The 26th Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) will kick off June 14 and run until June 23. The opening ceremony will be held on the evening of June 15 and the Golden Goblet Awards Ceremony will be held on June 22, both at the Shanghai Grand Theatre.

The SIFF launched its call for entries on Dec 15, 2023, and had received over 3,300 submissions from 105 countries and regions across five continents by March 31. Among them, more than 2,300 films have registered for the Golden Goblet Awards Main Competition, Asian New Talent, Documentary, Animation, and Short Film categories, including works from both established and emerging filmmakers. The list of nominees for the Golden Goblet Awards will be announced in May.

As the only international competitive feature film festival in China, SIFF serves as a crucial window for the world to observe China's film development. In 2023, the Belt and Road Film Festival Alliance, initiated by SIFF, was included in the outcomes list of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. In 2024, as the second "golden decade" of the joint construction of the Belt and Road was unveiled, SIFF will screen films recommended by institutions from Belt and Road countries in cinemas across the Yangtze River Delta region, fostering cross-border dialogues.

Adhering to the principle of "focusing on Asia, paying attention to Chinese-language films, and supporting emerging talents," SIFF has established a "6+1" system for cultivating young talents — SIFF EXPLORE, Golden Goblet Awards Short Film, SIFF NEXT, SIFF PROJECT, Golden Goblet Awards for Asian New Talent, Golden Goblet Awards Main Competition, and SIFF YOUNG.

The SIFF EXPLORE, for films with a maximum length of 5 minutes, is now in its fifth year and has received over 1,000 submissions, with an increasing number of overseas entries, constituting about a third of the total. Special screening salons will be organized for the Short Film category of this year's competition, featuring excellent works honored in previous years.

The Short Film category calls for animation and live-action entries from around the globe and includes new works by renowned directors. The Short Film category for international film screenings will show a collection of nominated works or winners from major film festivals, as well as outstanding Chinese-language works.

The SIFF NEXT, upgraded to a two-stages-in-one-year model in 2019, has refined its process now in the fifth year. A total of 331 valid applications were received, including 39 producers, 42 screenwriters, and 250 directors.

The SIFF PROJECT has been held for 16 years. This year's international cooperation projects feature works not only from the United States, Japan, and France, as commonly seen in previous years, but also from Germany, Iceland, Italy, and other countries.

The third SIFF YOUNG will continue to recommend outstanding young directors, producers, and screenwriters, with the list announced during the festival in June.

As a barometer of the film industry, the SIFF Market will explore the prospects of the industry through exhibitions, market events, and market screenings with film institutions and practitioners from home and abroad.

The SIFForum, attended by masters from around the world, will share insights into the art of film. The thematic forums and MasterClass will provide valuable insights into current research and practices, as well as future developments and innovations from multiple perspectives such as industry landscape, film creation, technological frontiers, and cultural exchanges.

In the era of technological advancement, innovation presents both opportunities and challenges for the film industry. Following its debut last year, Sci-Fi Film Week will focus on how the development of artificial intelligence is driving the advancement of the film industry. This year's SIFF will organize thematic screenings and forums around hot topics such as "Sora" and plans to introduce new activities such as the Sci-Fi Masterclass and Sci-Fi IP Pitch. VISION LAB, a digital film experience exhibition, will also be open to the public, where visitors can experience cutting-edge imaging technologies.

This year, SIFF screening invitations have received responses from 114 cinemas in Shanghai. From June 14 to 23, visit a cinema and enjoy the city's beauty through films.