The first Macao International Comedy Festival began here on Monday with various comedy films and theater plays from multiple cultures ready for the audience.

Five plays and nine films took part in the festival, including "A Comedy of Operas" from Spain, "A Dance Tribute to the Art of Football" from Norway, "The Crazy Happy Version of 'Liaozhai'" from the Chinese mainland, "Luxembourg, Luxembourg" from Ukraine, and others.

Director of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao Special Administrative Region government Leong Wai Man said at the opening ceremony that Macao is a modern city with profound Chinese cultural heritages and diverse cultural integration.

Through the universally beloved art form of comedy, this festival will tell the world stories of the Chinese nation's optimism, confidence, openness, and inclusivity, she added.

Comedy is sophisticated in a way that it not only makes people laugh but also prompts them to reflect on human nature and social phenomena, and at the same time it encourages everyone to enjoy the present happiness, said renowned director Zhang Yimou in a dialogue joined by other Chinese director and film artists Ning Hao, Shen Teng, and Ma Li.

Macao serves as an excellent window not only for the Greater Bay Area but also for Asia and even the world, Zhang said.

Ma said that although creation is sometimes painful, being able to perform comedy brings great happiness, expressing her willingness to support more talents in the industry.

The festival, scheduled for March 11-18, was co-organized by the Chinese comedy production company Mahua FunAge and the culture communication company Beijing Damai.