Local influencer Mayiduo has stepped behind the camera for the first time to direct and star in his debut film titled FOLLOW AUNTY LA (《Aunty当网红》). The movie features a cast of familiar online personalities and promises both laughs and heartfelt moments.
Among the cast are Charlene Huang and Xixi Lim, who break away from their usual comedic image to deliver surprisingly emotional performances.
Plot: Aunty vs Influencer Showdown
The movie follows Ah Hua (played by Charlene Huang), the hardworking owner of a traditional fishball stall. Her life takes a turn when her husband (played by Sai Chuah Chee Xian) cheats on her with a social media influencer, BBgirl (played by Regina Lim). Not only does he leave her, but he also teams up with BBgirl to take over the family fishball business.
Determined not to back down, Ah Hua decides to fight back by becoming an influencer herself. With the help of her loyal bestie CC (played by Xixi Lim) and a washed-up photographer Ah Fu (played by Mayiduo), she embarks on a bumpy journey to reclaim her pride — and take on BBgirl in a livestream showdown.
From Comedy to Tears
Director Mayiduo praised both actresses for pushing their limits. “Charlene showed the most improvement. She really brought out the emotional layers of her character,” he said.
“As for Xixi, people usually cast her in ‘happy-go-lucky’ roles because of how she looks, but this time, she delivered emotional scenes with real depth. It was a very different side of her,” he added.
In this film, Charlene Huang sets aside her usual funny persona to portray Ah Hua’s frustrations and pain with raw sincerity. She admitted that while she struggled to cry on cue in Girls Go Army, this time she had the opposite problem — she had too many crying scenes.
“Do you know how many times he (Mayiduo) made me cry?” she joked. “He ended up cutting some of the scenes out.”
