Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 5 January 2020
++NIGHT SHOTS++
1. Wide aerial of fireworks at Harbin Ice and Snow Park ++MUTE++
2. Tilt down from fireworks to ice sculptures
3. Wide of fireworks in sky above crowds and ice sculptures
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 4 January 2020
++NIGHT SHOTS++
4. Pan of train touring ice and snow sculptures
5. Wide of ice sculpture of train
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 5 January 2020
++NIGHT SHOTS++
6. Wide of crowds milling around train-like touring vehicle
7. Wide of crowds and ice sculpture
8. Mid of people walking up ice stairs onto sculpture
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 6 January 2020
++DAY SHOTS++
9. Various aerial shots of Harbin Ice and Snow Park ++MUTE++
10. Wide of Ice Sculpture Competition area
11. Close of ice block with sculpture competitors working in background
12. Mid of American ice sculptor Roger Wing cutting ice block with chainsaw
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 7 January 2020
13. Various of Wing flattening ice
14. Various of Wing polishing ice with iron
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Roger Wing, American ice sculptor:
"Twenty years ago, there was only one or two carvers who are making figures, because it's very difficult to create human anatomy, human faces, human hands. Only one or two artists were really good at it 20 years ago. But now we have all learned the techniques to get stronger and now many carvers can do beautiful figures."
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 6 January 2020
16. Mid of clay sculpture with sketch next to it on ice block
17. Close of clay sculpture of a flying apsaras
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 7 January 2020
18. Various of Chinese sculptor Zhu Rui carving ice
19. Various of Chinese sculptor Wang Songyin carving ice
20. Wide of sculptors Luibov Polin (left) and Vadim Polin (right) working near ice sculptures
21. Mid of Luibov Polin drawing on ice sculpture
22. Mid of Luibov Polin and Vadim Polin working on their ice sculpture with drill
23. Close of drill
24. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Vadim Polin, Russian sculptor:
"Our work is a Chinese dragon and a Russian girl. It represents the friendship between the two countries. It's a new world by combining them together."
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 6 January 2020
25. Various of Harbin Ice Sculpture Competition area
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 5 January 2020
26. Pan left from wide of four male swimmers diving into cold water to mid of two male swimmers doing breaststroke
27. Close of male swimmer in white swim cap doing breaststroke in cold water
28. Mid of two race referees recording swim times
29. Mid with zoom out of Bai Ling (left) and Zhang Xiaofeng (right) diving from blocks into cold water
30. Mid of Bai Ling winning race
31. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Bai Ling (right) and Zhang Xiaofeng (left), Ice Swimmers from Heilongjiang Province:
(Bai Ling) "It is really exciting! I hope more people can join us for ice swimming."
(Zhang Xiaofeng) "Ice swimming is cool! The more we swim the younger we become!"
32. Zoom out from mid of male swimmer in white swimming cap breast stroking to wide of swimmers breast stroking to finish line
33. Mid of young male swimmer climbing up ladder out of pool
34. Various of line of brides and grooms walking
35. Wide of couples walking by riverside
36. Wide of couples turning towards each other on stage
37. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Wang Shurong, bride (with groom Wei Shuqi):
"The old days was difficult. It was not easy for most to wear a wedding dress. Life was hard. No one could get married in such a big occasion. We are very grateful and honoured."
38. Various of couples reciting wedding vows UPSOUND (Mandarin) "I swear I will love the country, care for our parents…We will respect and love each other…We will understand and accommodate each other…We will love each other for the rest of our lives."
39. Mid of grooms putting rings on brides
40. Mid of couples hugging
41. Wide of couples waving with bouquets
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 4 January 2020
42. Wide of tourists ringing giant bell on ice platform
43. Wide of ice castle against backdrop of sunset
44. Various of tourists riding bikes on ice and snow track
++NIGHT SHOTS++
45. Mid of illuminated ice sculptures and moon
46. Wide of tour bus and tourists on foot passing ice blocks and ice sculptures
47. Wide of ice palace lit in yellow and blue with people milling around
48. Pan left of people on bikes in front of ice castle lit in yellow and blue
49. Wide of ice park
50. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Chen Bailing, Tourist from Hebei Province:
"Here is a very famous tourist site in winter. I came with my parents. My father has never seen the ice lights, but he knows the ice lights are magnificent, so I wanted to show my parents what it looks like. After I came, I realised the lights are very beautiful indeed. We don't even want to leave! Although it is cold, we enjoy ourselves so much."
51. Pan left from tour bus to ice sculpture of train
Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China – 5 January 2020
52. Various night time aerials of Harbin Ice and Snow sculptures ++MUTE++
LEAD IN:
The Harbin Snow and Ice Festival draws millions to China's icy north from all over the world to marvel at glittering towers and sculptures built entirely of ice and snow.
Now in its 36th year, the annual event includes ice sculpting, a swimming race across frozen water, and even a mass wedding - and it's proving more popular than ever.
STORY-LINE:
In the dark depths of winter in the northernmost province of China, a riot of fireworks and twinkling lights sparkle in the night sky.
Here, thousands brave temperatures that hover around -15 degrees Celsius (5 degrees Fahrenheit) to experience an annual display that glitters and shimmers.
