Started in 2004 by the Chi-nese government in an effort to help Western students learn the Chinese language and cul-ture, Confucius Institutes are
affiliated with Western universities. They generally have a particular focus,
such as cul-ture, business or arts and music.
One example is the Business Confucius Institute at the Uni-versity of Leeds, known as the BCIUL Nike VaporMax Flyknit Uomo Scontate , established in Novem-ber 2012. The institute not only offers the standard range of lan-guage and cultural classes,
but also helps to make introduc-tions between UK businesses and their
counterparts in China through events and networks.
The choice of business focus goes back to the institute's founding director, Peter Buck-ley, a professor of international business at the University of
Leeds, who has been instrumental in developing links with Beijing's University
of Interna-tional Business and Economics, the Chinese partner of BCIUL.
"The Confucius Institutes are a bridge for mutual learning and understanding Nike VaporMax Flyknit Scontate ," said Hin-rich Voss, executive director of BCUIL.
Voss said one particular highlight for BCUIL this year has been "cultural month", from late September to late October, which features a series of special
events to cele-brate the UK-China Year of Culture.
The culture month includes events across the city of Leeds, including a painting exhibition, a British--Chinese fashion show and a play performed in a
Chi-nese restaurant.
Since the BCIUL's opening in 2012 Nike VaporMax Uomo Scontate , student numbers have grown to nearly 400. The insti-tute also works with businesses whose employees want to learn
Mandarin.
The BCIUL is just one exam-ple of many Confucius Insti-tutes in the UK.
As of last year, there were 298 Confucius Insti-tutes and Confucius Class- rooms in 38 European countries. Worldwide, the UK, with 115 centers, is the
second- largest host country behind the United States.
The increasing popularity of learning Mandarin coincides with an initiative from the Brit-ish government to give Manda-rin more importance in the British
education system. After returning from a trip to China in 2013, UK Prime
Minister David Cameron urged students to move away from French and German and
start studying Mandarin.
"By the time the children born today leave school Nike VaporMax Donne Scontate , China is set to be the world's largest economy," he said. "So it's time to look beyond the traditional focus on French
and German and get many more children learning Mandarin."
Cameron also said he hoped that the number of students of Mandarin would increase to 400,000 by 2016.
Promotional material for My Own Swordsman. Photo: CFP
This January marks the tenth anniversary of the first episode of the TV series My Own Swordsman. Online many fans expressed surprise at how fast a
decade had gone by, while others remarked how the show had earned an
irreplaceable position in China's TV history.
While Western sitcoms such as The Big Bang Theory or Modern Family often win big name awards, sitcoms in China have a much harder time getting recognition.
Since the sitcom format first appeared on mainland TV in 1994, there have been
only a few truly influential Chinese sitcoms. While the genre is still rather
young compared to the US or the UK Nike VaporMax Scontate , this lack of successful sitcoms demonstrates the dilemma comedy faces in China. Restricted in their ability to make light of certain
subjects, sitcoms lack the bite that is needed to make them truly impactful.
Breaking ground
After earning his master degree at the University of Missouri in the US, multi-talented director and actor Ying Da tried to import sitcoms to China
during the early 1990s. At the time, Shanghai TV was having great success with
its dubbed version of US sitcom Growing Pains (1985-92) in China, showing that
there was certainly a potential audience base for Chinese-made sitcoms in the
country.
Cooperating with the late scriptwriter Liang Zuo, Ying started development on I Love My Family Nike VaporMax Off White Scontate , a sitcom about a family of six in Beijing who each had their own distinct backgrounds. Wanting real laughter to
accompany the performances, Ying filmed in front of a live studio audience.
Except for Ying's other work Chinese Restaurant, no other sitcom in China would
ever do so again.
Even though this sitcom is commonly recognized as one of the top sitcoms in China, it was criticized a lot when it first appeared on TV in 1994. Beijing TV
stopped airing the show after six episodes because some audiences said it was
making fun of retired officials.
After audiences gradually got used to its humor that would cover everything from family life to national policy, the show not only gained a huge following
but kicked off the sitcom genre in China. Establishing a TV production studio in
1994, Ying went on to create a number of "Ying-style" sitcoms such as Chinese
Restaurant (1998) Nike Vapormax CS Scontate , Xianren Madajie (2000), Dongbei Yijiaren (2001) and The Railway Station (2002). Filmbug describes Ying as the "Norman Lear of China"
for his contributions.
According to an interview with the Beijing Daily, then general manager of Ying's studio Wang Xiaojing recalled that most of the sitcoms were not huge
money-makers.
"In China, sitcoms barely had a future. Audiences found them too low-brow, while TV stations weren't willing to pay high prices for them. In that case, who
was willing to make them?" Wang said.
In an interview with the Beijing Daily two decades after the first broadcast of I Love My Family Nike VaporMax Laceless Scontate , Ying concluded that the success of I Love My Family was its willingness to be critical of social realities in China.
Something that he feels modern comedies lack.
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