Beijing 2022, the official film of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, premiered on April 22 as the opening film of the 13^th Beijing International Film Festival and was screened during the Beijing International Sports Film Week. On April 23, Beijing 2022 released a set of trailers and posters, and the film will be released nationwide from May 19.

The film was jointly produced by the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the International Olympic Committee and Beijing Cultural Investment Development Holding Co., Ltd., supervised by Zhang Yimou, directed by Lu Chuan, with Zhang Heping as general advisor and head of the expert advisor group. The film combines the form of feature films with that of documentaries, and focuses on the main thread of “Beijing – Building the Field of Play” and “Athletes - Returning to the Field of Play,” tells a delicate and exciting Winter Olympic story, and invites the audience to relive the passionate Games experience.

IOC President Thomas Bach sent a congratulatory video message, saying that the Beijing International Film Festival was the perfect stage for the premiere of Beijing 2022. The thought-provoking documentary-film chronicled the exceptional edition of Winter Olympics, which, to the greatest extent possible, embodied the Olympic motto: Faster, Higher, Stronger - Together. In this Olympic spirit, he thanked everyone who made this wonderful film possible.

In the trailer released, athletes Su Yiming, Wu Dajing, Ren Ziwei, Yan Wengang, and Hanyu Yuzuru appeared and shared with the audience their nervous state before the competition – which is rarely to hear, revealing their human side. The film also truly records the thorny problems encountered by the staff, and their mental strength in the face of difficulties. The posters capture the shining moments of athletes from all over the world, showing a truly exceptional edition of the Olympic Winter Games.

At the screening site, the audience present spoke highly of the film: “It is the best sport film I have seen.” Some said that the film showed the extraordinary stories about the ordinary participants of the Games outside the field of play. “It shows us exactly what made the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games exceptional.” Some of the audience was moved to tears several times. “Through the film, we know that the stories and the spirit of Winter Olympics will never be a memory only; instead, they will stay with us forever and guide us to the future together.”

Director Lu Chuan said: “Every second, every frame in the film is true. Even the athletes including Su didn’t know when they were filmed, for they were 100% focused on what they were doing. They were not acting for any single second. This is what makes the documentary-film valuable. It is not about acting; it is about living, about lives and human nature.”

Lu Chuan at the screening ceremony

Olympic champion Su Yiming said: “I cried a few times. Although there is a story about me in the movie, actually my memory is blurred because I was too intense or too excited to remember. I can’t remember every moment. The movie just reviewed those moments for me, and I am deeply moved.”

Su Yiming at the screening ceremony

Taekwondo Olympic champion Wu Jingyu said: “One of the things I felt most moved about today was that in the film, the athletes are treated as ordinary people. In this film, I see many more ordinary heroes.”

 “I’ve watched a lot of sport films because of my job, but Beijing 2022 is surely the best I’ve seen,” said Hou Kun, a member of the IOC’s Culture and Olympic Heritage Commission.

Wu Jingyu and Hou Kun at the screening ceremony

Ms. Yasmin Meichtry, associate director of the IOC Olympic Foundation for Culture and Heritage, said, “Movies are a very good illustration of the Olympic spirit. Sports are never just about competition. It’s a philosophy, a spirit, and behind it are stories and humanity. And the movie captures that.”

Yasmin Meichtry at the screening ceremony

It is learnt that as one of the films to be screened, the producers of Beijing 2022 will be invited to participate in the exchange session of the 19^th Beijing International Sports Film Week, to share the story behind the film production. The 19^th Beijing International Sports Film Week, with the theme of “Dual Olympic Dreams in Images,” was jointly organized by the Beijing International Film Festival Organizing Committee, the Chinese Olympic Committee (COC) and Beijing Olympic City Development Association, and undertaken by the Press Committee of the COC and Beijing Olympic City Development Center. As an important Olympic legacy brand project, it will spread the Olympic spirit through the power of sports films and TV productions, enhance the sport and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, and help build China into a sport powerhouse.