The documentary series "New Silk Road," a joint production by
China Central Television (CCTV) and the NHK
Television of Japan, will premier on prime-time on CCTV beginning
March 10.
Wei Ping, an executive with China International TV Corporation
(CITVC), said the 10-part series took two years to complete.
This is the second China-NHK production on the same topic. In
1980, the series entitled "Silk Road" had domestic and
international TV audiences riveted, according to Wei.
"This series uses a new approach to telling the story of the
ancient Silk Road," Wei Dajun, the documentary's general director,
said.
The first series followed the adventures of travelers along the
Silk Road. This new series tells the stories of ten selected
destinations along the Silk Road, and it examines ruins in the
ancient city of Loulan in Hetian County,
Xinjiang, and Dunhuang City in
Gansu Province.
"The ten places feature different cultures, and they each tell a
different story of the Silk Road," Wei said. "Many archeological
discoveries and cultural relics which haven't been made public or
disclosed in previous documentaries are featured in this series,"
Wei added, citing newly discovered frescos and grottoes as
examples.
The ancient Silk Road, which started in the ancient Chinese
metropolis Chang'an, known today as Xi'an, ended in Rome. It
traversed 6,440 kilometers through China and central Asia and
became the nexus between civilizations in ancient Europe and
Asia.
Over thousands of years, scores of nomads, traders, priests,
diplomats, soldiers and scholars have left their marks, in some
form or other, on the Silk Road.
According to sources with CCTV, both CCTV and NHK have also made
their own versions of the story.
The Japanese version has already been aired in Japan, attracting
favorable audience ratings, according to the source.
(Xinhua News Agency February 24, 2006)