My acceptance speech for WOMAN ON FIRE LOOKS FOR WATER's Cinemanila International Film Fest special mention

Woman On Fire Looks For Water

This happened a few days ago, WOMAN ON FIRE LOOKS FOR WATER (feature film directed by Woo Ming Jin, produced and edited by me) received a special mention at the Cinemanila International Film Festival under the Southeast Asian Competition. This year's a particularly strong year for Malaysia, the best Southeast Asian film went to the late Yasmin Ahmad's Talentime and the best short film went to Focal Point, a Malaysian short film by Iranian filmmakers Alireza Khatami and Ali Seifourri.


In addition to that, both my short films LOVE SUICIDES and KINGYO were also screened under the SEA SHORTS exhibition. (the latter, being a last-minute addition, wasn't listed in the catalog or the website, quite a bummer!)


Love Suicides


kingyo

I was asked to write an acceptance speech so they could post on the Cinemanila website. So this is what I wrote:

I'm honoured by the special mention given to us. Thank you very much,
Cinemanila. I would definitely love to share this with the cast and
crew of WOMAN ON FIRE LOOKS FOR WATER, for making this film possible.
And also with the people of Kuala Selangor, who had so kindly let us
shoot at their places and even acted for us! A special thanks to the
financial support of Rotterdam Film Festival's Hubert Bals Fund and
Pusan Film Festival's Asian Cinema Fund, who believed in this modest
project of ours. We also received a lot of technical support for the
post-production of our film from the latter, which was an invaluably
educational experience! But I especially like to thank Woo Ming Jin,
this film sprang forth from his vision and creativity.

This year's South East Asian Cinema line-up, both feature films and
shorts, shows what a luminous collective of voices we are becoming on
the global stage, and a culmination of our dedication to our craft.
Despite this occasionally being in the name of competition, I believe
us all to be part of an artistic family aiming for excellence, we give
our all to reach for something beyond a paycheck. I'm excited to be
part of this with my neighbours, and as we continue to make films
together, I look forward to what the future of South East Asian Cinema
has to offer. Thanks.