From December 2 to 5, the 2025 Boao Forum for Entrepreneurs series was held in Boao, Hainan. During the main forum on the 4th, guests from government departments, Global 500 and Top 500 Chinese enterprises, industry leaders, academic institutions, and international organizations gathered to discuss the future.

Centered on the theme "Linking the World, Leading the Future: New Opportunities in the 15th Five-Year Plan," attendees engaged in in-depth discussions on key topics such as strengthening the nation through quality, technological innovation, consumption upgrades, global cooperation, and cultural empowerment. They offered suggestions for high-quality economic development during China's "15th Five-Year Plan" period and drew a new blueprint for open cooperation and industrial upgrading.

As a representative of international friends and a two-time Academy Award-winning British director, Malcolm Clarke drew upon his cross-cultural creative experiences to point out that there is currently a "cognitive lag" and a "trust deficit" regarding China in the international public opinion sphere. He proposed using pop culture as a breakthrough point to enhance China's soft power.

At the forum, Clarke shared memories of his first time working in China. He recalled that back then, "it seemed no one in the world was looking this way." Forty years later, however, "China has achieved an unprecedented renaissance and a qualitative leap." Today’s China has far exceeded expectations in fields such as poverty alleviation and technology. The innovation ecosystems in cities like Shenzhen have proven that China is not merely a global factory, but a source of innovation.

Noting the shifting of the old, US-led global order, Clarke called on China to participate in global competition with greater confidence. He urged the use of popular culture and the moving image to convey authentic scenes of life, bridging the cognitive gap and allowing moving images to become the "key" to a "trust premium"—after all, there is no story more moving than the truth.