China, Pakistan to jointly produce film on CPEC

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif (left) and Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right) have a press conference after their meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing, China, April 23, 2018. Madoka Ikegami/Pool via Reuters - RC190D4A2C80

For the first time, filmmakers from China and Pakistan will jointly produce a movie showcasing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to highlight the "intimate friendship" of the people from the two countries, according to a media report.

The USD 50 billion CPEC, a flagship project of Chinese President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), has become a major issue as it traversed through the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), prompting strong protests from India.

India has refused to endorse the BRI at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit held this month in Qingdao in China.

The movie named "The Journey" will tell stories of Chinese businesses participating in the construction of the corridor in response to the BRI, Wang Haiping, director of the scriptwriting committee of the China Television Artists Association was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

"The intimate friendship of the people from the two countries will be highlighted in the movie," he said at the ongoing first SCO film festival in Qingdao.

Wang, also the scriptwriter of the film, said the movie will be based on real life stories.

Chinese and Pakistani parties will cooperate in scriptwriting, shooting, post-production, and screening of the movie, he said, adding that shooting for the film is likley to start in early 2019.