And it's all the more awesome when you learn how these structures are made: this extraordinary spectacle is built entirely of snow and ice.
The 2020 Harbin Snow and Ice Festival runs through until February.
The event - in its 36th year - attracts millions of visitors from all over the world.
The festival sprawls across four sites, with the largest two the Sun Island Snow Park, and the Harbin Ice and Snow Park, both near the banks of the mighty Songhua River.
This year, the Sun Island Snow Park covers an area of 600,000 square metres.
One of the key drawcards of the festival is the annual ice sculpting event, which this year attracted 60 sculptors from all over the world.
In the days leading up to the judging, the frosty northern air is full of the hum of chainsaws, drills and grinders.
Carving began at the start of the week (Monday 6 January 2020), and the sculptors had to be done by Wednesday (8 January 2020).
This event requires that entrants carve their designs from ice blocks taken from Songhua River.
Roger Wing is an ice and wood sculptor and competitor here, hailing from the US.
With his sculpture - a collaboration with Finnish artist Anssi Kuosa - he is exploring ideas of beauty and age: a witch looking into a magical mirror, seeing a beautiful face.
He flattens the ice block with a nail plate before ironing it to create a transparent effect.
With 20 years of experience sculpting, Wing has first-hand experience of how carving tools and techniques have improved.
"Twenty years ago, there was only one or two carvers who are making figures, because it's very difficult to create human anatomy, human faces, human hands," he says.
"Only one or two artists were very good at it 20 years ago. But now we have all learned the techniques to get stronger and now many carvers can do beautiful figures."
Chinese sculptor, Zhu Rui, and his partner initially began ice carving as a hobby but went professional five years ago.
Here at Harbin they are creating an apsaras flying around the moon - influenced by Chinese dance and culture.
Chinese sculptor Wang Songyin is working with a variety of implements to create his vision.
Getting the angle right for this pointed detail is a painstaking process.
Here, Russian couple Vadim Polin and Luibov Polina are carving a Russian girl being lifted up by a Chinese dragon.
For them, the work is a tribute to the long history of relations between Russia and China.
"Our work is a Chinese dragon and a Russian girl. It represents the friendship between the two countries. It's a new world by combining them together," says Vadim Polin.
Across the sculpting area here, extreme care is being taken to add minute details to each work, which can involve hundreds of pieces of ice.
With the judging over, the works will stay on display here for two months.
Beside the Songhua River, competitors here are taking a plunge of a different sort at the annual ice swimming event.
Believe it or not, it's warmer in this ice-cold swimming pool than in the frigid air outside.
Crowds have gathered to provide support, as timekeepers carefully record the swimmers' performances.
The pool here is carved from the ice of the Songhua River.
All told about 200 swimmers from 42 teams are competing.
They hail from all over China, as well as some from Russia and the United States.
The swimmers are divided into groups, by sex and age.
There are events for the young, the middle-aged, and the old.
"It is really exciting! I hope more people can join us for ice swimming," says local swimmer Bai Ling.
"Ice swimming is cool! The more we swim the younger we become!" says her fellow competitor, local Zhang Xiaofeng.
As the swimmers make their hurried way to the finish line, the air temperature outside is a body-numbingly cold -15 Celsius (5 Fahrenheit).
That can make getting out of the pool a struggle, but thankfully friends or family are usually on hand to give the competitors some warmth once out of the water.
There's warmth aplenty further down the riverbank at the annual Harbin mass wedding.
This year, 43 couples are declaring their love and commitment to each other, parading along the riverfront promenade to the main stage.
Today it's -10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit), so bridal gowns and suits are covered in warm winter jackets.
The couples have come from around China to share their special day, but not all are getting married for the first time.
Wang Shurong and her groom Wei Shuqi have come from a remote village in Heilongjiang province, and were invited here to celebrate their fifteenth wedding anniversary.
"The old days was difficult. It was not easy for most to wear a wedding dress. Life was hard. No one could get married in such a big occasion. We are very grateful and honoured," says Wang Shurong.
In unison, the couples recite their wedding vows, and exchange rings.
They promise to love their country, care for their parents and love each other for the rest of their lives.
In the Sun Island Snow Park this year, 110,000 cubic meters of snow has been used to build and hand-carve the structures that loom here in the icy cold sky.
At the beginning of every December, local workers start the painstaking work of preparing the site.
This year, executing the vision took 360 hours, with 10,000 workers required for the job.
Many of the attractions this year provide fun for visitors of all ages and interests, and across the festival's locations, there are more than 20 games and activities on offer.
The glittering, icy spectacle is known throughout China, with families, couples, groups of friends and singles travelling here from far and wide.
Chen Bailing is here with her parents from Hebei province, in central China.
"Here is a very famous tourist site in winter. I came with my parents. My father has never seen the ice lights, but he knows the ice lights are magnificent, so I wanted to show my parents what it looks like. After I came, I realised the lights are very beautiful indeed. We don't even want to leave! Although it is cold, we enjoy ourselves so much, "she says.
The ice festival was first held in Harbin in 1985.
While events like the ice sculpting, the ice swimming and the mass weddings lure people in, it's stunning sights like this that keep them coming back.
