Malaysian cinema at TUK: The grass really is greener<\/p>\n
Paul F. Agusta, Contributor, pfa0109@yahoo.com<\/p>\n
Unlike Indonesia's film industry, which is still struggling to
\nemerge from the swamp of artistic stagnation and the jungle of
\ncommercialism, neighboring Malaysia is planting a verdant garden
\nof daring, thoughtful and groundbreaking films that experiment
\nwith both content and medium.<\/p>\n
Most of the films being produced in Malaysia, as is the case
\nalso in Indonesia, are highly commercial (or try to be).<\/p>\n
The difference lies in Malaysia's strong but somewhat under-
\nthe-radar movement of filmmakers for whom the joy of producing
\ncreative cinema is more important than the applause of local
\naudiences.<\/p>\n
Therefore, themes tend toward the dissection of their own
\nsocial and political realities, while in Indonesia this is a
\nrarity indeed. When this is attempted here, as in the case of
\nArya Kusumadewa's recent film, Novel Tanpa Huruf R, it tends to
\nfail miserably.<\/p>\n
Why this is the case remains somewhat of a conundrum, which
\nTeater Utan Kayu (TUK) will attempt to explore this weekend with
\na presentation of the long and short of contemporary Malaysian
\nfilm, and what is expected to be a highly thought-provoking
\ndiscussion with internationally acclaimed Malaysian filmmaker
\nAmir Muhammad.<\/p>\n
The screenings start on Friday at 4:30 p.m. with 10 Malaysian
\nshort films that have been attracting a lot of international
\nattention.<\/p>\n
This will be followed at 7 p.m. by Min (2003), a feature film
\nby Ho Yuhang. Min tells the story of Yasmin, a young teacher in
\nsearch of her birth mother.<\/p>\n
On Saturday, the offerings begin at 3 p.m. with director
\nNamron's Gedebe (2003), an adaptation of Shakespeare's Julius
\nCaesar set in the underground music community. At 4:30 p.m., TUK
\nwill present Room to Let (2002) by James Lee, a film that has
\nbeen featured in many respected film festivals around the world,
\nsuch as the Festival du Film Asiattique de Deauville and the
\nMontreal World Film Festival. This film tells of the impact of a
\nmysterious incident at a boarding house.<\/p>\n
At 7 p.m., a beautiful love story of two aging people is told
\nin director Yasmin Ahmad's Rabun (2003).<\/p>\n
On Sunday at 4:30 p.m., 6horts (2002), a collection of
\nprovocative, experimental video essays by Amir Muhammad, will set
\nthe mood for the sure to be mind-expanding discussion with this
\nintrepid explorer of cinematic possibilities at 5:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
The discussion will be followed at 7 p.m. by Muhammad's full-
\nlength semi-documentary The Big Durian (2003), a bitingly
\nsatirical, multilingual film that brings issues as sensitive as
\nrace, religion, government harassment, the judiciary and the
\nmedia to focus on the big screen.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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