FILM director Zhang Yimou has been appointed chairman of the third China Film Directors’ Guild Young Director Support Program, according to the organizers.

The China Film Directors’ Guild launched the annual program in 2015 to help young directors raise money and recruit casts. Feng Xiaogang, the director who’s known for a series of commercially successful hits, was the first chairman. In the following year, the chairman’s seat was handed to Jia Zhangke, an internationally recognized director known for arthouse dramas.

The program stipulates that applicants should be younger than 38. This year, the program will offer new incentives for winners, including an acting class, inviting celebrities to coach as mentors and providing professional training.

(SD-Agencies)