HERE WE GO AGAIN WITH DOCUMENTARIES

I have begun producing six documentaries for Astro Awani. These half hour documentaries will be screened before the year's end except for the last two on Sarawak which will be screened in January 2011.
My last documentaries for Awani were for the Merdeka period about three months ago and one documentary in particular about Mustafa Hussin was well received (not bad for a RM20,000.00 budget and done in one month unlike someone else's 12 year long documentary in the making with a budget in the mid six figure bracket). Nevermind, its what we deliver that counts.
Two of the documentaries will be touching upon the country's take on the Economic Transformation Project and its impact on Malaysians. The second one will touch on crime and personal safety - with its English working title Are We Safe?
The one on crime and safety should be interesting because I personally feel that whilst authorities say that the crime rate has gone done by 15% the rate of violent crimes may have shot up. I am also of the feeling that the crime rate has gone down because we sacrificed our freedom by wanting to stay in gated communities. Even in normal urban residential areas, residents have decided to hire private security firms to actually block and gate public gazetted roads for their own security. Is this legal? I doubt it, and by gating public gazetted roads, users are forced to find alternative routes because security guards will not let you use these now 'privatised' roads. Those staying in Taman Tun, SS1 and 2 areas will know what I mean.
The last two documentaries will be focusing on Sarawak - especially the corridor development called SCORE (Sarawak Corridor for Renewable Energy). Over the next 20 years, the government will pump (either themselves or through private investments) over RM400 billion in a corridor that starts from Sibu right through to Bintulu - a distance of about 600 kilometers. A small fishing town like Mukah for example is slated to become a knowledge growth center with the creation of a few institutions of higher learning there.
In Sibu, Tanjung Manis area has been designated as the future location of the Halal Hub - more billions to be spent there bringing high level development to sleepy towns like Bitangor.
Bintulu, under the stewardship of the Bintulu Development Authority will also go into high growth development. For those who don't know much about SCORE it is managed by a body called RECODA.
All these high profile projects in Sarawak will be brought to bear in this two-part documentary.
Interesting? I hope so. Just hope my objectivity would be not be compromised nor tainted.
I will be taking along my trusty laptop and my SPICE so I would be able to blog or FB from Sarawak's interior (if there is a 3G signal).
I haven't returned to Sarawak for years....it would be a nice trip back for me.

Happy Birthday Double Vision

About 22 years ago, with two friends, Low Huoi Seong and Lim beng Teck, we set about on a journey that was at that time untested. We decided to become independant TV producers. We set up a company called Double Vision Sdn Bhd.
When we set the company up, I gave the name Double Vision and through time people thought that I came up with the name based on a song by Foreigner, but it wasn't. It was just my idea that the company will be producing programmes that would be different visually and internally. I wanted it to be different.
Our first production was a horror telefilm (at that time it was called cerekarama I think) entitled Ke Alam Misteri followed by Teater Seram for TV3.
It was received and opened doors for us. In time we produced dramas that no other producers would even try - with titles like Lembah Maut, Gelanggang Maut and Jejak Maut. My personal favourite series entitled Teater Novel and of course the series that made Double Vision famous - the Monty Pythonesque comedy series Gado Gado.
I left the company in 1994 for greener pastures and new challenges - trying my hand at event management, PR consultancy and multimedia. My last work with DV was writing the mini-series Kuala Selangor XI directed by Teck Tan.
Today, Double Vision is one of the oldest production houses in the country. The only other company I can think of that is older is Skop Productions. Companies like Keen Holdings, LJ VIsion, Take One, HVD, Serangkai, Nizarman have either gone defunct or have closed down or maybe just went into dormancy.
Today, my old friend Teck is running the show and Double Vision is one of the most productive Chinese drama content producers in town today having produced popular series like the award winning Homecoming. It has also embarked into movies with their latest offering being James Lee's Sini Ada Hantu and a joint venture movie in Singapore entitled Ah Long Pte Ltd.
Double Vision today was not the Double Vision I envisaged it to be but it is now someone else' vision - a vision that has gone leaps and bounds since I left the company. And for that I congratulate Double Vision.
In the words of one scientist flying through the Universe in a vessel named the Enterprise - Live Long and Prosper DV.
Thanks for inviting me to the Annual Dinner last night.

