Cambodia & Cinema : Sarita Reth, the Khmer Actress Crossing Borders

How a Phnom Penh actress found herself, speaking both Khmer and Mandarin, in the credits of a short film selected at one of the most respected festivals in Chinese independent cinema.

Sarita Reth at CIFF 360 @Cambodge Mag

She stepped onto a stage in Xining without ever losing sight of Phnom Penh: Sarita Reth, the Cambodian actress well known to audiences since her crowning as Miss Universe Cambodia in 2020, has seen her first role outside the Kingdom selected for the FIRST International Film Festival, one of the most closely watched showcases for young independent cinema in China.

A Khmer Heroine in Guangzhou

The film is called Daughter of the Apsara. This 18-minute China-Cambodia co-production was written and directed by Chinese filmmaker Hua Hui, and shot in Guangzhou, in Guangdong province. Sarita Reth performs in both Khmer and Mandarin, playing a young Cambodian woman living abroad whose identity is shaped by two languages, two memories, and two countries. The story follows the intimate journey of a Khmer woman navigating a cross-border marriage, searching for a sense of belonging in a land that is not her own.

For the actress, now splitting her time between Phnom Penh and Shanghai, it was a first: she had never before filmed outside Cambodia. On social media, she shared that the experience had been an especially intense one, describing a role that felt "very close to her heart."

FIRST: China's Showcase for Tomorrow's Filmmakers

Founded in Beijing in 2006 as the Student DV Film Festival, the FIRST International Film Festival relocated in 2011 to Xining, capital of the remote Qinghai province on the edges of Tibet. Far from weakening the event, that geographic shift gave it a distinct identity: often nicknamed "China's Sundance," the festival has built its reputation on a shoestring budget and a volunteer spirit, with hundreds of student volunteers supporting each edition. Since 2010, its programme has opened up to films from more than fifty countries, and its jury has counted major figures of Chinese cinema among its members, including Wong Kar-wai, Jiang Wen, and Tang Wei.

Two decades after its founding, FIRST has established itself as one of the most respected platforms for discovering young Chinese directors before they reach international recognition — a reputation that makes the presence of a Cambodian actress in its lineup all the more notable.

An Actress on an Unconventional Path

Born in Phnom Penh in 1994 and educated at the Lycée Français René-Descartes and later at Vanda Institute, Sarita Reth first became known as a presenter on the television series Love9, produced by BBC Media Action to raise awareness among Khmer youth about sexual and reproductive health. Spotted through beauty pageants, she was crowned Miss Universe Cambodia in 2020 before representing the country at the international pageant that same year. Alongside this, she has quietly built an international filmography, with roles in several short and feature films, including the Cambodian horror film Mind Cage.

In posts published in both Khmer and English after the selection was announced, the actress thanked director Hua Hui for her trust, as well as Sansithny Ruth, who had introduced her to the project. She sees it as proof that storytelling can "bridge cultures across borders."

A Voice That Carries, All the Way to Kep

This international recognition adds to a commitment Sarita Reth also pursues behind the scenes. A few weeks earlier, she was in Kep for a professional workshop organised by CIFF 360 at Knai Bang Chatt, where more than thirty Cambodian film professionals — directors, producers, screenwriters, and ministry representatives — gathered for a candid stocktaking of the industry. She took part in a dual capacity: as an actress, but also as a producer, a role she has recently taken on with two short films already selected at the Cambodia International Film Festival as well as at two Academy-accredited festivals, Short Shorts in Japan and Huesca 54 in Spain.

Asked about the coastal province's potential as a future home for cinema, she was enthusiastic, saying Kep had everything it needed to one day become Cambodia's "little Cannes."

A Signal for Cambodian Cinema

Beyond Sarita Reth's personal trajectory, this selection fits into a broader movement: the growing visibility of Cambodian artists on film scenes across Asia and beyond, from Rithy Panh's award-winning documentaries to the regional collaborations multiplying with Thailand, Vietnam, and, as here, China. Co-productions, shoots abroad, bilingual performers: Cambodia's independent film scene is building its own cross-border bridges, one project at a time.

The FIRST International Film Festival is held every year in Xining, usually in July; the full programme for the 2026 edition, which is set to include Daughter of the Apsara, will be confirmed by organisers in the coming weeks.