The opening ceremony of the 28th Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival kicks off in Xiamen, Fujian province on Nov 19. [Photo/VCG]

The 28th Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival opened in Xiamen, a coastal city in East China's Fujian province, on Nov 19 and will run until Nov 23.

The festival, attended by a number of A-list stars and industry insiders, will be held in Xiamen for the next five years.

Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of the China Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, addressed the opening ceremony. He noted that filmmakers should work to further the development of China's film industry.

He expressed hope that people in the film industry would seize the historical opportunities brought about by the current golden era of the Chinese film industry and work to polish their storytelling skills.

He added that Chinese filmmakers should try to be more imaginative and creative and produce better films. He also encouraged them to participate more actively in international competitions.

The Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival is a huge event for the Chinese film industry, and the Golden Rooster Awards, which has traditionally been presented every two years, will begin being awarded every year, said Huang.

More than 1,000 A-list stars and industry insiders participated in the opening ceremony. Nineteen awards, including best picture, best director, best actor, and best actress, will be handed out at the festival.