The 28th Shanghai International Film Festival opened on June 12 with the inauguration of a new technology creation and manufacturing department and a parallel press conference for Shanghai High-Tech Film and Television City held in the city’s Songjiang District.
The event brought together government officials and industry figures to mark what organizers billed as a new phase in Shanghai’s efforts to combine filmmaking with advanced technology.
Fang Shizhong, executive vice director of the Publicity Department of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China and director of the Shanghai Film Bureau, framed this initiative around three priorities. Building a stronger industrial ecosystem with AI and ultra-high-definition tools. Cultivating a new form of cinematic aesthetics through technology. and applying AI responsibly, rather than letting it override artistic and creative judgment. CPC Songjiang District Committee Secretary Wang Huajie cited the G60 Science and Technology Innovation Corridor and Songjiang University City as the main drivers of the growth of the AI-driven ecosystem in film production in the region.
Cao Jun, a member of the Party Leadership Committee and deputy secretary-general of the China Film Association, spoke on behalf of Deng Guanghui, secretary of the China Film Association Party Committee, pointing out that the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan period will be an important window for China’s film industry to assert itself in technological development. He called on practitioners to upgrade their creative workflows with new tools, expand the industrial ecosystem through the “Film Plus” model, and strengthen copyright protection.
The event served as a showcase for Shanghai High-Tech Film and Television City’s newly launched full-chain digital and intelligent ecological matrix – five service platforms spanning copyright trading, interactive short drama production, content incubation, AI-powered creative production, and film, culture and tourism integration. The platforms include Shanghai International Short Drama Copyright Exchange Center, AI Interactive Short Drama Creation Public Service Platform, Senyu SPACE MCN AI Full Chain Empowerment Platform, AIGC All-in-One Integrated Creative Platform, Hua Ace Yangtze River Delta International Film and Television Center AIGC All-Scenario Cultural Tourism and Film Empowerment Platform.
SFC Haopu Smart Industry Community launched the AI+ digital content industry innovation platform at the ceremony, debuted the AIGC short drama lineup, and announced the first investment under the Haowen Film Technology Fund. The community has also signed cooperation agreements with KPS, Shanghai International University Institute of Language Sciences, AltStory, and Kuaizi for partnerships focused on researching datasets, language corpus construction, and AI agents.
Several cross-regional partnership agreements were signed at the event. SFC Haopu and Bund FTC officially signed an industrial partnership to cooperate in digital content production, AIGC technology application, and online content production. Shanghai and Film Paradise Co., Ltd. separately signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Anhui Film Group to jointly promote 4K restoration of classic films and innovative utilization of film and television IP.
The opening event attracted more than 300 guests, including representatives of industry organizations such as the culture and tourism authorities of the Yangtze River Delta G60 Alliance, the Cinema Arts Center of the China Federation of Literary and Arts Circles, and the Shanghai Radio, Film and Television Production Industry Association. Immediately after the ceremony, a SIFFORUM session was held with the theme “Smart Tech, Immersive Worlds, and the Next Cinema Revolution.”
