Two locally produced works on constructing the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge earned prizes granted as China's 15th Best Works Awards, according to the winners list unveiled Aug 19. 

China Bridge, Roadway to Dreams by Zeng Pingbiao

The long documentary China Bridge, Roadway to Dreams won the Special Award under the book category. Zhuhai resident Zeng Pingbiao (曾平标) spent five years meticulously recording the entire construction process of the bridge, and interviewed project planners, operators, and major contractors on site and in Beijing, Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao, and elsewhere throughout China.

Zeng Pingbiao [Photo courtesy chinawriter.com.cn]

The book was lauded as an encyclopedia of the bridge by He Jianming, vice president of the China Writers Association, for its rich content and informative details. He called it "a magnificent poem of the times for another miracle of our motherland."

Zeng Pingbiao was born in 1963 in Baise City, Guangxi Province. He reportedly was a rural primary school teacher who taught for more than 30 years and served as a civil servant and editor of newspapers and periodicals. His other documentaries include Love in Red Land, and Gale From the Wind & Clouds. Earlier this year, China Bridge, Roadway to Dreams was selected as China's Good Book of 2018.

"I love literature and I am determined. I have written 16 books and more than 4 million words, 13 of which are reportage. The pen of literature has become my cross-mountain to the sea, from the old revolutionary area to the special economic zone. Bridges and literature have made my life rich and complete, three-dimensional and fresh," Zeng was quoted by China Reading News in 2018.

Meanwhile, a 70-minute documentary film of the same name was granted the Excellence Award. It focuses on the installation of the last immersed tunnel, E30, as the epitome of innovation and workers' hardships behind the mega structure of bridge, islands, and tunnels. 

Film poster

The film is a joint production by China Media Group, China Film Co, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Authority, Guangdong Radio & Television, Zhuhai Radio & Television Station, and Zhuhai Culture & Radio Media Co. It premiered in Hong Kong and Macao last November before release in the Chinese mainland on May 1.

The television documentary, which the film was adapted from, expanded globally when its co-producer, the Discovery Channel, aired it in Malaysia and the Philippines in October 2017 through the Discovery Network Asia-Pacific.

Among those listed on Aug 19 are 73 domestically leading literature and artistic creations that debuted between 2017 and 2019.

The awards were initiated by the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee to honor excellent dramas, TV plays, films, books, and theoretical articles that represent the highest level of the five categories and enjoy a wide-reaching influence and popularity. The scope includes songs and radio dramas produced since 1995.

Bridge builders [Photos courtesy WeChat account: zhtqb12345]