BEIJING, May 23 (Xinhua) -- As one of the activities for the "Year of Russia in China," The Retrospective of Russian Cinema will open on May 29 in the Beijing-based China Film Archives (CFA), with 17 Russian films to be shown during the festival.

    The selection of movies were from 15 Russian directors, including Aleksandr Sokurov, Serghei A.Solovyov and Yegor Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky who are familiar with Chinese audiences, according to Zhan Yan, a spokeswoman with the CFA.

    The upcoming movies, ranging between 1966 and 1997, include seven made before the Soviet Union broke down in 1991, she said.

    During the festival, actors of "The Dawns Here Are Quiet"(1972), Vadim Abdrashitov, director of "Pyesa dlya passazhira"(1995) and "Vremya tantsora"(1997) and Aleksandr Pankratov-Chyorny, director of "Vzroslyy syn"(1979), are expected to come to meet their Chinese fans, she added.

    The eight-day festival is sponsored by the China State Administration of Radio, Film and TV and the Russian Ministry of Culture.

    According to the agreement achieved by the governments of China and Russia, China hosts the "Year of Russia" in 2006 while Russia hosts the "Year of China" in 2007. Enditem