Ha Wen, the director for the CCTV Spring Festival Gala events in 2012 and 2013, will return to direct the festival gala for 2015, CCTV confirmed on its official Sina Weibo account Thursday.

"The crew for CCTV's 2015 Spring Festival Gala was established today! Ha Wen will be the director… Tell us what you expect from the Spring Festival Gala for the Year of the Goat,"a post on CCTV's Weibo account said.

The wife of former CCTV host Li Yong, Ha used to be a producer for several programs on CCTV, including the program 6 +1 hosted by her husband. According to media reports, she was appointed to direct the 2012 Spring Festival Gala in response to TV's need for "innovation and change." 

The two festival galas directed by Ha were very controversial, receiving mixed praise and criticism. One notable change for the two galas was the absence of famous comic Zhao Benshan, whose performances had become a mainstay of previous galas. 

In an interview in 2012, Ha said that she wouldn't direct the festival gala again because it was exhausting work that kept her too busy. 

Coming back to direct once more, Ha will no doubt be under greater pressure as the traditional galas have been finding it increasingly difficult to cater to a nationwide audience of all ages with a single program.

Last year, famous film director Feng Xiaogang took charge, but the gala fell short of many audiences' expectations.