THE MALAY (PRODUCERS) DILEMMA

What do you do when the station counters our creative decision as a director? It's really weird. From my colleagues around the world, once a TV commissions a production to the producer and director, they give you somewhat of a freehand to deliver what was agreed upon. You have a director that has a track record and a producer who has a budget to deal with.

Over here in Malaysia, its different. Of course there are instances when the station gives you carte blanc for your work, but it's far and few in between.

Here even after you have shot and wrapped and edited your work, a station has the right to tell you to reshoot, reedit, redub, reanything else to their hearts' content, and producers are left to lament whether in the end the product is theirs' (creatively) or the stations'.

The funny thing is, even after the interference of the stations, either through the executives or executive producers, when the programme fails, the producer takes the blame.

I believe, that in a few of these stations, most of the executives are wannabe writers and directors, and they like the idea and the misplaced glamour that they had direct input in the product. They like to say for example, “ you know the first cut was lousy, only after I had my input it turned out to be better.”

In the end, directors and writers are disillusioned.

It actually begins even at the proposal and development stage when the station even tells the producers that their proposals are good BUT....

Its the buts that hits you in the guts. But since producers are at the mercy of the stations, they listen and agree and nod. Yes, yes, that's a good idea, we will include it. No no problem...your idea is better than my writers and directors.

Once the storyline or storybeats (stations love this term) are agreed upon (which in the end is about 70% the station’s creation), the producer smiles and signs the contract.

The next stage of course is the selection of the creative team. Most TV stations seem to have this idea that only a handful of directors can deliver the goods the way they want (read between the lines – directors who allows the station to control their creativity) and artistes that they are comfortable with (read between the lines - artistes who are friends) and who they think pulls in the crowds.

Sometimes, the producer agrees. However, the are times they push the envelope and hope that their suggestions would be accepted. Most of the times, they have to compromise and agree with the suggestion (read betwen the lines - take it or leave it) of the stations to cast named artistes that they prefer. Whether or not the artiste fits in with the writer’s or director’s idea of whom the character should be.

Once that has been agreed upon, the producer than sighs with relief and hope to go on with the business of producing the programme.

At this stage, most stations don’t bother to interefere but there is one that attaches a personnel to ‘monitor and assist’ the production. Some of these personnel monitors, some actually interferes. Second guessing the directors shots and location selections, makeup and even acting.

Then come the dreaded editing stage. When everything is wrapped, and the cast and crew released. The raw footage goes into post production for an offline edit.

So imagine the horror when a producer presents his offline edit to the station for previewing and receives a whole list of unflattering comments regarding the production.

If the comments mean just tightening the shots and pacing of the programme it's quite acceptable, but when the whole direction and creative licence of the programme are queried and second guessed, you are in deep shit. Questions like do you have more shots? Why didn't you take a shot of this? How come the scene looks like this? Why are the artistes dressed like that? Why is the cars not impressive? Why was this particular location shot like this? Why did the director choose that particular angle? Don't you think it would have been better in the scene was shot in another way?

So much for creative licence right?

This means that your livelihood, your reputation as a filmmaker actually depend on the reception of a handful of people who watch the offline. If these people are professionals and objective, you can be guaranteed a fair judgement. But if there is a suspicion that the station, or persons in positions of power within the station that has a personal grudge with you, you are royally screwed.

This kind of politics that exist in the industry is totally unwarranted. It plays with careers and even a company’s survival and goodwill with the said station.

If the producer buckles and acquiesce to the numerous requests by the station, these actually means that the station in the end pruchased the work of a few individuals who are actually the personnel of the station and not the producer who was commissioned in the first place. The product is no more the creative collaboration of the producer, director, cinematography, writer and the artistes commissioned in the first place.

And to tell you the truth, the producers are in a no-win situation. The stations are the paymasters. And these executives or personnel in the station can make or break you.

Worse case scenarios are re-shoots and re-edits because you are now under the whim and fancy of a few executives who are basically jerking you around. If they are professionals and objective, they would give you a fair shake. But if they hate your guts, especially if you think that you are a better filmmaker than they are, they will fuck around with you.

Once the product has been completed to their satisfaction, it is then delivered. And hopefully the final payment from the station can be expected within three months.

In the end, maybe, we the producers, who now feel like sodomised prostitutes, don't really care what the end product is. We just want to end the whole affair and wait for the payments to be received.

