Zhou Yang: The SmallRig Awards belong to everyone who believes in the power of image and is committed to making a difference with a camera.

"The SmallRig Awards belong to everyone who believes in the power of image and is committed to making a difference with a camera." At the opening of the 2025 SmallRig Awards Ceremony, Zhou Yang—Founder and CEO of Leqi Innovation (SmallRig), and Director of the SmallRig Image Development Fund Board—shared the origin of the awards, which all started with a chance encounter on a flight.

In the spring of 2024, while flying back to China from the U.S., Zhou happened to watch the documentary Writing with Fire. He was deeply moved. The film follows an Indian woman who uses social media to speak up for farmers whose land was taken by the mob, and to expose injustice in elections. Despite discrimination from her own family, pressure from society, and even threats to her life, she refuses to stay silent. Her courage and determination to keep filming and telling the truth inspired Zhou to reflect on the real value of image. Zhou shared that while SmallRig had always supported creators from behind the scenes—providing quality tools and solutions—it was the creators themselves who truly moved people by documenting real life and driving change. Zhou believes that businesses shouldn't just focus on products, they should care about people. That belief is what brought SmallRig into the spotlight to create the SmallRig Awards, a platform to discover and honor powerful stories and creators from around the world. Through this ongoing initiative, the team hopes to encourage the creation and sharing of social impact content, and to spread kindness and compassion through storytelling.

Zhou said, "We thought we were here to support creators. But in the end, it was us who were truly moved and empowered. The 3,891 submissions are the strongest recognition this award could receive, and they're why we'll keep going." He continued, "The theme 'See it, Change it' isn't just a slogan, it's a belief.” Whether it's an injured dolphin, a lonely child left behind, a story of injustice or one of compassion—pain, poverty, ignorance, hope, and healing—they all need to be seen. Social impact content is a language the whole world understands. And kindness connects us all.

Looking ahead, Zhou sees the SmallRig Awards as more than just a prize. It's becoming a long-term system to empower, discover, and connect socially conscious creators. He shared that Leqi Innovation has set up the SmallRig Image Development Fund to support the ongoing creation and exchange of social impact works, discover impactful projects and creators, and help build bridges that connect them with audiences and opportunities. "From the moment the awards were born," Zhou said, "they stopped being just SmallRig's. They belong to everyone who believes in the power of image and is committed to making a difference with a camera. In an age where anyone can be an image storyteller," he added, "let's connect the world with kindness, and push society forward with every good deed. Let's keep filming. Let's keep changing the world. Let's keep writing with fire. "

We welcome more outstanding works to join the SmallRig Awards, so we can inspire more people around the world to do good through image communication. We also hope the awards continue to bring together creators and causes, sparking even more powerful stories that move hearts and change lives. Let's work together to bring these stories into the light, and make change something everyone can take part in.