Editor's Note

Chunwan, or CCTV's Spring Festival Gala, is an unavoidable topic once it comes to the midpoint of a year. This topic is even hotter than any years before. The State Administration of Press Publication, Radio, Film and Television issued a notice to its counterpart organs at the level of provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions on July 1, claiming that the CCTV Gala for the Spring Festival 2014 will be changed in terms of the mechanism in producing it, including the competitive selection of the directing team and the programs. It will be a transparent progress in making the gala, CCTV reportecd.

Latest News

Rehearsals fierce for CCTV Spring Festival Gala
There are less than two weeks to go till Lunar New Year's Eve, when China's largest variety show, the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, is aired. A major highlight every year is the "language category", which includes crosstalk and comic sketches.

China cuts new year TV galas amid anti-graft pushxc
China has cut three out of four widely watched Spring Festival galas sponsored by ministries and state media, as the ruling party has stepped up efforts to cut pomp and fight corruption.

The SF14 Gala Team

The Director Team
The general director Feng Xiaogang, film director	The deputy general director Zhao Benshan, comedian and actor	The deputy general director in charge of the dance section Shen Chen, veteran choreographer from China Oriental Performing Arts Group
The deputy general director in charge of the music Zhao Lin, composer	The executive director Lu Yitao, CCTV director
The Host Team
Zhu Jun, CCTV host	Dong Qing, CCTV hostess	Li Sisi, CCTV hostess
Bi Fujian, CCTV host	Zhang Guoli, actor

Birth of a national gala(2013)

Comments

GT observer
Reinvigorated CCTV gala brings hope for art scene
China's art world has become much more commercialized. Feng, Zhao and Zhang represent those who have managed to succeed and stand above severe market competition. CCTV's Spring Festival gala features the characteristics of both the market and the orthodox artistry. It is China's largest art platform.

China Youth Daily
Published in the China Youth Daily on July 16, 2013, commentator Zheng Genling wrote that the high-quality holiday galas produced by local TV stations have jolted CCTV into making quick changes and sprucing up their trademark Spring Festival Gala.  

“Most of all, viewers of this year’s Spring Festival Gala are anticipating directors Feng Xiaogang and Zhao Benshan to use their influence to remove the heavy chains of censorship over the program’s content in the past,” commented Zheng.

Southern Metropolis Daily
In an editorial piece published on January 19, the Southern Metropolis Daily attributed the public’s decreasing dissatisfaction with the gala to CCTV’s consistent inability to connect with its audience

“Some programs are not as critical as those produced in the 1980s. CCTV should not just find new directors and hosts, but also loosen censorship and gather more input from the public. Otherwise, the program will disappoint audiences, regardless of the director,” said the paper.

Sina web user

@董路: After a list of the performances to be included in the gala was released to the public, honestly speaking, I expect nothing from them. The core of a Spring Festival Gala is the skits. If it is full of song and dance, they'd better just get Zhang Yimou to direct it.

@话家国君: The galas of recent years have become increasingly divorced from popular trends in entertainment. The Spring Festival Gala should either respect these recent changes or they might as well cancel it.

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Web editor: gelili@globaltimes.com.cn