Veteran Australian actor Jack Thompson and award-winning producer Melanie Coombs were special guests at the opening of the 2009 My Australian Life held in Beijing in December.

Ten Australian feature films, including a mix of newly released and classic Australian films, award winning animations and documentaries were screened in Beijing’s Village in Sanlitun as part of the festival. To coincide with iDOCS International Documentary Festival, six award-winning Australian documentaries were also screened at a special Made in Australia session at the Beijing Film Academy.
Films screened during the Australian film festival included Melanie Coombs’ award winning feature, Mary and Max, written and directed by Adam Elliot, which most recently won Best Animated Feature Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, 2009 Cannes Film Festival Caméra d'Or winner Samson and Delilah, Ten Canoes – winner of six Australian Film Institute awards and Tropfest.