 26 billion yuan being signed on the spot. This was almost 50 percent more than last year. The event offers an important platform to promote the development of China's film industry, and encourage communication between different cultures.

Movie-making in China has taken large strides forward recently, with 970 films produced last year. Box office revenues reached 56 billion yuan, a year-on-year growth of almost 13.5 percent. China has emerged as the largest film market in the world. Against this backdrop of vigorous development, the Beijing International Film Festival is sure to grab more and more of the global film industry's attention. SW CGTN.