Cast members of the movie "Big Head Son and Little Head Father" pose on the red carpet for the closing ceremony of the 8th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF) in Beijing, capital of China, April 22, 2018. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

PRETORIA, July 6 (Xinhua) -- A South African filmmaker is looking forward to more collaboration with Chinese counterparts in film production to empower communities in both countries.

The marketing and communications director of the Cape Town International Film Market & Festival (CTIFMF), Jehad Kasu, said this in a recent interview with Xinhua.

"Our key focus is the co-production agreement being lobbied for by industry, emphasizing the importance of implementing policy to formalize our cultural exchange through film," said Kasu.

"We instead challenge them to wow audiences with unique, entertaining or beneficial content that will empower communities."

Last year, the CTIFMF and China-Africa International Film Festival (CAIFF) signed a five-year agreement to strengthen culture exchanges between China and Africa.

"The partnership is pivoted and introducing our respective local content to one another's film markets, while also intended as a catalyst for the formation of co-productions between the two countries," Kasu said.

Kasu said South Africa and China should use film as a catalyst for job creation and economic growth.

CAIFF will promote South African films in China while CTIFMF will do the same with the Chinese films. Kasu stated, "Last year we screened five Chinese films on the CTIFMF program and as of next year we will start introducing African content into Chinese festivals."

Kasu recently returned from the 2018 Shanghai International Film Festival. He invited Chinese film and television stakeholders to visit the CTIFMF in October to explore collaborative opportunities with African filmmakers.