The 15th Beijing International Film Festival kicked off with glamor and historical significance despite rain-soaked conditions, as international and Chinese film luminaries gathered to celebrate a remarkable triple anniversary in cinema history.

This year’s festival commemorates 130 years since the Lumière brothers pioneered the first public film screening in Paris, 120 years since China’s inaugural film “The Battle of Dingjunshan,” and the festival’s own 15th anniversary.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president Janet Yang delivered a bilingual keynote speech that underscored film’s power as a universal language. “Film is the most universal language to connect the world,” Yang stated in Mandarin before switching to English.

Yang, a Chinese American producer, reflected on her introduction to Chinese cinema: “I first fell in love with Chinese cinema through the works of the ‘Fifth Generation’ filmmakers. Their films felt like poetry, quiet and reflective.” She underlined the importance of...