Chinese law enforcement raided the Beijing Independent Film Festival today, seizing documents, films and two film officials.

The event's shutdown represents Chinese President Xi Jinping's new hard-line crackdown against the country's entertainment and intellectual communities.

"It's very clear that the Xi Jinping regime is determined to control the ideological realm, which has not been emphasized so much for a long time," said Chris Berry, professor of film studies at King's College London in England, to Didi Tang of the Associated Press.

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The shutdown and seizure were the culmination of harassment by government officials. Film critic Li Xianting, the festival's organizer, posted memos claiming he was being pressured to cancel the event by government security strongmen and that he was under police surveillance.

Just before the festival was to take place, witnesses and supporters told how police detained Li, artistic director Wang Hongwei and executive director Fan Rong, along with searching their offices and confiscating materials.

The festival, which began in 2006, has long been subject to impediments from Beijing.

"In the past few years when they forced us to cancel the festival, we just moved it to other places, or delayed the screenings," Wang said. "But this year, we cannot carry on with the festival. It is completely forbidden."

Reports say about two dozen men barred members of the public and 30 film directors from the venue in the Beijing suburb of Songzhuang.

Commentators outside of China and those within it doubt the strong-arm tactics will have little long-term effect on the proliferating Chinese film industry. That has not stopped a wave of indignation and protest from the country's independent filmmakers who depend on such outlets for their livelihoods.

"The audience for my films is already quite small, perhaps because I make documentaries that talk about history," said Hu Jie, a director from the city of Nanjing. "If one of the rare film festivals, like the Beijing Independent Film festival, is shot down, then it will be very difficult for us to survive as filmmakers."

The festival shutdown comes as several well-known Chinese actors were arrested on drug charges, including Jaycee Chan, son of martial arts actor Jackie Chan.

TagsBeijing Independent Film Festival, Li Xianting, China censorship