Shanghai Int'l Film & TV Festival: Worldwide documentary makers share opinions on how industry has changed

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This week's Shanghai Television Festival features a series of forums in which industry leaders in China and abroad are invited to share their views on various forms of television production. Today's FOCUS was on the changes in documentary making over the years. CGTN's Xu Mengqi reports.

If treasures could talk. This mini-documentary series tells the stories of 100 Chinese artifacts from the neolithic age to the Qing Dynasty, and each episode is only five minutes long.

Xu Huan, its director, says she's looking to pique the interest of today's young people.

XU HUAN, DOCUMENTARY PRODUCER CHINA CENTRAL TELEVISION "This is an attempt to adapt documentary production to what is called the 'fragmented age'."

To address the changes in the documentary-making industry, producers and directors were invited to share their thoughts and practices at this year's Shanghai International Film & TV Festival. Tetsuaki Matsue has been making documentaries for 20 years.

TETSUAKI MATSUE JAPANESE DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR "In the past, if you were to make a documentary, you would need millions of Japanese yen, but now it doesn't cost a thing. I started when I was 20, but young people today could easily shoot a documentary with their digital devices. It's a great opportunity."

The changes in how documentaries are made is not only reflected in the new modes and means of production, speakers say it's also in how they are distributed and also the various demographics of its audience. Li Bing, the director of the documentary department at China's streaming giant Youku, gave us his thoughts on the matter.

LI BING DIRECTOR OF DOCUMENTARY CENTER YOUKU, ALIBABA DIGITAL MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT GROUP "From our digital platform, we are seeing more people choosing to watch documentaries, and we're seeing an expansion not only in the size of our audience, but also in their levels of education and their consumption capabilities."

However, despite all the advances in technology, documentary directors and producers say the nature of this art-form has remained unchanged, and that is documenting the truth.

Xu Mengqi, CGTN, Shanghai.