What Chinese audiences are responding to in Malaysian films

Malaysian films may be finding a promising new audience in China, where recent screenings suggest that familiar emotions can travel further than filmmakers sometimes expect.

Five local titles were shown at the China-Malaysia Film Festival 2026 in Beijing, giving producers a rare chance to see how Chinese viewers responded to stories shaped by Malaysian settings, characters and concerns.

Among them were “The Last Dive” and “Babah”, two films that appear to have struck a chord for very different reasons.

“The Last Dive” drew attention for its mix of marine conservation, underwater visualsm, and the story of a person with disabilities overcoming personal challenges.

Executive production director Wendy Wong said the response exceeded expectations. “After the screening, they not only praised the film but also expressed their respect for Malaysia for producing a work that addresses global issues,” she told Bernama.

Some viewers, she added, compared the film’s visuals to those of a Hollywood production, raising hopes that it could eventually reach a wider audience in China.

The reaction also offered a glimpse into what distributors there may be looking for. Wong said Chinese industry players tend to favour emotionally engaging stories, particularly those involving romance and family. But they are also curious about Malaysian culture, everyday life, urban settings and food.

That combination could work in Malaysia’s favour. A story does not necessarily need to feel culturally neutral to travel well; in fact, a strong sense of place may be part of the appeal, as long as the emotions remain recognisable.

“Babah” offers one example. Producer Nadia Nadzri said the film’s father-daughter relationship was likely central to its selection, precisely because the emotional core is easy to understand across cultures.

“I believe its strength lies in its message and the relationship between a father and daughter, which is very relatable and can be felt by audiences regardless of their cultural background,” she said.

The film has already screened in Brunei and Singapore, appeared on Netflix and taken part in a festival in Cambodia. China, however, had not previously been a market the team had seriously explored.

“This selection opens a new chapter for ‘Babah’,” Nadia said. “We hope the film can penetrate the market here and prove that a Malaysian family story can also touch the hearts of Chinese audiences.”

For local producers, that possibility comes with practical hurdles. China remains a tightly controlled and highly competitive film market, with its own censorship requirements, distribution structures and audience preferences.

Industry discussions held alongside the festival covered some of those realities, including marketing, acceptable content and the challenges of getting films into cinemas.

Ryan Lim, whose company was involved in organising the programme, said the key test was whether Chinese audiences would actually choose to watch Malaysian films commercially.

“The main challenge is to ensure that the proposed films are well received by Chinese audiences, so that they are willing to watch them in cinemas,” he said.

That makes the response to these early screenings useful not simply as praise, but as a form of audience testing.

The takeaway for Malaysian filmmakers may be encouraging: stories rooted in local life do not necessarily need to lose their Malaysian character to travel.

What seems to matter is whether the emotion at the centre – family, struggle, ambition, love or resilience – feels familiar enough for someone elsewhere to recognise themselves in it.

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