When Silhouettes Gain Names: The 15th BJIFF “BE SEEN Program” Announces Its Selected Actors of the Year
In an era when the film industry is rapidly evolving and artistic heritage requires urgent resonance, China's film industry faces a new imperative: cultivating next-generation actors who combine professional mastery with contemporary sensibility. While exceptional performances are not in short supply, the critical challenge is accurately matching raw talent with industry needs, which is the key to the industry ecosystem's virtuous cycle.
Against this backdrop, China Film Fund and Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF) jointly launched the “BE SEEN Youth Actors Support Program”, which focuses on the sustainable development of talented young actors and the establishment of a green channel connecting actors and the industry.
The “BE SEEN Program” specially invited People's Artist Tian Hua to serve as an honorary advisor.
At the 2024 “BE SEEN Program” press conference, veteran actress Tian Hua said: “We must push Chinese cinema to the world's summit through steadfast, step-by-step climbing.” As a witness to the growth of the film industry in New China, she lit the torch for the BE SEEN Program's launch with her inspiring words. Today, the BE SEEN Program has made significant progress and taken a strong first step. The first “BE SEEN Program” will be officially held during this year's 15th BJIFF, thanks to the industry's support and deep insights into the young actor group.
Since actor registration for this year's BE SEEN Program opened, the Organizing Committee has received 385 valid registrations. Among them, young actors born after 1990 account for up to three-quarters. These young actors who have been in the industry for a number of years are still looking for opportunities in the industry. Independent actors account for 65%, reflecting that there are still a large number of excellent actors waiting to be seen beyond the reach of the talent agencies. Despite the fact that the majority of applicants have received professional training, almost everyone mentioned “few on-screen opportunities” and “lack of representative works” in the registration questionnaire.
The “BE SEEN Program”, the BJIFF's first actor-centric initiative, aims to provide consistent companionship and systematic guidance to young actors, allowing them to see each other and accelerate their integration into the industry and market.
During the final review meeting, the final review committee, composed of five industry benchmark figures: director Li Shaohong, cinematographer Zhao Xiaoding, talent agent Mani Fok, actor Huang Jue, and producer Qian Zhongyuan, conducted in-depth perception and detailed comments on each actor's performance. They provided practical suggestions to young actors from different perspectives of the industrial chain, ensuring that no young performing talent with potential was overlooked. Through the performance presentations and in-depth dialogues during the final review process, the young actors received a very practical growth guide in terms of performance adaptability, role understanding and on-site expressiveness, and internalized the review committee's accumulated experience as a driving force for continuous progress.
After rigorous preliminary selection and careful review and discussion by the final review committee, the Selected Actors of the Year of the first “BE SEEN Youth Actors Support Program” were officially announced:
Benefits for Selected Actors of the Year 2025:
1. The Selected Actors of the Year will engage in in-depth discussions with the directors shortlisted for the BJIFF Project Pitches section, and a strategic synergy of young creative forces will be established through the precise matching of the talent pool to the project pool.
2. The BJIFF Project Pitches Training Camp and NEWHER Women-Focused Film Section have established priority recommendation channels for the Selected Actors of the Year to improve the efficient conversion of high-quality creative resources.
3. During the 16-day intensive training camp, the selected actors will receive professional guidance and learning opportunities from Mentor of the Year and advisory groups made up of first-line actors, directors, producers, and other industry professionals.
4. The BE SEEN Training Camp · Global Competition will invite 200+ industry-leading company representatives, young directors with quality projects, and selected actors to collaborate and exchange ideas, promoting in-depth matching between actors and industry.
5. The Selected Actors of the Year will join the BE SEEN Youth Film Creation Committee. The committee will continue to monitor the actors' development trends and will integrate the Youth Film Creation Committee's creator pool and industry resource pool with the actors in order to provide full-chain escort services for the actors.
The first “BE SEEN Youth Actors Support Program” is co-organized by the China Film Fund and the BJIFF Organizing Committee. Shanghai Film Group, Changchun Film Group, China Western Film Group, and Guangxi Film Group are the first initiators; Poly Film is the co-host, and China Film Fund Film Performing Arts Special Fund is the organizer. The first batch of supporting institutions are Beijing Film Academy and the Central Academy of Drama, and the first batch of industry support units are Light Chaser Animation Studios and Youku Technology.
To better escort the growth of talented young actors during the BE SEEN Training Camp, the “BE SEEN Program” specially invites powerful mentors from the industry to assist, share experiences and provide guidance. The “BE SEEN Program” recently announced that Zhou Yiwei will participate in related activities as Mentor of the Year at the training camp. Mentors for dialogue, creation sharing, and so on will be announced shortly. Please stay tuned.
Thirty rising stars are about to embark on a spectacular artistic journey. These previously peripheral silhouettes in cinema's depth of field have now come into focus as distinct names. Selection marks merely the first spark. The “BE SEEN Program” commits to long-term accompaniment, ensuring that these faces are seen by a larger audience. Together, we will weave starlight into screens, turning this moment into the beginning of iconic characters.
