Malaysia: Last News

Janine Stein “Tiger Stripes”, the opening film of this year’s Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), was “kind of a joke that became something very, very close to me and ended up being this film,” Malaysian filmmaker, Amanda Nell Eu, said during Thursday night’s opening ceremony. Speaking to a packed theatre before the screening, Eu said her inspiration had been puberty mixed with her sense of humor.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Chinese films “Trending Topic” and “The Invisible Guest” will be given theatrical releases in Malaysia and Singapore in the coming month. This step follows agreements between Chinese streamer iQiyi and Malaysian cinema chain GSC and Singaporean distributor Clover Films.

Chinese streamer and producer iQiyi is joining forces with Malaysia’s GSC Movies and Singapore-based Clover Films to handle theatrical distribution of its Chinese-language films in their respective territories. 

China-set drama Stonewalling, co-directed by husband-and-wife team Ryuji Otsuka and Huang Ji, won best narrative feature at Taiwan’s Golden Horse Awards, which is celebrating its 60th edition this year.

Myah Ross Monroe’s House of Love 

Coldplay show in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which gives organisers the power to pull the plug on the concert if the band misbehaves.The new addition of the switch comes ahead of the British pop band’s show at the Bukit Jalil stadium tonight (November 22), and allows organisers to cut the show instantaneously if the band makes any controversial comments or actions while on stage.As confirmed by Malaysian communications minister Fahmi Fadzil, if used, the switch would cut off the power to the instruments, sound systems and other equipment, and was agreed to by the concert’s organiser Live Nation.Fahmi, however, said he does not foresee any instances of the Chris Martin-fronted band stepping out of line while mid-performance, particularly as the members have openly voiced their support for those in Gaza amid the Israel-Palestine conflict.“The prime minister has also said the band you know, is very supportive of Palestine. So, we are upbeat about the concert today,” Mr Fahmi told reporters in the Malaysian capital (via The Straits Times).

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Cannes’ Directors Fortnight section has joined forces with The Philippines for the latest edition of its Directors Factory professional training program. Operating since 2013, when it kicked off in Taiwan, the Directors’ Factory works with a new partner country each year to mentor eight budding filmmakers who are preparing ambitious first or second feature projects that they will make in pairs. The four resulting co-written and co-directed short films will be screened as part of the Directors’ Fortnight (aka Quinzaine des Cineastes) in May. Four pairs were selected in Manila in October: Eve Baswel (Philippines) and Gogularaajan Rajendran (Malaysia); Maria Estela Paiso (Philippines) and Ashok Vish (India); Arvin Belarmino (Philippines) and Lomorpich Rithy (aka YoKi) (Cambodia); Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan (Philippines) and Tan Siyou (Singapore). They have now begun writing their screenplays and are expected to shoot their films March in Dapitan, a city in The Philippines’ Zamboanga Peninsula, known for its many shrines and as the place of exile of Philippines’ national hero, Jose Rizal. These days it is a hub for domestic and international tourism. Post-production of the four titles will then be hosted in Quezon City, which seeks to become the new film capital of the Philippines and where many of the country’s post-production houses are already based. The program is operated and co-produced by Epicmedia Productions of The Philippines and Dominique Welinski, founder and curator of DW (France).

Disney original animation is looking at a comeback this Thanksgiving. The princess pic Wish is looking at as much as $45M-$50M over five days after the studio suffering a setback over last year’s holiday with Strange World, which did $18.8M.

French studio Federation’s new theatrical sales arm Ginger & Fed and Paris-based genre specialist WTFilms have unveiled a slew of AFM deals for apocalyptic thriller Survive.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Auto-bio Pamphlet,” a Marathi-language film that is both a love story and a rage against class divisions, will open the 18th edition of the Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival later this month. The festival will close with the world premiere of spy thriller “13 Bombs in Jakarta.” JAFF run Nov.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Adele Lim, the screenwriter behind “Crazy Rich Asians” and Disney’s “Raya and the Last Dragon” animation, says that the opportunities for Asian filmmakers are growing as Hollywood is becoming more receptive to international talent. “[In Hollywood] I felt that I was disadvantaged, coming from Malaysia. It is not the cultural nexus,” said Lim, whose infancy was in Malaysia, before her family moved to the U.S.