Now the success of a programme on TV is mainly based on the viewership ratings. If the viewership or the ratings are low, the programme is deemed a failure. Even if technically and creatively, it is good.

Now when a product receives good ratings, the station executives grin and said that they made the right calls. If the programme sucks at ratings, the station executives will blame the producers, the directors and the writers for producing crap.

Not that they didn’t help promote the programme effectively in the first place.

Being a producer is tough business. Unless you know the people in the station, and they are pally with you, and you pander to their whims and fancies, you will not get far. In this business, filmmakers are second rate citizens compared to the executives in the stations. These station executives are more creative, they are more intelligent and they generally know better than the producers what the audience wants. So live with it.

Sometimes I really wonder why they need us. They should just let these executives write, direct and produce, because they seem to know the formula of a successful programme more than us - something even Western TV executives do claim not to know. They depend on writers like Steven Bochco and Shonda Rhymes to hoepfully come up with the next big thing.

Lastly, some of you may wonder why I chose the title The Malay (Producer's) Dilemma. This is because I believe that racism and bigotry have also raised its ugly head in the commissioning process in some of these stations, especially one in particular. I do not need to elaborate on this because it's difficult to prove. Nevertheless, in the spirit of 1Malaysia, maybe that's why the Malay producers seem to have grudgingly accept the fact that some stations prefer to work with non-Malay producers who, according to some TV executives, work better, are more professional, and deliver higher standard of products than the Malay producers. I hope I am wrong, but what do you think?

