The films receiving a Special Mention for Minnan-dialect Storytelling were announced at  the Pingtan In Moments Film Festival. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Minnan-dialect filmmaking is opening up new possibilities for the big screen.

The topic took center stage on Sept 12 at a forum held during the sixth Pingtan In Moments Film Festival in Pingtan county, Fujian province. More than 50 filmmakers, scholars and industry professionals attended.

This year's festival lineup offered a glimpse of that potential. For the first time, the main competition featured a Minnan-dialect category. It received 221 short films from Fujian, the Chaoshan region of Guangdong province, and Taiwan. Ten made the final selection, with three receiving special mentions for their Minnan-dialect storytelling.

Huang Jianxin, director and dean of the School of Film at Xiamen University, recalled choosing a dialect version of Dear You over its Mandarin version.

"The emotions felt more authentic in the dialect," he said, adding that language gives audiences more ways to experience a film.

The forum also looked at stories that could be adapted from documentaries into feature films. A documentary about people separated by the Taiwan Strait has received more than 60 million views on Bilibili since its release in July 2024.

Zhou Xinxia, president of the China Film Editing Society, highlighted the story of a couple who were separated for 37 years before reuniting in 1984. She said the story could provide material for a feature film.

For young filmmakers, the festival is also becoming a place to find guidance and funding. Fujian launched a program for 2026 during the festival that will support up to three projects, with each eligible for 1 million to 3 million yuan ($140,000 to $420,000) in funding.