Awards, Competitions and Forums Feature in Globally Prestigious Event

The long-awaited 17th Shanghai Television Festival will kick off on June 6 with a grand ceremony to honor 30 or so talented young Chinese TV hosts of entertainment shows.

The festival is one of the largest and most prestigious TV events in the Asian entertainment industry and will run to June 10.

It features a range of activities, such as the Magnolia Awards for international TV productions, an international film and TV market, animation project pitching, an international new media and broadcasting equipment market, the Magnolia Forum, and the Shanghai Student Television Festival.

This year more than 80 of the latest TV productions, selected from 1000 submissions from home and abroad, will compete for 24 coveted awards in categories such as TV film, TV drama, documentary and animation.

There is also a special award for Best Foreign TV Drama which will be presented to the most acclaimed foreign sitcom of the past year. Mainland actor Huang Zhizhong and Japanese actress Chie Tanaka will be among the guests for the award presentation.

The International Film and TV Market will be held at Shanghai Exhibition Center from June 7 to 9 and hundreds of TV station executives, producers, distributors and professional buyers are expected to attend.

The Magnolia Forum aims to introduce the latest foreign TV production concepts and technology to the domestic industry. High-level industry professionals and investors from around the world will discuss new trends and hot issues, such as new media, animation and entertainment TV formats.

This year\'s festival will also host an Oriental Creation Bidding conference to showcase innovative and effective TV format pitches. It will feature a total of 25 entries from renowned format developers, production companies and creative talent. The best 10 will be given a festival award and a chance to go into production in collaboration with local TV channels.

Another important program, the Shanghai Student Television Festival (June 7-9), will continue to provide a platform to showcase emerging campus talents. More than 500 original TV films from 83 colleges around China will vie for the festival\'s 15 prizes. College students will also be encouraged to discuss the rapid change in TV programs in the Internet age.

During the festival, more than 40 domestic and foreign TV films, documentaries and animated series will be telecast each night on the local Documentary Channel, Drama Channel, Art Channel, International Channel Shanghai, Toonmax TV and Haha TV.