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A CINEMA DIVIDED: MALAYSIAN FILM IN 2007 by Paolo Bertolin

In 2007, almost everybody in the Malaysian film industry had something to rejoice about. But a big divide still exists in the country's movie world. On one side, there's the mainstream industry, which shoots films targeted at the domestic market exclusively in Malay language. On the other side, there's the indie scene, made up of filmmakers mostly shooting films on digital & in Chinese, whose works have acquired some prestige at international film festivals recently. This clear-cut separation mirrors the tense undercurrents that lie beneath Malaysian society as a whole.

Statistics from FINAS

The statistics released by FINAS, the govt body in charge of the support & promotion of national cinema, reveal that 2007 was a year of undisputed growth. The total number of viewers in Malaysian theatres increased to 33.6 million from 27.9 in 2007. That's an increase of more than 20%; in 2004, the cumulative number of viewers was just 16.7 million. Box office receipts rose from RM234.98 million in 2006 to RM289.31 million. Undoubtedly, this growth was connected to a further expansion of multiplexes in the country, as the number of movie theatres grew from 68 in 2006 to 76 in 2007. The number of screens grew from 287 to 353 and the total number of seats available from 66,822 to 78,496.

The quantitative growth in audiences and box office receipts, however, seems to have benefited Hollywood films rather than local ones. Films in English raked up almost 70% of the overall market share, up from 60% in 2006. Films in the Malay language (FINAS' data files films according to their language), slightly increased their overall receipts, but their market share dropped to less than 10.4%, against figures of more than 12% in 2005 & 2006, & around 20% in 2003 & 2004. Films in Chinese collapsed from an almost 17% share pf receipts in 2006 to less than 10% in 2007 – perhaps a signal of Malaysian audiences' disaffection towards Hong Kong productions – while those in the Tamil language maintains a percentage of less than 5%.

Cicak Man

Despite this, the industry still felt hopeful, thanks to some positive signs. The number of Malaysian films released in theatres in 2007 was equal to 2006. 28 films were released, of which 21 were in the Malay language. Out of the remaining 7 digital films, 6 were in Chinese & 1 in Tamil. In 2008, the number of films released might even increase. The biggest Malay language film in 2007 was the horror, Jangan Pandang Belakang, by prolific director Ahmad Idham. It raked up almost RM6 million, & became the biggest national hit since 2001. Together with 2006's Cicak Man a fantastic comedy starring the hugely popular comedian, Saiful Apek, which grossed more than RM5 million – it proved to the industry that Malay audiences still crave local entertainment. But there were some flops like Diva, a failed attempt to inject Bollywood styles into a Malaysian context, &, most of all, the hugely publicized historical mammoth, 1957: Hati Malaya by Shuhaimi Baba. This production, which was subsidized by the govt to celebrate Malaysia's 50th anniversary, cost more than RM3 million. But it wound up grossing just a little more than RM300,000.

Mukhsin

Still, there were quite a few films that did make a profit: Mamat Khalid's horror comedy, Zombie Kampung Pisang (he then directed Kala Malam Bulam Mengambang), 2 Saiful Apek vehicles, Otai & Nana Tanjung 2, Ahmad Idham's car actioner, Impak Maksima, & Yasmin Ahmad's Mukhsin. The latter, with An RM2 million box office take, was a landmark success for an independent film. Despite its commercial success & the awards received at Berlin Film Festival, Yasmin Ahmad's film was almost completely ignored by the nominations at the Festival Filem Malaysia, which took place in July in Penang. The official awards of the Malaysian film industry crowned the very decent, Cinta by Kabir Bhatia, a sort of KL-set rereading of Love Actually (2006). But the list of nominations for best film included such questionable artistic achievements as Ahmad Idham's Tentang Bulan, Oliver Knott's The Red kebaya & Shuhaimi Baba's Waris Jari Hantu. Another independent film, Zarina Abdullah's Chermin (which had its international premiere at FEFF 2007), despite being nominated in most categories, went home with just a special award for best debut. Such results confirm a protectionist stance in the mainstream Malay industry.

In order to have a film production supported with money from the state & FINAS, & in order to benefit from the tax rebates granted to national films, a film has to mainly shot in the Malay language. This policy of linguistic protectionism goes against the multi ethnic reality of a country where 25% of the population are of Chinese ethnicity, & another 7% are of Indian descent, mostly Tamil. Films in these languages, which are usually digital, aren't entitled to funding from the State, & are treated like Hollywood blockbusters when it comes to taxes – even though they can only rely on a circuit of only 4 theatres equipped for digital projections (3 in KL & one in Penang).


Apa Khabar Orang Kampung

In terms of recognition at international film festivals, 2007 was a landmark year for these filmmakers treated as 'strangers in their own country.' After winning the New Currents Award at the 2006 Pusan International Film Festival, Tan Chui Mui's Love Conquers All at the beginning of 2007 also won a Tiger Award in Rotterdam. In February, at the Berlin Film festival, Yasmin's Mukhsin won the Special Jury Prize in the Generations section, while Amir Muhammad's Apa Khabar Orang Kampung? screened to great acclaim in the Forum. This film was soon banned by the censorship board in KL, as it tackles a taboo subject in Malaysia – the history of the communist party in the country. In July, Before We Fall in Love Again by James Lee won the Best Southeast Asian award in Bangkok, while Mukhsin collected similar kudos in Manila in August. Then in October, the debut feature by Liew Seng Tat, Flower in the Pocket, won the New Currects Award in Pusan, beginning an impressive series of wins for Liew. Flower… won a Tiger Award in Rotterdam (2008) & the Regard d'Or in Friebourg 2008. In What City does it Live?, Liew's new script, received Rotterdam's Prince Claus Fund Film Grant for the best project in development.

Love Conquers All

Apart from Mukhsin, which is shot in Malay, all of these films remain relatively unseen in Malaysia. Box office receipts are, at the very best, approximately RM10,000. The feeling is that audiences need to be exposed to more films to educate them. Only that way will these independent films be appreciated at home. But if Malaysian distributors refuse to buy films like Stephen Frears' The Queen, because they regard them as too difficult for local audiences, & if the highly pretentious first Kuala Lumpur International Film Festival features films like Spider-Man 3 & Transformers, how can one expect audiences in KL to flock to see the demanding films of Mui or James Lee?

(This article appears in the offical publication of the 10th Udine International Film festvial, Italy. The festival had screenings of ZOMBI KG PISANG & KALA MALAM BULAN MENGAMBANG).