Chinese animated film Niu Lai has emerged as a major talking point among audiences at home and abroad during the 2026 summer movie season.
How does an industry insider view the phenomenon? At the 2026 Beijing Culture Forum, Mark Handler, former Disney executive producer and a distinguished professor at the Beijing Film Academy, shared his insights with China Daily reporter Yan An.
Handler said genuine emotions can resonate with people across cultures. What moves creators and audiences in the first place, he said, is often the very core of a story that can reach audiences around the world.
Taking the animated film Nobody as an example, Handler said creators should first identify what they truly care about and what they want to express. Only by staying true to that core, he said, can a story have a chance of moving audiences.
