On June 11, the promotion event for the 5th “Beijing - A Global City” Short Video Contest was held at CUEB. The contest aims to study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and the spirit of the National Education Conference, to further strengthen the university’s international engagement and offer students a platform to foster cross-cultural understanding. The event was featured a presentation by Justyna Szpakowska, one of the contest judges, a Polish international producer and media strategist. Attendees included Yang Xu and Zhou Aoshuang (on secondment), Deputy Directors of the Information Division (Public Diplomacy Division) of the Foreign Affairs Office of Beijing Municipal Government; Du Yan, Deputy Director of China News Service (Beijing); and Fu Lin, Member of Standing Committee of CUEB Party Committee, Director of CUEB Party Committee Publicity Department and the News Center.

In her presentation titled “Creating Internationally Impactful Short Videos: How to move global audiences?”, Szpakowska introduced the contest in details, shared insights from her personal learning and research experiences along with award-winning entries from previous competitions. She also engaged in extensive exchanges with students on site, encouraging students to participate in shaping Beijing’s global narrative through their creative works.

She analyzed diverse formats in previous contests—including vlogs, city promos, micro-docs, narrative shorts, and street interviews—and encouraged students to innovate by integrating digital and smart technologies to their work. She emphasized capturing Beijing’s uniqueness from an “outsider’s” lens, highlighting cross-cultural collaboration. Using examples like “Traditional Chinese Medicine: A German Practitioner’s Journey in Beijing” and “Culinary Culture: Traditional Beijing Snack (Gezhi Box)”, as well as award-winning works such as “Chasing Dreams in Beijing,” Szpakowska explained how to identify engaging topics and structuring narratives effectively. She gave the following advice:

lFirst, crafting a core message that resonates with audiences and creating content with “memorable hooks” to spark engagement;

lSecond, using small-scale storytelling to reflect broader societal observations through an international lens;

lThird, adopting cross-cultural perspectives and global storytelling techniques to showcase Beijing’s development and achievements in the new era as a hub for international exchange.

Yang Xu shared her thoughts with students, encouraging them to actively participate in the contest by learning and drawing inspirations from past award-winning works. She stressed the importance of timeliness and creativity, and unique perspectives in crafting entries that effectively communicate Beijing’s voice and present China’s image well to the world.

At the end of the event, Szpakowska engaged with the audience, deepening their understanding of the contest and inspiring creative ideas.

This gathering for a visual journey represents our university’s commitment to foster interaction and mutual enhancement between talent development and cultural enrichment in Beijing’s higher education landscape. It also serves as an effective pathway to enhance CUEB’s international communication capacity.

The 5th “Beijing - A Global City” Short Video Contest is guided by the Information Communication Bureau of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee and the Department of Press, Communication and Public Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is hosted by the Office of Foreign Affairs Committee of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee and the Foreign Affairs Office of the People’s Government of Beijing Municipal, and organized by China News Service (Beijing) International Communication Group. As a typical event for shaping and promoting Beijing’s international image, the contest has been held for five consecutive years, attracting participants from over 100 countries and regions with nearly 1,000 short videos in total.

This promotional event was co-hosted by the CUEB Party Committee Publicity Department, School of International Education, Student Affairs Department of the Party Committee, and the Youth League Committee of CUEB. Other attendees included Wang Lu, Deputy Director of the Party Committee Publicity Department and Executive Deputy Director of the News Center; Yu Jia, Deputy Dean of the School of International Education; and nearly 200 Chinese and international students from CUEB.