Chinese martial arts film Seven Swords will be the curtain raiser of the 62nd Venice Film Festival on August 31st. 

The organizer of the annual extravaganza also announced that a special martial arts session will be held and classic films by the late Hong Kong directors King Hu , Cheh Chang and Choh Yuen will be shown to celebrate the centennial of Chinese films.

Chinese director Ang Lee's latest hit Brokeback Mountain is also planning to vie for an award at the event but it has not been confirmed so far.

Hong Kong veteran director Tsui Hark's Seven Swords, starring a dream lineup of Asia, will premiere across the world on July 18th.

(CRI July 9, 2005)