Shaanxi Zhongshan Culture Media Co., Ltd, or Zhongshan Studio, and Pakistan Television Corporation inked their second five-year cooperation agreement in Islamabad. The deal builds on an existing partnership between the two broadcasters to jointly produce documentaries and factual programming highlighting China-Pakistan friendship and shared cultural heritage.
Key Highlights
- Zhongshan Studio and PTV sign second five-year cooperation agreement
- New framework prioritizes “Light and Common Journey,” a major foreign-publicity project
- Cooperation covers documentaries, filmmaker exchanges, and archival footage sharing
- Agreement signed on PTV’s behalf by Muhammad Ramzan Ali, Director of International Relations
This is not the first time the two sides have worked together. Both sides spoke of a long-standing, sound cooperative basis laid during their earlier partnership. Under the earlier agreement, PTV has showcased several co-produced documentaries highlighting the social landscapes and Silk Road cultural heritage shared by the two countries. Both sides said these productions have been well received by audiences in China and Pakistan.
The Director of the International Relations Division of PTV, Muhammad Ramzan Ali, signed the new agreement on behalf of PTV Director-General Ashfaq Ahmad Khalil. Senior officials from various PTV departments attended the signing ceremony in Islamabad.
🚨BREAKING: China-Pakistan media cooperation deepens as Zhongshan Studio and PTV sign five-year agreement. pic.twitter.com/JRSmJm3YS1
— The Daily CPEC (@TheDailyCPEC) September 4, 2026
What is in the New Agreement
Under this new five-year framework, Zhongshan Studio and PTV will continue to work together to develop and co-produce humanities documentary projects. Priority will be given to “Light and Common Journey”, described as a major national overseas publicity project. The joint productions under the agreement will focus on three key themes: China-Pakistan friendship, shared heritage of Silk Road civilizations, and regional connectivity under the umbrella of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Beyond the documentary production itself, the partnership includes several other forms of collaboration. Both sides intend to organize film screenings, facilitate exchanges between the two countries’ filmmakers, and share archival footage, which could be an asset for future co-productions. The stated objective is to improve exchanges among the peoples of China and Pakistan through the camera, which both sides called a bridge for civil-cultural dialogue, to promote cultural projects connected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, and to encourage mutual learning between the societies as part of the larger SCO framework.
Part of a Larger Pattern of Media Cooperation
The deal is part of a wider trend of closer media relations between the two countries during the past year. Recently, Pakistan and China have signed several similar arrangements, including agreements between China’s Xinhua News Agency and Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation, and China Media Group and PTV on joint documentary production. PTV has joined hands with Guangxi Radio and Television for another documentary to celebrate 75 years of diplomatic ties between Pakistan and China.
Officials on both sides have long framed these media partnerships as a way to build what they call intellectual and cultural bridges between the two countries, using shared storytelling to convey the depth of the bilateral relationship to audiences in both countries. Now that this latest five-year pledge is in place, Zhongshan Studio and PTV seem set to keep churning out this kind of content well into the next decade, building on a media partnership both sides say is already strong and mutually appreciated.
