Kota Samarahan, 18 May 2021 – The 17th Mini Film Festival (MFF) organized by the Faculty of Applied and Creative Arts, UNIMAS will hold its second webinar entitled “Shaping the Destiny of Filmmakers: Are Film Associations Relevant Today?” on May 20, 2021 (Thursday) featuring four panelists with experience in the regional film and media industry.
The four members of the panel are Ms. Patti Lapus (Philippines), Ms. Gina S. Noer (Indonesia), Mr. Isazaly Isa and Mr. Chua Soon Min (Malaysia) who are the chairman and/or co-founder of a film association in their respective countries.
“Recently, many filmmakers in Malaysia have lamented the irrelevance of film associations as the benefits obtained are not in line with the membership fees charged”, observed the festival programmer, Yow. In neoliberal economic settings, individualisation and freelancing jobs are pervasive among filmmakers, hence, potentially rendering the irrelevance of film associations which hitherto attempt to safeguard the film workers’ rights by bringing them together.
“However, the situation in Southeast Asia is very different. In Indonesia, for example, their film associations are very proactive in launching anti-sexual harassment campaign among film workers given the presence of the sexual abuse predators in the Indonesian film industry”, Yow added. Many filmmakers mobilise among themselves to produce films and partake in awareness campaigns to protect their fellow filmmakers.
To shed light on this issue, Ms. Gina S. Noer, a screenwriter, producer and film director who also leads Wahana Kreator Nusantara will participate in the Mini Film Festival webinar to share her experience in contributing to a progressive film ecosystem in Indonesia.
To provide context on the anti-sexual harassment campaign among filmmakers and film associations in Indonesia, four (4) films programmed by Lulu Latna and Novia Puspa Sari titled “Memoria”, “Cuit Cuit”, “Melaung” and “Memoir Kanaya “will also be screened online for registered audiences.
As it is known, COVID-19 has threatened the continuity of work for film workers around the world. The same can be said for the Philippines. However, with the existence of the alliance of film associations (Inter Guild Alliance, IGA) which takes this matter seriously, they have worked together to provide production protocol as reference to their fellow filmmakers in the Philippines in order to make their ends meet safely. This action will certainly ensure the survival of the film industry in the Philippines so that it is not severely affected by the pandemic.
The proactive action of IGA in the Philippines will be shared by Ms. Patti Lapus who is one of the co-founders of IGA representing all film associations in the country. She is also a film producer with extensive experience in the film industry in the Philippines.
Next, the webinar will also feature local panellists Mr. Isazaly Isa and Mr. Chua Soon Min, or more commonly known as Katak Chua. Mr. Isazaly is involved in television and film production in Malaysia and Singapore. He is a highly experienced film editor and post-production producer in his field. With his existing experience, he has just built a mobile app that lists standard fee proposals for editors in Malaysia.
Next, Mr. Chua Soon Min is a president of the Kota Kinabalu Film and Video Association (KKFVA). Together with fellow filmmakers in Sabah, he proactively provides Sabahan filmmakers with chances to produce television and film projects. He is also a member of the Sabah Industrial Development Committee for FINAS and is on the Advisory Board for the Creative Economy and Sabah Innovation Center.
Indeed, all of these invited panelists are none other than impressive in the film industry in Southeast Asia. With a joint discussion in the webinar on the topic it is hoped to provide enlightenment as well as encouragement to young and new filmmakers to pursue their career in the film industry.
In collaboration with Boemboe, TVS, and Perseni, the webinar will be broadcast live on May 20, 2021 (Thursday), at 08:30 pm via the Mini Film Festival’s Facebook. To receive links to watch films as well as to participate in this webinar, participants are encouraged to register via the link https://linktr.ee/minifilmfestival . Any further questions about this webinar, please contact Genevives Sulan at 011- 7030 0744.
