Chinese Film Week in Cyprus gets off to flying start

The opening ceremony of Chinese Film Week in Cyprus was held with great success on June 10, 2026, at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre. The event took place in the presence of political leaders and official guests, marking a memorable start to the two-day festival. Chinese Film Week in Cyprus is part of the celebration of the United Nations International Day for Intercultural Dialogue, as well as the celebration of the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Cyprus, a relationship founded on mutual respect, cooperation and shared cultural dialogue. The evening featured the premiere of Sound of Shanghai, a film production of symbolic significance for the event, which highlights Cypriot director Mario Ioannou Elias as a living bridge between the two cultures. The Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Republic of Cyprus, Zhou Yunliang, emphasised in his speech that Chinese Film Week is a continuation of a long tradition of friendship between the two peoples, rooted in mutual respect and cooperation over the course of 55 years of diplomatic relations. Referring to the International Day for Dialogue among Cultures, he stressed that in a time of growing uncertainty, exchange and mutual understanding between cultures are more necessary than ever. In closing, he expressed the hope that this Week would serve as an opportunity to further deepen relations, so that the friendship between China and Cyprus may continue to flourish from generation to generation. In turn, Director General of the Deputy Ministry of Culture, George G. Papageorgiou, stated that Chinese Film Week offered the Cypriot public a valuable opportunity to experience the richness and diversity of contemporary Chinese cinema. The premiere of The Sound of Shanghai, he noted, was living proof that artistic creation can transcend borders and bring cultures together. As part of the Deputy Ministry of Culture’s preparations to implement President Nikos Christodoulides’ vision for a cultural diplomacy strategy, he pointed out that initiatives of this kind are of particular importance, while expressing his conviction that there is significant potential for further cooperation between Cyprus and China in the audiovisual sector. The event was attended by the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General and Head of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), His Excellency Khassim Diagne, who emphasised that cultural diversity is not a barrier, but a bridge. He spoke about the role of cinema as a medium that transcends borders and languages, bringing people and societies together. With particular reference to Cyprus, he noted that the island, historically a crossroads of civilisations, understands more deeply than anywhere else both the value of dialogue and the cost of its absence. In closing, he called for a renewed commitment to choosing dialogue over confrontation, by investing in initiatives bringing peoples and cultures together. Director Marios Ioannou Elias, whose film, Sound of Shanghai, made its European premiere that evening, stressed that the work was born out of an act of listening rather than explanation. Referring to the International Day of Dialogue among Cultures, he noted that harmony is not the absence of difference, but its creative integration. He expressed his gratitude to the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Cyprus, the China Film Administration and the Ministry of Culture, as well as to Shanghai itself, a city that, as he said, welcomed him as a visitor and inspired him as an artist. Chinese Film Week in Cyprus culminates on June 15, 2026. On June 11, at 8pm, the film A Table For Two was screened at the Pantheon Theatre in Nicosia, with free admission. On June 12, at 6pm, the animated film I Am What I Am was screened at Amphitheatre 1 of the Cyprus University of Technology in Limassol, also with free admission, while at 8pm on the same day, the Pantheon Theatre hosted Night King. On June 13, at 8pm, The Shadow’s Edge was screened again at the Pantheon Theatre, and on June 14, at 8pm, the film It’s OK brought the public screenings to a close. The closing ceremony takes place on Monday, June 15, at 6.30pm at K-Cineplex Nicosia Prime, featuring a screening of the film Blades of the Guardians: Wind Rises in the Desert, and is by invitation only. All films are screened with Greek and English subtitles.