Jackie Chan says Hollywood pressure will boost Chinese movies

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Actor Jackie Chan was among the five members of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in the cultural field who met with the media in Beijing on Tuesday.

They discussed how to consolidate confidence in Chinese cultural roots and tell Chinese stories to the outside world.

Actor Jackie Chan. /Xinhua Photo

Chan, an honorary Oscar winner and poster child of Chinese culture overseas, recalled his efforts to promote Chinese culture in Hollywood. As an international kung fu superstar, Chan introduced the martial art to the outside world and brought humor to kung fu movies.

Chan said China is now such a big box office that moviemakers around the world are eager to take a share of it. Pressure from imports of Hollywood blockbusters will make Chinese directors and actors deliver the essence of China to the world with more efforts.

CCTV anchor Hai Xia. /Xinhua Photo

Hai Xia, a CCTV anchor, said Chinese culture is a rich mine for TV producers to utilize when asked about the popularity of some cultural programs on TV. Hai said good examples are recent televised contests on Chinese characters, idiom and poetry, like the Chinese Poetry Conference and the Chinese characters dictation competition.

And the shows are proving popular internationally. The second season of Chinese Poetry Conference has viewership of over eight million people on Facebook as of mid-February, according to Hai. She encouraged Chinese to inherit their own culture, just as Chinese President Xi Jinping noted: “Giving up traditions and losing our foundations are equivalent to cutting off our spiritual lifeblood.”

Phoenix TV CEO Liu Changle. /Xinhua Photo

When asked how to tell a good Chinese story, Liu Changle, Phoenix TV CEO, also said China's years-long fight against corruption was a good topic for artists to base their works on.

Chinese author Feng Jicai. /Xinhua Photo

Feng Jicai, a Chinese author, mentioned that the younger generation is the core of cultural inheritance and communication, and agreed that Chinese traditional culture should be incorporated in school textbooks.

President of China's Association of Calligraphers Su Shishu. /Xinhua Photo

Su Shishu, president of China's Association of Calligraphers, said that efforts are being made to place Chinese calligraphy in‍ the curriculum for elementary schools.

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