Post-Pandemic Shanghai Film Festival Dates Set

 China’s most prestigious cinematic event, the Shanghai Film Festival, is finally back to normal. Since the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic, the event has either been shelved, or simply been near-impossible to access for the international industry. Fittingly, this year will also mark the 25th Anniversary for this key part of the international film festival circuit. Entertainment lawyer Brandon Blake, of Blake & Wang P.A, has more.

Brandon Blake

The Beleaguered Post-Pandemic Era

The last time the festival has been a solid entry in international calendars was 2019. While it was intended to offer a 2022 event, it was canceled in the wake of a month-long resurgence of the COVID-19 virus and its accompanying travel restrictions. Technically speaking, the event did run in both 2020 and 2021, but due to the difficult climate and, again, those travel restrictions, it was nearly entirely a domestic Chinese affair.

The 2023 Edition

This year, the Shanghai Film Festival will run June 9 to June 18, with the categories expanded to 5 for this event- Asian newcomers, animation, documentaries, short films, and the feature film competition. 8,800 film entries have already been received, covering 128 geographic areas. Some of these (think 4,500) were entrants submitted for last year’s canceled festivities- the organizers have decided to leave them valid for this year, too.

The Shanghai International Film Market, which runs in tandem with the festival, will also return, though it will take place at the Longemont Hotel this year. The new location should make transit between the two key events much simpler for attendees. While the slate for the 25th edition of this beloved international movie festival will only be released over the coming weeks, it’s good indeed to see it back in its old slot- and finally in-person once again.



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