Romantic comedy “Finding Mojo” opens nationwide in Malaysia on July 23, with a Singapore release following on July 31 and an Indonesian bow in the works.
Astro Shaw is distributing the film locally, while SC Films International handles sales in territories outside Southeast Asia.
The release marks the first feature from Sympatico, the Malaysia-U.K. production label Double Vision launched with veteran British producer Richard Johns. Double Vision is now part of Vision Entertainment Group, a recently rebranded studio operation with Min Lim serving as group CEO. The company, with nearly four decades in Malaysian television production behind it, is also developing “Emergency,” a limited series with Luke Evans attached to star, as Sympatico’s next project.
The film follows Adi, a rising executive at a dairy company whose viral cow, Mojo, has become a social media star. When the company’s push to acquire small farms runs into a village that refuses to sell, and the village’s farmer kidnaps the cow to force negotiations, Adi is sent undercover to retrieve the animal – only to fall for the farmer’s daughter and reconsider his priorities. The cast is led by Indonesian actor Adipati Dolken, Malaysian actress Mimi Lana and veteran actor Wan Hanafi, alongside supporting players Namron, Dato A. Tamimi Serigar, Aziz M. Osman, Tony Eusoff, Gambit Saifullah and Farah Ahmad. Honey Ahmad wrote the screenplay, with Zahir Omar serving as executive producer and creative consultant.
Popular on Variety
“Finding Mojo” also marks Lim’s feature directorial debut, following two decades producing Malaysian adaptations of “The Bridge” and “Liar.” Around 90% of the film was shot in Perlis, Malaysia’s smallest state.
“I’ve spent more than two decades helping other directors bring their visions to life, so stepping behind the camera myself felt like a very natural evolution rather than a leap into the unknown,” Lim tells Variety. “Producing taught me that directing isn’t about having all the answers – it’s about creating an environment where everyone can do their best work.”
The production drew crew from six countries, including editor Chris Gill in the U.K., composer Sam Anderson in the U.S., VFX supervisor Tigran Badalyan and graphics artist David Forero.
“I never wanted to direct simply to say I’d directed a feature film,” Lim says. “I was waiting for the story that genuinely felt like it had to be told through my own eyes. ‘Finding Mojo’ is a celebration of family, community and finding joy in unexpected places, and I couldn’t imagine handing that story to anyone else.”
Zahir Omar, the award-winning filmmaker behind “Fly By Night,” is serving as executive producer for the first time in his career, alongside his role as creative consultant on the film.
“The story is inspired by the values at the heart of Aidil Adha – faith, sacrifice and community,” Lim says. “While ‘Finding Mojo’ isn’t an Islamic film, those values belong to everyone. In Asia, the cast will naturally be a big draw, while internationally we hope those universal themes, together with the film’s production values and creative team, will help the story find an audience.”
The release lands as Double Vision widens its international footprint. The company has also struck a co-production agreement with Astro Shaw and the Philippines’ ABS-CBN covering three premium drama series, the first of which is currently in development – part of a wider push by the company to build repeatable cross-border projects instead of depending solely on commissions at home.
“For too long, Southeast Asia has been viewed primarily as a place where international productions come to shoot,” Lim says. “I think the next chapter is about creating stories here that travel everywhere. That’s the ambition we’re building at Double Vision – not simply to service international productions, but to become a studio whose stories originate in this region and resonate around the world.”
“I genuinely believe this is Southeast Asia’s moment,” she adds. “Audiences everywhere are looking for fresh voices and authentic stories, and our region has an incredible richness of culture, humor and humanity. We don’t need to imitate Hollywood or Europe. We need to tell our own stories with confidence, because that’s what audiences are increasingly responding to.”
Double Vision earned an International Emmy nomination for its ABS-CBN co-production “Kahit Isang Saglit.”
“We’re not trying to build a company that occasionally makes international projects,” Lim says. “We’re building an international studio that happens to be based in Southeast Asia.”
