Time:2016-05-10 Source:Shenzhen Daily

People at the opening ceremony of an innovation base for college students in Shenzhen University. Courtesy of Shenzhen University

People attend a documentary screening at OCT-LOFT. Courtesy of OCT-LOFT

The second phase of Shenzhen University Creative Park. Courtesy of Shenzhen University Creative Park

A party held in the Shekou I-Factory, a creative art district remodeled from an old glass factory. Courtesy of Shekou I-Factory

Zhang Yang

nicolezyyy@163.com

THE 12th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industry Fair (ICIF) will be held at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center from May 12 to 16, with 11 branch venues being set up in Nanshan District, Shenzhen, China, this year.

These 11 venues are OCT-LOFT, Shenzhen University Creative Park, Artron Art Center, the Shenzhen Design Industrial Park, NHECOOL, OCT tourism resorts, Shenzhen Polytechnic Creative Center, Global Digital Creations (GDC), Shenzhen University, Fantawild and Shekou Net Valley.

A total of 125 events, including cultural activities, creative bazaars, seminars and trade shows will be hosted in 11 venues as side events of ICIF this year.

The ICIF venues in Nanshan District are themed “Creative Nanshan, Culture of the Future,” as the Nanshan government plans to turn the district into a creative cultural center in Shenzhen by integrating cultural creativity with technologic innovation.

All side events will be hosted to showcase seven key cultural industries in Nanshan District, including creative design, game animation, digital media, film and television production, high-end printing, cultural software and cultural tourism.

Revolving around the theme of “Business Born in Fun,” the Shenzhen University Creative Park will host a series of events such as a creative bazaar, a motorcycle race, a music festival, a talent show and a maker forum from May 14 to 20. A matchmaking event will be hosted for makers and investors, with outdoor activities such as hiking and treasure hunts being scheduled.

Dozens of cultural events such as the artwork trade fair, jewelry trade fair, creative bazaar and intangible cultural heritage exhibition will be hosted at Shenzhen Polytechnic Creative Center from May 11 to 16.

Visitors can try Virtual Reality (VR) devices and circular-screen movies at an engineering lab, while jewelry experts will provide free jewel appraisals and consultation for jewelry collectors.

The Shenzhen Design Industrial Park will host a national designer conference, gift fair, design contest, workshops and a designer job fair from May 12 to 17. An estimated 100 art and design companies will attend the job fair, which is expected to attract over 1,000 jobseekers.

The third Tomorrow Festival will be hosted in OCT-LOFT from May 11 to 15, where 18 musicians from six countries will perform various music ranging from rock to jazz each night. Apart from concerts, public lectures and documentary screenings will be hosted during the festival.

A number of cultural events, such as a photography exhibition and a creative bazaar will also be hosted in OCT-LOFT, offering visitors an opportunity to experience different artistic genres and communicate with artists.

Shenzhen University will host a trade show for cross-strait student makers from May 11 to 14. Over 30 makers teams from Taiwan, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and other cities on the mainland will attend the trade show, showcasing their innovative ideas and projects to representatives from over 20 startup incubators based in Shenzhen.

In a bid to inspire college students’ maker spirit and entrepreneurship, other events including a cross-strait student makers’ exchange camp, a seminar about creative cultural industry, a design contest and a fashion show will also be hosted at Shenzhen University from May 12 to 16.

At Fantawild’s venue, visitors can play free motion sensing games. Besides, 4-D movies with an 840-square-meter screen and 360-degree circular-screen movies will also be available, while side-line products of animated films will be displayed and sold during the event.

GDC, a Hong Kong-based technology company specializing in computer graphics, will host a string of events such as an animation trade fair, family film screenings, an animation carnival and puzzle games from May 12 to 16. Visitors can also experience VR technology and 3-D printing at the venue.

NHECOOL will host a number of events, including a maker fair, pottery workshop, drama show and creative bazaar in the Shekou I-Factory, a creative art district remodeled from an old glass factory.

The Redbull Mad House Vol.2 warehouse rave party was held at Shekou I-Factory on Saturday as a warm-up event for the ICIF. Popular DJs from home and aboard, including R3HAB and Gary Tao, were invited to the party.

In a bid to promote China-France culture exchange, Happy Valley will host a string of events such as Sino-France cultural galas, seminars, art exhibitions and performances. Window of the World will host a Southeast Asia Cultural Festival, while performers from Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia and Vietnam will present their traditional music, handicrafts and dancing to visitors.

An exposition showcasing traditional villages of Chinese ethnic minorities will be hosted at Splendid China from May 12 to 18, with photo exhibitions, theme performances and a minority cultural industry summit scheduled. OCT Harbor will host several art exhibitions featuring innovative spatial design and a forum exploring the integration of art and commercial space.

At Hall 1 of the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center, ICIF’s main venue, an exhibition area of 569 square meters will be reserved for Nanshan District. Around 40 enterprises based in the district will attend the fair and showcase their latest creative cultural and technology projects.

The exhibition area will consist of five sections displaying cutting-edge technology such as VR devices, drones, home-use robots and smart household appliances. High-end art work, such as stone carving, paintings and calligraphy will also be presented to attendees, along with innovative projects representing the integration of frontier technology and traditional culture.

There were 16 cultural parks and over 3,000 cultural legal entities based in Nanshan District as of the end of last year. The cultural industry contributed to 16 percent of the district’s GDP last year, according to the district’s cultural industry development office.

The office’s data showed that the cultural industry’s added value in Nanshan District amounted to 59.4 billion yuan last year, making up 33.83 percent of the city’s overall added value generated by the cultural industry. Cooperation deals involving 6.5 billion yuan (US$1.02 billion) were inked at Nanshan District’s venues during the ICIF last year.