Accessibility links

Breaking News

Artist Ai Weiwei to Release Documentary on Refugee Crisis


Chinese artist Ai Weiwei speaks to the media during a news conference ahead of an exhibition 'Chinese Whispers' at the Center Paul Klee in Bern, Switzerland on April 27, 2016.
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei speaks to the media during a news conference ahead of an exhibition 'Chinese Whispers' at the Center Paul Klee in Bern, Switzerland on April 27, 2016.

Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei plans to release a film about the migrant crisis next year, adding to the celebrity voices seeking to highlight the
plight of refugees.

Ai, known for his criticism of China's human rights record, visited camps, such as Idomeni on the Greek-Macedonian border, in the last few months where he said he had witnessed a very difficult situation and wanted to share the experience.

"It's a documentary film, we have been shooting [for] over 600 hours, I did hundreds of interviews," Ai told reporters in Bern.

"The film is going to come out next year. Now we are still doing last [shoots] since the refugee situation is continuous, it doesn't seem [like] it is going to stop."

Ai was speaking at a news conference at the Paul Klee center regarding the "Chinese Whispers" exhibition featuring works by contemporary Chinese artists.

Hollywood stars like Angelina Jolie and Orlando Bloom are among celebrities who have visited refugee camps to underline the ongoing crisis as people fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East and other countries have flooded into Europe since 2015.

  • 16x9 Image

    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

XS
SM
MD
LG