Hollywood-style education comes to Chinese film school

"International partners work with us because we are more than an educational institute – we have strong industry support," said Shi.

The academy partnered with China Everbright Holdings Ltd in 2016 to establish a film industry base that integrates industry resources by purchasing Hollywood productions and working with international filmmakers and academies.

Johnny Lin, Taiwan's Golden Horse Award Winner for best visual effects and another faculty member of the exchange event, said Chinese-oriented films are capable of rivaling Hollywood works.

"Learning from Hollywood does not mean copying and pasting, because we have different cultures. We need people with industry potential who have compound skills and creativity," said Lin.

Founded in 2003, the Shanghai Film Art Academy is one of only two schools in China focused on film. Cooperating with the New York Film Academy, the school boasts 3,000 students across 20 majors including film arts, gaming animation and digital art.