Beijing International Film Festival postponed due to coronavirus

The organising committee of Beijing International Film Festival 2020 announced that the festival, earlier set to take place from April 13 to 19, will be postponed until further notice in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

"We apologise for the inconvenience caused by the postponement of the event and we will announce the new date of the festival as soon as possible," the statement read.

The decision to postpone the tenth anniversary of the Beijing International Film Festival this year doesn't come as a surprise as the Chinese government has been taking drastic measures to prevent the spread of the virus.

Many events worldwide have been cancelled due to the virus outbreak, including the release of the James Bond film No Time to Die, which has been pushed by seven months to November. As the impact of coronavirus continues to raise concerns across the world, over 70,000 movie screens in China, as well as theatres in major markets such as Italy, South Korea, China, and Japan, continue to remain shut.