Initiative aims to address issues surrounding family filmmaking
BEIJING, December 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On December 6, the 3rd FamilyLens International Film Festival opened in Beijing. SmallRig, a specialist global provider of imaging solutions, in collaboration with FamilyLens, is strengthening family filmmaking through various initiatives, including the Family Film Co-Creation Initiativea dedicated family filmmaking kit and a social impact screening program.
Deepen “co-creation initiatives”
THE Co-creation initiatives are a series of global creative initiatives open to filmmakers and image-makers from around the world. Through deep collaboration across multiple dimensions, including product co-creation, discovery and promotion, and content co-creation, SmallRig aims to push the boundaries of mobile filmmaking and bring the spirit of Free Your Dream to life with creators around the world.
Following the launch of Mobile Film Co-Creation Initiative During the 14th International Smartphone Film Festival, SmallRig announced the launch of the Family Film Co-Creation Initiative on December 6 at the 3rd FamilyLens International Film Festival. The initiative invites creators from around the world and every family to participate, focusing on three main directions: product co-creation, work promotion and content co-creation, to explore the possibilities of family filmmaking for everyone.
Mr. Zhou Yang, Founder and CEO of SmallRig, shared the inspiration for the initiative: “The initiative is rooted in the immense universality and deep emotional depth inherent in family stories, which serve as a common emotional bond connecting global audiences. We firmly believe that in this day and age, where everyone can be a content creator, every family can and should film their own story. The creative instinct runs deep in the human spirit, and each house is the origin of countless stories.
Gu Xue, founder and director of FamilyLens International Film Festival, said: “We hope that people and practitioners around the world who are interested in family films can find suitable solutions and benefit from co-creation initiatives. We hope that more and more people will explore the realm of “home” together through this initiative.
To solve the problems of family cinema, SmallRig officially released the SmallRig Family Filmmaking Kit during the opening ceremony. The kit includes a high-quality microphone, fill light and portable tripod, specially designed to achieve “democratization of professional functions” and “simplification of complex functions”. During the FamilyLens workshop, participants saw first-hand the convenience of the equipment. Many have expressed that the kit truly solves many problems, allowing ordinary families to carry out the necessary shoots without specialist photography knowledge.
Social Impact Screening Program
The 3rd FamilyLens International Film Festival is open to the public from December 6 to 14. The festival opened with the screening of a very popular documentary: K-Family Affairs. In addition to the competition section, the festival includes several distinct sections, including Recading Home Movies – An Italian Retrospective, the Youth Film Program, the Filmmaker in Brief, and the Social Impact Program. Four major awards, such as the Real-Life Portrait Award and the Artistic Exploration Award, will also be awarded.
As a key part of the co-creation initiatives, the SmallRig Image Development Fund partnered with the FamilyLens International Film Festival to organize the “Social Impact Screening Program”. This unit focuses on raising awareness of critical issues within the family unit, advocating for new thinking: “Begin with seeing, conclude with understanding.”
Arum Nam, K-Family Business Director, said:
“Starting with the stories of your family, your friends, and yourself, I believe this personal narrative can be directly connected to society at large.”
SmallRig believes that truly meaningful socially impactful storytelling arises from an awareness of proximity, achieved by using the lens to penetrate the everyday surface and enabling deep, empathetic “seeing with empathy.”
The four works presented in this unit are:
- People of Ascension
- Grandma’s found objects
- Ruixi at fourteen
- No country for my maternal grandmother
These films highlight four family issues that need to be “seen”: the longing of left-behind children, the mental isolation of Alzheimer’s patients, older adults seeking subjectivity in their drifting lives, and the emotional volatility and struggle of bipolar disorder.
Strategic outlook and future expansion
SmallRig will continue to support the in-depth development of the Family Film Co-Creation Initiative through promotional campaigns and hands-on workshops focused on family film scripts.
The overall goal of SmallRig’s global co-creation initiative is to continuously explore and respond to the growing and diverse needs of global creators across different verticals. SmallRig is committed to constantly expanding the co-creation model to more areas of imaging, collaborating with industry partners to push the boundaries of imaging and grant global creators greater creative freedom.
About SmallRig
Founded in 2013, SmallRig is a global innovation-driven company that designs and manufactures comprehensive support solutions and accessories for all content creation needs. Trusted by more than four million creators worldwide, SmallRig pioneered the User Co-Creation (UCD) design philosophy and the DreamRig program.
For more information, visit: www.smallrig.com.
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SOURCE Small Rig
