The 2025 Mid-Autumn Festival Gala will premiere to global audiences at 8:00 PM on October 6th.

This year’s gala unfolds through three thematic chapters: “Mountain Moon Full,” “This Is My Homeland,” and “An Autumn Moon.” With an artistic tone of “ethereal beauty, sincerity, lyricism, and romance,” it skillfully blends national sentiment, cultural heritage, and the landscapes of Sichuan, collectively expressing themes of reunion and harmony.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, coinciding with the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Tibet Autonomous Region. With the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations converging, the gala adds a profound layer of national and familial sentiment through both grand themes and intimate narratives.

During the gala, the song “Return” will be performed in both Chinese and Russian, revisiting the steadfast desire for justice during wartime. Three songs born in different countries—”Flowers of May,” “As Time Goes By,” and “La Vie en Rose”—each carrying memories of the anti-fascist war, will also be performed, expressing people’s universal longing for peace and happiness.

Two folk melodies, “The Half Moon Climbs Up” and “The Moon Shines on the Mountains and Rivers,” create a symphonic celebration of ethnic unity under the same full moon.

This year also marks the 120th anniversary of Chinese cinema. The gala invites filmmakers from multiple generations to share “Moonlight in the Silver Screen,” evoking cinematic memories and emotional resonance across generations. The song “Moonlight” will poetically convey filmmakers’ passion for the silver screen.

The gala also uses song to convey feelings of family, love, friendship, and hometown nostalgia. Performances like “Half Moon Serenade,” “Don’t Worry, the Sun Turns and There Is Moonlight,” and “The Moon Climbs Over the Hill” utilize a blend of art and technology to create evolving stage atmospheres that shift with each song’s theme, fostering romantic empathy with global Chinese audiences.

Held in Deyang, Sichuan, this year’s gala incorporates numerous local elements. In the performance “Bronze,” artifacts representing the brilliant achievements of ancient Shu civilization—such as the Bronze Sacred Tree and the Standing Bronze Figure from the Sanxingdui Museum—engage in a dialogue spanning millennia with futuristic humanoid robots. The micro-documentaries “Guardian” and “Rebirth” present the city’s resilience and courage through genuine, straightforward narratives.

The 2025 Mid-Autumn Festival Gala will be broadcast globally at 8:00 PM on October 6th across multiple television channels, new media platforms, radio frequencies, overseas social media platforms, and through various mainstream media partners in numerous countries and regions.

Under the radiant moonlight, filled with deep emotion, the 2025 Mid-Autumn Festival Gala extends a lunar invitation to audiences everywhere to join in this celebration of reunion!

Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression

The Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945) was a major theater of World War II, marking China’s prolonged and devastating struggle against Japanese invasion. This conflict, which followed the Marco Polo Bridge Incident in 1937, resulted in immense Chinese casualties and widespread destruction. The war’s conclusion with Japan’s surrender in 1945 is a foundational event in modern Chinese history, symbolizing national resilience and unity.

World Anti-Fascist War

The term “World Anti-Fascist War” refers to the global conflict fought from 1939 to 1945, known as World War II, which was a struggle against the expansionist and aggressive Axis powers. It represents the collective effort of the Allied nations, including China, the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom, to defeat fascist regimes. This war led to the establishment of the United Nations and a new international order based on the principles of peace and human rights.

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is a vast, arid area in northwestern China that has been a crossroads of different cultures and an important part of the Silk Road for centuries. It is home to the Uyghur people, a Turkic ethnic group predominantly practicing Islam, along with other minority groups. In 1955, it was officially established as an autonomous region within China.

Tibet Autonomous Region

The Tibet Autonomous Region is a high-altitude plateau in China, historically known as the center of Tibetan Buddhism and the seat of the Dalai Lamas. It was incorporated into the Yuan Dynasty in the 13th century and is currently administered as an autonomous region of the People’s Republic of China. The area is renowned for its unique culture, majestic Himalayan landscapes, and historic sites like the Potala Palace.

Chinese cinema

Chinese cinema originated in the late 19th century, with the first Chinese film, *Dingjun Mountain*, produced in 1905. It has since evolved through distinct eras, from the “Golden Age” of Shanghai in the 1930s to state-controlled propaganda films and, more recently, to internationally acclaimed works by Fifth and Sixth Generation directors. Today, it is a major global industry, blending commercial blockbusters with artistic storytelling.

Sanxingdui Museum

The Sanxingdui Museum in Sichuan, China, showcases the remarkable artifacts of the ancient Shu civilization, which dates back over 3,000 years. The site was accidentally discovered in the 1920s, but major archaeological breakthroughs in the 1980s revealed a trove of unique bronze masks, sculptures, and gold objects. These finds dramatically reshaped understanding of early Chinese civilization, revealing a previously unknown culture with sophisticated artistic and technological achievements.

Bronze Sacred Tree

The Bronze Sacred Tree is a remarkable artifact unearthed from the Sanxingdui archaeological site in China, dating back to the ancient Shu kingdom around the 12th-11th century BCE. It is a highly stylized, elaborate bronze sculpture believed to represent a mythical tree, possibly used in religious rituals to connect heaven and earth. Its discovery significantly altered historical understanding of early Chinese civilization, revealing a unique bronze-age culture distinct from the Central Plains.

Standing Bronze Figure

The Standing Bronze Figure is a significant archaeological artifact from the ancient Kingdom of Benin, located in present-day Nigeria. Created by the highly skilled Edo artisans using the lost-wax casting technique, these figures typically date between the 13th and 16th centuries. They often depicted court officials, warriors, or royalty and served important ritual and commemorative functions within the Benin royal court.