Beijing film festival aims for higher profile

Chinese actress Wang Luodan waves as she walks the red carpet during the Beijing International Film Festival at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing, April 16, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

The fifth Beijing International Film Festival kicked off on April 16 with a new European chief adviser and a crop of heavyweight judges, who organizers hope will boost the event's profile.

At the opening ceremony in the Chinese capital, action movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger, scheduled to make a speech, walked the red carpet and greeted fans to loud cheers.

The week-long event received a boost earlier this year when organizers appointed Marco Mueller, who previously headed the Venice and Rome Film Festivals, as chief adviser.

A fluent Mandarin speaker, Mueller also produced the Academy Award-winning Bosnian film "No Man's Land", which won the "Best Foreign Language Film" category at the 2002 Oscars.

French director Luc Besson will lead a jury that also includes Russian director Fedor Bondarchuk, Hong Kong director Peter Chan and US screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen.