I only got seriously into podcasts around the middle of last year. Most of what I listen to revolves around Hong Kong cinema and Chinese-language film, especially shows tied to whatever is currently in theaters. If I’ve seen the movie, I immediately want to hear people talk about it. If I haven’t seen it, I want to hear them talk about it even more, just to get a taste of the fun.
Lately I’ve hit a bit of a drought, so on impulse I ended up organizing the podcasts I follow regularly—the ones I usually play whenever a new episode drops. Listing them here does not automatically mean I recommend them. If I recommend something, I’ll say so plainly. If I don’t say that, it means I do listen… while quietly not recommending it. Sorry.
Overdue Film Report
This one is broadly a film podcast: foreign-language films, Chinese films, all of that. But the hosts’ real passion feels most concentrated on Hong Kong cinema. The regular voices are the host Mallory and Wuse Quanwei; the latter directed a documentary on Johnnie To and is also doing film-related work in Hong Kong now.
My favorite episodes are mostly the earlier ones, especially the discussions on Ti Lung, David Chiang, and various directors and film figures. Back when I had only just started watching Hong Kong films in 2023 and didn’t know much yet, this show worked well for me as a kind of viewing guide. I haven’t really gone back to revisit those episodes recently, so my recommendation is based more on how strongly I remember liking them at the time.
By 2025, though, the hosts sound busy enough that they no longer seem to have as much energy for in-depth film discussion. Updates have slowed, and the movie talk feels lighter than it used to.
Some episodes I remember fondly:
- E1: “Why Don’t Ti Lung and David Chiang Get Along?” — basically a long-form, highly committed excavation of the hosts’ former RPS obsession.
- E5: “Hong Kong Film Awards Night and Taihu Private Talk” — clearly a very spontaneous recording, with the sound of glasses clinking in a hotel room while they talk about two film figures they love. The atmosphere is wonderful.
- EP 20: “Johnnie To, a Hong Kong Director”
Yau Tsim Mong Midnight Show
This is also a fairly industry-facing podcast. It gets into the behind-the-scenes trades and technical jobs involved in filmmaking, and for an ordinary listener like me, some of that material goes surprisingly deep—in a very satisfying way.
That said, guest-interview podcasts like this often have an unavoidable warm-up section where people chat casually and compliment each other for a long time before getting into the good stuff. In episodes with many guests, the host sometimes doesn’t fully control the room, and I can start thinking, oh no, they are padding the runtime. Episode 83 on Actors Please Take Your Place 3 gave me that feeling.
But I genuinely recommend most of the one-on-one interviews. Those are absolutely worth hearing.
Recommended episodes:
- Episode 7: What Is It Like to Be an Actor at TVB? The Most Important Thing in Life Is to Be Happy
- Episode 9: Crew Breakdown — What Does a Script Supervisor Do?
- Episode 36: Crew Breakdown — What Does Production Design Do?
- Episode 75: Lyrics Were My First Love, Directing Is My Marriage | Interview with Tracy Choi, director of The Lyricist Wannabe
- Episode 73: Breaking Stereotypes: Women Can Be Cinematographers Too! | Interview with cinematographer Deng Lu
Meizheyao FM
This show mainly covers theatrical releases and popular current TV dramas. The host, Kongshan, used to do interview-related work in the film and television industry. Anyone who has seen my social media probably already knows this is my must-listen-every-time podcast.
I really like Kongshan. First of all, she speaks beautifully. I originally got into the show through her solo episodes, and I still think her wording is the cleanest, most precise, and most comfortable to listen to. Later I found out she’s an editor, and my immediate reaction was: of course. That explains everything. She holds her own podcast to a high standard. Even when she’s talking with friends, she stays focused, she’s a bit demanding in a good way, and she always seems to know the rhythm and theme of the episode. There’s very little aimless fluff.
Another reason I like her: she genuinely loves commercial movies. Plenty of podcasts talk about mainstream releases, sure, but every now and then she still makes me think, you watched that too? Is that love? I don’t know. She’s also one of the few hosts who watches Chinese romance dramas too—both costume and modern ones, even if she doesn’t talk about them as often lately. Sometimes I’ll click into those episodes even without having seen the show, just because she’s so pleasant to listen to. She may not be trying to deliver some grand “deep insight,” but she’s never dull.
She also puts out a monthly film-and-TV roundup covering global cinema, mainland releases, box office, major industry news, and so on. It feels a bit like a thirty-minute morning news program, except monthly.
A few good entry points:
- On Bureau 749: “As for executing Lu Chuan, I don’t strongly object” — I haven’t seen Bureau 749, but this episode is genuinely hilarious.
- Poor Things and pseudo-feminism — this was my gateway episode; the language is clean and the delivery is so smooth.
- “I paid for my ticket, so why can’t I take photos of the screen?” — Kongshan in full fighting form.
Words and Things
The show describes itself as a general culture podcast. I’m not entirely sure what “general culture” means either, but after listening to most of it, my rough conclusion is: a group of queer/fandom people talking about film, literature, and music.
One of the regular hosts writes lyrics, and maybe that’s why the music- and lyricist-related episodes are the ones I love most. It’s a very pleasant listen overall. It doesn’t feel like a hyper-professional podcast machine, but when the topic falls within the hosts’ territory, the discussions are genuinely informed and can get very deep. And even when an episode is more chatty, it’s often extremely fun.
If you’re into fandom culture—even if not the exact topics this podcast covers—you’ll probably catch a lot of the references and jokes.
Some favorites:
- VOL30. Keep Walking, Keep Singing — Sometimes Songs Are the Only Cure for Sorrow — recorded after the hosts attended an Anthony Wong live show and talked about how they felt. One host, Hammerhead Shark, is clearly a devoted Anthony Wong fan, and hearing someone speak about what they truly love is always moving.
- VOL23. Looking Down at Wastewater, Not a Mirror — On Lin Xi’s Writing
- VOL.01 “Burn This Face, Yet the Tongue Burns On” — about Anthony Wong and Lin Xi; after this episode, every time I pass by anything Huang-Liang related I automatically end up shipping a little.
- VOL.20 Language, Power, Silence, Death — A Conversation About Fighting AIDS Stigma — very thoughtful, very well done. The “factual updates” section alone makes it worth hearing.
- VOL28. Let’s Talk About Anime “Sports Boys,” and About Those of Us Who Exercise or Don’t
- VOL19. Bubbles of Desire in Swiping Apps — an episode about dating app experiences; I’ve never used one and still had a great time listening.
And a small note: their topics and titles are consistently excellent. Spotify or similar platforms may be a better place to listen, because some episodes—such as the ones involving Denise Ho—seem to be missing elsewhere.
Jumbo Floating Restaurant
This is a podcast devoted specifically to Hong Kong films and Hong Kong film figures. The host seems to come from an academic or cultural studies background, and the content can feel… a little like listening to a paper.
My feelings about it are mixed lately. On one hand, this is exactly the kind of podcast that treats its material with seriousness and care, and since the subject matter is one I care about, I feel I should meet it halfway as a listener and really pay attention. And in fact, I did think the earlier episodes were very good.
More recently, though, I sometimes find it heavy. There’s often a long historical lead-up about the film industry before getting to the film or person in question. Maybe I find it dense only because I don’t know enough; maybe that’s on me. But I also suspect most listeners aren’t able to digest that level of detail every time. It can feel very much like attending class.
But. The host is unquestionably talking about Hong Kong cinema with love and nostalgia. This is not a snark-driven review podcast. Even when discussing flawed works, she stays gentle and substantive rather than trying to show off by being cruel. The update schedule is fairly consistent too: when something comes out, she talks about it; and if there is even the slightest connection, she will somehow also bring up her beloved Chor Yuen.
The ghost-film episodes are among my favorites, along with these:
- 028. When the Wandering Swallow Flies Away — Cheng Pei-pei and the Chivalrous Woman’s Life in King Hu’s World
- 044. Donnie Yen — The Not-Entirely-Smooth Making of a Superstar
- 026. Yi Shu and The Tale of Rose — includes some Yi Shu-related gossip, which is exactly the sort of thing I support being treated with full academic-review seriousness.
Sisters, Read Well
And now, finally, the one I’ve been loving most lately: Sisters, Read Well.
This is basically a reading podcast in which women readers talk about women writers. Occasionally they discuss film or TV adaptations too. There are four regular hosts, all of them absurdly lovable, and they’re almost difficult to introduce because what I want to say is simply: every single one of them is great. It’s one of those podcasts where each episode feels precious because there are only so many of them.
What strikes me first is how empathetic all four hosts are. They each bring their own perspectives and opinions to what they read, and while discussing books they often share bits of their own life experience, which are frequently funny, vivid, or unexpectedly touching.
I’ve said this elsewhere too, but I especially adore one of the hosts, Lao Yuan. Maybe it’s because she is also a screenwriter. In any case, whenever she casually tells a story while talking about a book, the story is always excellent—alive, funny, memorable, perfectly told in just a few lines. A story about her sister saying, “I have a superpower: anywhere on the school field, I can instantly spot the boy I like.” A story about her dog: “When I heard Someone Like You, I really cried because it made me think of my dog. Much later I found one strand of dog hair on my own down jacket—this dog sheds way too much.” A story about having an online relationship in middle school with an older guy from the same school who turned out to be kind of ugly: “I suddenly remembered what my mom said about combining like terms, so I turned around and ran. I was especially afraid he’d come find me in my classroom.”
