If the Global Business Journalism program is a global village, the Tsinghua University campus is a global super-city. Students from dozens of countries attend classes together and learn from each other's cultures. This cross-cultural experience continues in the evening after classes conclude for the day.
On one recent evening, the cultural treat was an Iranian film, “Castle of Dreams,” about the experiences of a family struggling with multiple crises. Screened on Nov. 7 at the Old Auditorium, the event also featured a Q&A session with director Reza Mirkarimi. The event was introduced by Global Business Journalism's Maria Rincon, a Canadian of Colombian and Chinese ancestry.
Organized by Tsinghua University’s Centre for Global Competence Development and the Student Association of Belt and Road Initiative (SABRI), this was the first event of the new Silk Road Film Exchange Program. The initiative's goal is to promote intercultural understanding between countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative through film exchange.
Guests in attendance included His Excellency Mr. Shah-Beig, Deputy Ambassador of the Iranian embassy in China; Professor Li Xiguang, President of Tsinghua International Center for Communications Studies and a co-founder of the Global Business Journalism Program; Mrs. Liao Ying, Director of Centre for Global Competence Development, and Mr. David Zupko, Deputy Head of Tsinghua University International Affairs.
During the Q&A session with director Mirkarimi, audience members asked questions in English, Chinese and Persian about the film, the director's artistic vision and the current state of Iranian cinema. Mirkarimi is a leading Iranian film writer and director who has won international acclaim at international film festivals including Cannes, Shanghai, Tokyo and Moscow. Three of his films have been nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar award.
“Castle of Dreams” won multiple prizes at the 22nd Shanghai International Film Festival including, best feature film, best director, and best male lead.
