Central Axis competition gears up to host Beijing ceremony

The Competition for the Transmission and Promotion of the Beijing Central Axis has completed its final evaluation sessions and is scheduled to host an award ceremony on Jan 7 in Beijing.

To raise awareness about the value of Beijing's Central Axis, the core structure of Beijing that runs 7.8 kilometers from south to north, and encourage more people from all walks of life to engage in its protection, the Beijing Cultural Heritage Bureau and the Beijing Office for Conservation and Management of the Beijing Central Axis have been running this competition since 2021.

Following its recurring theme of passing down and promoting the cultural heritage, this year's competition set up five major categories: renovation, art, design, ambassador, and digitization. These are then further divided into 12 sections.

These categories invite people from any age group or nationality with an interest in Beijing's Central Axis to promote the cultural heritage in creative formats, from renovation plans for old buildings, original music pieces and artworks, to cultural merchandise design and re-creation of the sites using digital technologies.

Since calling for entries on June 15, this year's competition attracted a total of more than 100,000 submissions, a significant jump from last year's 76,419 entries, according to organizers.

Under the art category, the video and image section, which calls for photos and short videos of the Central Axis' scenery, architecture and people, completed its final evaluation on Nov 20, marking the completion of the assessments for this year's submissions.

This subcategory received nearly 20,000 entries, ranging from photographs, artworks to short documentaries. A total of 100 photography works and 16 videos were shortlisted, reviewed by a jury comprising experts and scholars in documentary filmmaking and photography.

"The participants' works featured truly impressive visuals," said Xu Weinan, a documentary director from China Media Group and a jury member.