50 Years Friendship between China and Australia: Director of IAC Professor Han Jing

Han Jing is the director of the Australia-China Institute for Arts and Cultures in Western Sydney University. She is an overseas Chinese scholar, and also the manager and chief subtitler of the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). She has subtitled more than 400 Chinese movies and TV programs for Australian audiences, including the Chinese TV dating show If You are The One (Fei Cheng Wu Rao), which went on to become the longest running non-English language TV show of all time in Australia. In 1988, Han came to Australia as an international student at the University of Sydney.

After experiencing culture shock and noting the cultural differences between the two countries, she believed at that time that ordinary Australians had little knowledge about China. People were amazed at her English fluency because she had been educated in China. Han believes that when people from both countries have a stronger knowledge base and more connections, China and Australia will have more understanding of each other.

Nowadays at the institute, Han is committed to helping build bridges of communication between artists and authors from both countries. She thinks it is very important for both China and Australia to increase the level of communications and exchanges, with culture and arts being the best medium for doing so.