From August 30th to September 1st, the China-Arab Animation Industry Forum was held in Suzhou. Lu Yingchuan, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, Xu Ying, Vice Governor of Jiangsu Provincial People's Government, Amir Nabih, First Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture of Egypt, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches, and Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, sent a video message. Faculty and students from Nanjing University of the Arts successfully completed the planning, directing and performance tasks for the opening ceremony of the forum. Li Xiangmin, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the University, was invited to attend the opening ceremony and presided over the University forum. He also represented our university in signing a memorandum of understanding with Ain Shams University in Egypt.

This forum was jointly organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, Jiangsu Province People's Government, and the Secretariat of the League of Arab States. The Department of International Exchange and Cooperation of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the Department of Culture and Tourism of Jiangsu Province, and the Suzhou Municipal People's Government took responsibility for co-hosting the event. Themed China-Arab New Era: Animation Creates the Future, the event brought together guests from nine countries and regions including Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Tunisia, and others. They joined Chinese participants, and a total of about 200 guests gathered to hold discussions on the animation industry, foster friendships, and envision the bright prospects of jointly building the Belt and Road initiative.

Faculty and students from Nanjing University of the Arts, along with other artists from China and abroad, presented a splendid performance at the opening ceremony, which received enthusiastic applause from the audience. The opening dance performance Silk Road: A New Dialogue integrated multimedia elements with dance, poetically showcasing the development of friendship between China and Arab countries along the Silk Road.

Our faculty member, Shan Wen, and Vice Dean of Suzhou Kunqu Opera Theatre, Yu Jiulin, both recipients of the Plum Blossom Award, presented an absorbing performance of a classic excerpt from the Kunqu OperaThe Peony Pavilion: Startled in a Dream. Their performance showcased the exquisite beauty of traditional Chinese opera.

Our faculty members, Jiang Xiaomeng and Zhang Dandan, along with Arab singers Abdeshmand Bekkad (Algeria) and Sandra Tawadros (Egypt), performed the bilingual theme song Between Clouds and Water during the forum. Their collaboration brought the atmosphere to a climax. The mythical characters Magic Brush Ma Liang and Aladdin, well-known in both China and the Arab region, were creatively designed throughout the entire artistic performance, successfully portraying the deep and longstanding friendship between China and Arab countries.

During the forum, multiple institutions from China and Arab countries jointly initiated the establishment of an Animation Industry Alliance. Cultural enterprises and organizations from both sides signed agreements on co-production of TV animated series, co-production of animated films, digital collaboration in film production, as well as animation and technology services. Li Xiangmin and Ghada Saad, the Acting President of Ain Shams University in Egypt, signed a memorandum of understanding on behalf of their respective schools, aiming to promote cultural and artistic exchanges between China and Arab countries and cultivate talents in the field of animation arts. Li Xiangmin was invited to host a university forum with the theme Cultural Talents Development in the Digital Transformation of International Education. Guests from universities in China and Arab countries delivered speeches on the topic, discussing how to enhance the quality of talent cultivation in the context of digital transformation in international education. They also delved into exploring ways to enhance exchange and cooperation in the fields of education and humanities, aiming to promote mutual benefits and win-win outcomes among universities in China and Arab countries.

In July of this year, our university received an invitation from the organizing committee to stage the opening performance for this forum. The Purple Academy of Culture and Creativity meticulously planned the creative concept for the opening ceremony. Li Xiangmin took the lead in planning and composing the theme song Between Clouds and Water for the forum, as well as writing the lyrics. The lyrics incorporated quotes from classic literary works from both China and the Arab region, while the melody blended musical elements from both cultures, symbolizing that the friendship between China and Arab countries flows through the melodic notes between clouds and water. Faculty and students from the School of Music, Dance Academy, School of Movie and Television, and School of Popular Music sacrificed their summer break and put a great deal of effort into the staging of the performance.

Participating in this forum is a vivid practice of our university to implement the spirit of the China-Arab States Summit, support the Eight Major Initiatives of China-Arab pragmatic cooperation, and promote people-to-people exchanges under the Belt and Road initiative. In the future, our university will join hands with universities in Arab countries to uphold the spirit of China-Arab friendship that emphasizes mutual assistance, equality, mutual benefit, inclusiveness, and mutual learning. We will expand cooperation in the field of arts, deepen people-to-people exchanges, foster mutual understanding between peoples, and contribute our strength to actively building a China-Arab community with a shared future in the new era and promoting diversity of world civilizations. (Department of International Exchanges and Cooperation)