Every story she tells is good. Once she starts, my whole brain just follows her.
But even if Lao Yuan told no stories at all, this would still be an excellent podcast.
Each episode tends to have very clear moments of “this is the part we felt strongly about.” Listening to the hosts share their responses to a book, their views on an author, and their judgments of certain passages is always satisfying. And sometimes they sharply disagree on a point—only to actually talk it through, after which you’ll often hear things like “That’s so well put!” or “You’ve completely convinced me!”
I know this is a bit of a reckless statement, but I’m going to say it anyway: that kind of exchange is rare in a lot of conversation podcasts, especially once male hosts enter the room. Too often the opinions are either all identical, or the disagreements get brushed aside, or there’s a brief bout of tension followed by a laugh—and even if someone has been persuaded, they still won’t admit it.
Another thing I love is the emotional atmosphere. Every episode feels full—full of energy, full of feeling, full of genuine desire to communicate something to the listener. Some podcasts leave me deflated afterward, like life itself has dimmed a little. This one does the opposite. Finishing an episode feels like waking up at eight in the morning and finding several older-sister roommates in the kitchen, talking animatedly while making coffee and frying breakfast. The whole day feels more alive.
Honestly, I could recommend nearly every episode, but these are the ones I’m most partial to:
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S4SP: In Memory of Barbie Hsu — The Death of Truth, Dignity, and a Clean Soul
Memorial episodes are almost inevitably heavy and painful, but this one actually made me laugh out loud in places. The Barbie Hsu that emerges here is so vivid and lovable. The hosts recount her stories the way people talk about a dear friend they all knew well and admired deeply—her integrity, her dignity, her character. I genuinely got teary. -
S3E6: Coffee. Wandering. Love. Anni Baobei as a Way of Life
Very funny, very lively, but it also arrived at a version of Anni Baobei I hadn’t expected. -
S4E4: Kiehl’s | Thank God Cantopop Is Always There to Put a Mood into Words
Another especially fun episode. The discussions of two Twins songs, along with Sammi Cheng and Miriam Yeung, are all wonderful. I’ve listened to many podcasts about Cantopop, and so often they just repeat the same tired judgments everyone already knows. This one doesn’t. These are clearly the hosts’ own observations and feelings.
I also loved the episodes on Eileen Chang, Yi Shu, Qiong Yao, and Lilian Lee, but if I keep going I’ll end up recommending a full third of the podcast. People should really just try it.
A Few Loose Single-Episode Favorites
Then there are some podcasts I haven’t listened to in full, but where a single episode really stayed with me:
- Shaw Brothers Cinema: In the Flash of Light, Spring Winds Slice Through Dreams of Fifty Years Ago
- vol.1 — How Do Minnan People Speak with Ghosts and Gods?
- Accidental Error | happyweirdo 04: We Studied What You Can Do in “Four Years” — from the happyweirdo series under Accidental Error; unbelievably relaxed, full of jokes, requires zero brainpower, and made me shake with laughter at my desk.
- Workday Daydreams, Let’s Go Crazy Together — light, ridiculous daydream material; so nonsensical I was again laughing at my desk.
When I first started listening to podcasts, I also tried some of the supposedly Very Important, Very Serious shows people always recommend—the kind front-paged on podcast apps, full of earnest discussions about politics, economics, the world, culture, work, nature, and so on. In the end I discovered that I really just can’t do it. I’m not interested. I don’t love listening to that stuff.
Maybe the reason is that my standards for getting to know people through voice are strangely both high and low. In real conversation and in podcasts alike, I don’t actually care whether someone is cultured. I care whether they’re lovable. More than whether what they say is “substantive,” I care whether they’re funny. More than whether they’re clever, I care whether they enjoy humiliating people they consider less clever.
I can accept shallow conversation. I can accept subjectivity, emotional overreaction, personal grudges, lack of objectivity, lack of calm, even lack of a clear point. What I cannot accept is someone sounding like a boring, unlovable, irritating person.
By this point that probably makes my taste pretty obvious. I’m exactly the kind of listener who will happily keep listening even when I know nothing about the topic, as long as the host is introducing it with enough passion and love. In fact, some of my favorite listening experiences are just hearing people talk about their own ships, their own obsessions, the things they truly adore. Even if all they do into the microphone is sigh and say, “Ugh! It’s just— you know? Ugh!” if the feeling is strong enough, I’ll still want to hear it.