Chinese myth-inspired animation draws praise at Malta film showcase

Maltese viewers have highly commented on a Chinese animated retelling of the Daoist folklore of the Eight Immortals at a film showcase in Santa Lucija on Friday, as the film continues its rollout beyond China.

The showcase opened on the Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday at Santa Lucija's Chinese Garden of Serenity.

Its opening film, "All Wishes Come True!", had reached overseas cinemas after its July release in China. It imagines the Eight Immortals, figures from Chinese folklore, as eight ordinary people before they become legendary immortals.

"It was very interactive. Like, you're literally not bored even one second," said Agata, a Maltese audience member.

"The film is excellent, and it has a very nice story, more colorful, more enthusiastic. It makes me enter more in the culture of China," said another audience member.

Mou Zhengyang, who wrote and directed the film of the Eight Immortals, said he hopes its messages brought by the films in the showcase would resonate beyond their familiar legend.

"What the film expresses is about caring more about what's right than what you stand to gain or lose. It's about being kind and doing the right thing. I think audiences can feel the spirit of passing these values on, as well as the appeal of Chinese culture," Mou said.

The Malta showcase is one of several ways Chinese films are reaching audiences abroad, alongside festival screenings and commercial releases.

Stephen Cachia, a lecturer in Chinese history at the University of Malta, said the films could shape how viewers understand the country.

"When they see these films, they get a more realistic picture of China. Actually, if you go to China... I was there last year in July, and I could see that China is actually much more modern than Malta, for sure, and even most European countries," Cachia said.

Maltese media professional Fiona Vella said she had seen more variety in Chinese films and increasingly elaborate computer-generated imagery (CGI).

"Each year, I'm always saying great development, but very, very wide development from one thing to another. The CGI is becoming very more spectacular. I would say [I] like Chinese films because usually they are based on some Chinese history or culture. So I get to learn more about these things and also about the Chinese people," Vella said.

Chinese myth-inspired animation draws praise at Malta film showcase

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla on Saturday condemned U.S. decades-long blockade of Cuba as "collective punishment" aimed at triggering a humanitarian crisis, during his address at the 81st UN General Assembly General Debate.

"In Cuba, as is known to all, we face a multidimensional aggression from the U.S. government -- a permanent, abusive, and ruthless hostility that has lasted for nearly seven decades. Since January 2026, it has intensified and become more cruel and dangerous with the imposition of an energy blockade that, through intimidation and coercion, prohibits all countries from exporting fuel to Cuba -- which amounts to a naval blockade, defined under international law as an act of war," he said.

The foreign minister stressed that Cuba is a peaceful country and dismissed the U.S. claim that Cuba poses a threat. "Cuba is not a threat; the blockade is!" he declared.

He also said Cuba does not represent a threat to the United States and stands ready to engage in dialogue with Washington on the basis of sovereign equality and respect for international law.

"We have always been, and remain, willing to engage in dialogue with the U.S. government to seek solutions to our bilateral differences on the basis of seriousness, respect, sovereign equality, and observance of international law, without interference in internal affairs, and with no preconditions," he said.

Cuba slams US blockade as 'collective punishment' at UN General Assembly