The 4th MINT Chinese Film Festival will be held in Kendal between 6th and 8th March 2026, showcasing Chinese and Asian films.
MINT is an award-winning film festival and curatorial organisation. It is the first women-led Chinese film festival in the UK, focusing on cross-cultural communication and women’s representation.
It was founded by Chinese film curator Yixiang Lin and Dr Carol Rennie, parliamentary researcher and cinema operator.
In previous years, the film festival has been held in Keswick, but this year the main festival venue is being moved to Kendal Brewery Arts Cinema. It is located in the beautiful Lake District town of Kendal, Cumbria, where co-founders Yixiang Lin and Carol Rennie first met and conceived of MINT.
Over 35 films will be screened for the 4th MINT Chinese Film Festival, including many UK, EU, and international premieres. The first film will be Silent Friend, winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at Venice 2025, directed by Hungarian filmmaker Ildikó Enyedi and starring Chinese actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai. A Q&A with Ildikó Enyedi will follow it. Other highlights include the UK premiere of the 4K restoration of the Hong Kong classic A Chinese Ghost Story (1987) and Rosemead (2025), a true story adaptation starring Lucy Liu.
The festival focuses typically focuses on Chinese films, but this year MINT expanded their curatorial focus beyond Chinese cinema to include films made in or about broader Asian stories. They received 538 submissions from countries and regions across Asia, North America, Europe, and beyond. Women and non-binary or gender-anonymous filmmakers made up over 50% of the entries.
In addition to screenings, audiences can also look forward to a festival gala, filmmaker Q&As, signing sessions, workshops, drinks receptions, live gigs, DJ sets, and outdoor activities. There will even be Chinese New Year and International Women’s Day celebrations across Kendal hosted as part of the film festival. Most submissions were also from young curators, with those born after 1995 accounting for more than 71% of submissions.
The 4th MINT Chinese Film Festival will be held between 6th and 8th March 2026. More information can be found on their website.
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