The first film co-produced by China and Kazakhstan began shooting on Tuesday in the city of Yan'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province.
"Composer" details a period in the life of Xian Xinghai, a 20th century Chinese composer best known for his work "Yellow River Cantata," focusing on his friendship with Kazakh composer Bakhitzhan Baykadamov.
At the outset of the Great Patriotic War in 1941, Xian was stranded in Almaty, Kazakhstan, while trying to return to China from Russia. He was suffering from tuberculosis, poor and alone, and received the care of Baykadamov, with whom he developed a deep friendship.
It will be filmed at Xian's former residence and the Luxun Academy of Fine Arts, where he worked as a teacher. The cast will include Chinese actor Hu Jun and Kazakhstan's Berik Aitzhanov, according to Xirzat Yahup, director of the film.
The film comes after a cooperation agreement was signed by the two countries in June this year under the Belt and Road Initiative.