BEIJING, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- "The Photographer," a film that reflects China's 40-year reform and opening up through the lens of a family of photographers will be screened nationwide starting Dec. 12, director Zhang Wei said at the premiere in Beijing Tuesday.

The film tells of the three-generation family of photographer Cai Xiangren operating a photo studio in Shenzhen, the pioneering city of China's reform and opening-up.

The movie highlights the distinctive features of the three generations of people in Shenzhen, namely persistence of the first generation, reform and inheritance of the second, and innovation of the third, Zhang said.

"Through the development of the photo studio, we can see a bigger picture. People like them have made ineffaceable contributions to the country's reform and opening up, starting from scratch and achieving prosperity," Zhang said.

"The Photographer" is one of nine domestic films about reform and opening up introduced by China Film Co., Ltd. and Huaxia Film Distribution Co., Ltd. under the guidance of the State Film Administration.