Huayi Brothers and EE Media have joined forces to shoot Happy Magic (tentative title), a slapstick comedy targeting the winter holiday season timeslot coveted by filmmakers and distributors.

The film features a cast of A-list comedians, including Yan Ni and Wong Bak-ming.

But director Wilson Yip has kept the lead actress' identity a secret, revealing only that she is a young model who has never appeared in a film.

The film will premiere on Dec 1. Following it will be three blockbusters - Zhang Yimou's Nanking Heroes, Tsui Hark's Flying Swords of Dragon Gate and Derek Yee's The Great Magician.

Red tourism website opens

China Network Television (CNTV) recently started the country's first "red tourism" website, hsly.cntv.cn, on June 28 to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party of China's founding. Red tourism refers to visits to places important to China's Communist revolution.

Netizens can access databases of more than 100 red travel destinations and relevant information, red songs, and classic red stories and films. The website features online exhibitions of red tourist attractions, online museums exhibiting red culture and video interviews with "red people" - individuals who experienced the Communist revolution. Children can serve as tour guides for a day for a better understanding of red culture.

Staging a royal love story

Princess Wencheng, a large-scale dance drama by the Combat Art Troupe of the Lanzhou Military Region, will be staged at Beijing's Poly Theater on July 7 and July 8.

Wencheng was a Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) princess, who married King Songtsan Gampo, who unified Tibet in the 7th century. The dance drama tells the story of how they started their relationship with a politically devised marriage but ended up truly falling in love.

Choreographed and directed by Yang Wei, director of the 2008 Paralympics' opening ceremony, Princess Wencheng incorporates traditional Tibetan dances and music.

Dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the Tibet autonomous region's peaceful liberation, the work premiered on April 28 at the 2011 International Horticultural Exposition in Shaanxi's provincial capital Xi'an to great acclaim from audiences.

To commemorate Wu Guanzhong, one of China's greatest modern artists, an exhibition of his prints was recently staged in the 798 art zone's Baiyaxuan Art Center.

The exhibition corresponds with meetings to approve artworks for the sequel to Wu Guanzhong's Complete Work, which displays 132 of the more than 200 pieces Wu created from 2005 to 2010.

Wu's son, Wu Keyu, and scholars from Wu Guanzhong Art Research Center gave presentations at the meeting.

The story behind stories

Beijing TV will air Years of Pen and Ink, a 10-episode documentary that follows Chinese literature's development over the past nine decades.

A record of almost 100 Chinese writers were interviewed, including such big names as Wang Meng, Mo Yan, Jia Pingwa and He Jingzhi.

In addition, the children of some of the most iconic late writers, such as Laoshe, Guo Moruo, Ding Ling and Shen Congwen, recall their parents' lives and careers.

The first episode will broadcast on Beijing TV on July 7.

Chan kicks off music career

Kungfu star Jackie Chan has jumped into the music scene and joined forces with mainland singer Liu Yuanyuan to sing Livelihood, a song that pays homage to the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party of China's founding.

The song has four music video versions, which feature different themes.

One highlights photos by Qian Sijie, an 83-year-old photographer who snapped portraits of such State leaders as Mao Zedong. A chorus of elderly citizens of Shandong province's Heze leads another version.

There is also a version featuring more than 300 cartoons depicting ordinary people's lives over the past 90 years. The final version shows the smiling faces of people working in various industries.

China Daily