Adele Lim, screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians and writer-director of Joy Ride, talked about the realities of bringing Asian stories to mainstream global audiences in a panel, ‘Asian Rising Power in Hollywood’, on the second day of Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF). 

IVE have announced the stops and dates for their upcoming 2023 to 2024 ‘Show What I Have’ world tour.Today (November 8), IVE announced the dates for the upcoming Asia, US, Europe, Latin America and Australia legs of their 2023 to 2024 ‘Show What I Have’ world tour. This comes just a month after they kicked off the tour in October with two shows in Seoul, South Korea.The K-pop girl group will kick off the Asia leg of their newly announced tour in November 2023, with two shows in Yokohama, Japan.

The 1975 frontman Matty Healy once missed his mother Denise Welch’s wedding to support The Rolling Stones.Welch made the revelation during this morning’s (November 6) episode of Loose Women and said that it was ahead of her third wedding in July 2013 when she received the call from her son.“Matty, my Matthew, he missed my wedding to Lincoln [Townley],” she said (via Hello!). “I remember when he called me I was doing a play, and he said, ‘Mum, what would you say if I told you I can’t make your wedding.’“This was ten years ago.

As Made In Chelsea returned to our screens last month, after a dramatic summer away in Corsica, the new series hasn't only brought a fresh batch of drama but also new cast members, including Lauren Sintès. So far on the latest series, Lauren has caught the eye of a few boys and sparked a row with Willow Day over Harvey Armstrong. Harvey and Willow appeared to be building a stronger connection while away in Corsica, but upon returning to Chelsea, Harvey seemed to lose interest in Willow and it wasn’t long before he set his sights on Lauren.

controversial set at Good Vibes Festival, where lead singer Matty Healy criticised the government’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws and kissed bassist Ross McDonald. Shortly afterwards, the set was cut short citing “non-compliance with local performance guidelines”.

The Star.The offending kiss, between The 1975 vocalist Matt Healy and fellow band member Ross MacDonald, sparked controversy in the conservative, majority-Muslim nation. Healy, who identifies as straight but has reportedly engaged in similar actions during other performances, kissed MacDonald following a rant against Malaysia’s anti-LGBTQ laws.As a result, the remainder of the Good Vibes music festival in Kuala Lumpur, where the band was playing, was canceled.The festival organizer, Future Sound Asia, blamed Healy for the loss of money stemming from the cancellation and demanded that the band pay $2.6 million in damages.Future Sound Asia also claims the incident has damaged the public’s opinion of the Good Vibes festival, potentially affecting future ticket sales if more conservative concert-goers refuse to spend money.The 1975 has also been banned from performing in Malaysia as a result of the incident.Teo noted that police officers are conducting background checks on foreign artists before allowing them to perform in the country.

Eric Nam has broken his silence after facing backlash over liking a post about the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.Earlier this month, Eric Nam had liked an Instagram post that had talked about taking a neutral view in the wake of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Soon after, the singer faced criticism by fans who were unhappiness over his alleged stance, per Koreaboo.In a new statement today (October 30), Eric Nam addressed why he liked the Instagram post, saying that he “believed [that it] expressed a position of anti-violence, anti-hate and was against intolerance”.“My liking of that post was a reaction to waking up to devastating news, as someone who has always been pro-human, pro-peace, and for love and equality for all,” he added.“My heart is broken for the Palestinian and Israeli families that have been ripped apart by violence and are facing unimaginable loss,” he continued.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Boutique sales agent, House of Film has acquired worldwide rights, excluding Asia, to represent the Malaysian mythical horror film “Curse of the Totem” (aka “Sumpahan Jerunei”) from Produksi Seni Duapuluh-Duapuluh SDN BHD. Based on the 13th Century Borneo sacrificial rituals, “Curse of the Totem” tells the story of Dr.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Six film projects currently at development stage have been selected to take part in a workshop session as part of mylab+@Jogja next month. The six share a common characteristic of Indonesian co-production and a recurring theme of luminescence. “This theme underscores the importance of having the distinctive light of Asian cinema arise from its own characteristics.

Naman Ramachandran Chinese superstar actor and producer Fan Bingbing will be the 2023 recipient of the Singapore International Film Festival‘s (SGIFF) Cinema Icon Award. The festival will screen three of Fan’s films, curated by her – the recent “Green Night,” “Buddha Mountain” and “Double Xposure” – and the star will walk the red carpet on opening night, Nov. 30.