P. RAMLEE - THE DEFINITIVE DOCU?

There is a documentary being hawked on TV as the definitive version on the great late Tan Sri P. Ramlee. I have seen it. However, I feel that this version, eventhough the filmmakers said it is well researched and took years in the making, is not definitive.
I have the privilege of knowing Uncle Ramlee during my younger years and had the wonderful good luck to know Mama (Saloma). So I guess I have a right to make a little bit of noise about it.
My parents were very close to the late P. Ramlee.
How close? Very close. There are stories about P. Ramlee that they have told me that I would not even share with the public. Why? Because P.Ramlee the man has become P.Ramlee the perfect icon. The man whose memory must not be tarnished.
The sad thing is that the man died in tragic and sad circumstances. And it is still incomprehensible that he died young - at 44 years of age. Compare that to Micheal Jackson who died at 50.
Looking at his last few films, you would have not believed that Ramlee was 44 years old. He looked older. That's how depressed and sad he was during his final years.
I think I have mentioned in one of my earlier postings how he struggled to make ends meet during his final years. He was unwanted, he was criticised, he was condemned and he was discarded by the public. The same public that hold him in high esteem today.
His last few films were not really good because he was a depressed person . He was unhappy with his lot in life. He wasn't rich. Heck, he was broke. He even borrowed from his closest friends when he needed money and gave them some of his personal items as collateral.
There were even people in RTM who didn't like him. Some even hated him. A few who were jealous of his talent, thought that they were better than him and did their best to make life difficult for him to get gigs on TV.
He tried to become a film producer and met a few investors who were interested in helping him out. But unfortunately he passed away before his dream to be a film producer was realised.
The foundation that he had laid for himself was conveniently taken over by someone he had not trusted in his life and someone who had gone on to become rich and powerful. I will not mention who this person is.
The funny thing is that since he died, many people are trying to make money off him.
Making re-recordings of his songs, making documentaries and books about him, and making movies about him, holding singing contests and many other events.
Imagine what he could have done with this money. He could have been happier and still be alive.
And those whom I personally know hated him are suddenly calling him guru lah, mentor lah, lover lah, friend lah and many other labels. If he was still alive, he would have told them off.
The truth it, Ramlee was a very private man. He had few friends. So too his wife Saloma. They had friends - close friends. Amongst them were my father, my mother and Dato Aziz Sattar. People that he was really close to. People that he trusted.
Even Saloma's relatives who claim to be close to him were really not. Heck, they weren't even close to her.
One person I believe has made a lot of money claiming to be an authority on P.Ramlee and Jalan Ampas when he was just a former tutor to one of his sons.
Memories and events get mutilated and changed to fit somebody's personal agenda.
Imagine the sadness I felt when I recently heard of a screenplay for a bio-pic of Saloma that was proposed to a TV station here, that created a fictional scene regarding her final hours.
If the writer had done his or her research, he would have known who was by Saloma's side when Saloma breathed her last.
In actual fact, there was only two persons there. My mother and I. No one else was there.
You want to know how I felt when I saw her during those last minutes of her life? Truly sad. She was unrecognisable in her death bed. Her body was frail and skeletal and her skin yellowish. Her hair gone. It was a sad sight, sadder still that only her best friend was by her side when she breathed her last.
I was standing in the doorway to her room allowing my mother final privacy with her best friend.
It's facts like this that get distorted that irks me.
So when I heard that Datuk Paduka Shuhaimi Baba had completed a so-called definitive movie about Ramlee I asked my parents if she had interviewed both of them. They said no.
Strange especially when my father was Ramlee's closest friend and colleague since the first day he stepped onto the Jalan Ampas studio lot. Strange especially when my mother acted with Ramlee in the movie Ibu and many more after that and became best friends with his wife Saloma.
Imagine my father, who co-wrote many of Ramlee's songs, was not interviewed for the documentary. Don't you want to know how Ramlee wrote his songs? Don't you want to know the mystery of the song Azizah? Strange isn't it?
Maybe, Shuhaimi felt her documentary was already strong enough without having to interview my parents.
Which is fine, but why then interview people who weren't really close to him?
To even read about someone who was in the documentary who claimed to have won a beauty contest and caught the eye of Ramlee and became lovers with him and then sacrificed her love to allow Saloma to love Ramlee nearly made me puke.
Beauty contest? Big deal. In the 50s and 60s, there were beauty contests galore in every nightclub on every weekend. In fact, the one I believe this person took part was one that was held in Johor Bahru and was won by another actress by the name of Salmah Ahmad. So much for being a beauty queen.
The only person who caught Ramlee's eyes and who he wanted to make his leading lady in life and on the screen was Saloma. No one else.
In fact it was Saloma that was not interested in acting. She was a singer not an actress and she knew that. But because Ramlee wanted her to act, she did. If you watch the movies Saloma was in, you can see that she was uncomfortable in her roles.
This story sounds familiar doesn't it? It was as if someone stole this story to fit hers.
How many realise that Ramlee actually only received one Federal Award - the Ahli Mangku Negara when he was alive?
This award, which is now conferred to hundreds of Malaysians over the years, was a big thing in the industry when Ramlee received it. It was as if he had been accorded a Datukship. That was how big the AMN was in those days.
When he came back, his close friends organised a big welcome home party for him. Many who claimed to be his friends today were not there to congratulate him including this fictional lover of his.
Ramlee's life was truly colorful, especially in the sense that he had many people who can't wait to see his downfall. That's why he trusted only a few.
I do hope Dato Aziz Sattar completes his biography soon and writes truthfully about who P.Ramlee was and who stabbed Ramlee in the back and who were his true friends.
In my father's autobiography, Wawasan and Warisan, he actually pulled his punches when writing about his friends, but if you read between the lines, you know what my father wanted to say about Jalan Ampas and the politics of working in Malay Film Studios.
My mother has also started writing her own biography and I hope she too would give the world a glimpse of who P. Ramlee was via her close friendship with the late Saloma.
So imagine if a documentary about P. Ramlee is not done right, what injustice would be done to the man when a movie about him be produced.
Fiction.

FFM...Anyone really care about the results?

So last weekend, when I was in Yogya, playing golf with a bum leg, the country made its selection for the best of our local film industry. The decision was that Majika was the Best Film and that Shamsul Yusof is our country's best director for his subtle and elegant work on Evolusi Drift 2.
I won't delve into the results nor the decisions - but if that is what the jury think we should tell the world - that these are our best, I feel truly sad and at a loss for words.
Personally, the best movie that played on our screens last year - the best Malaysia movie on all scores - be it direction, music, cinematography, screenplay, acting lay in one movie. That movie? Ah Niu's Ice Kacang Puppy Love.
That Ah Niu was even not considered for Best Young Director was a travesty in itself.
So what if the movie is in Chinese? It's a Malaysian movie - albeit a Chinese Language Malaysian movie.
If I am not mistaken, the last time I checked, FFM stood for Film Festival Malaysia - not Festival Filem Melayu.
Come on guys, give credit where credit is due. Ice Kacang Puppy Love is Malaysia's Best Film of 2009-2010.
But screw it lah. It looks as if we are scraping the bottom of the barrel.
If you need to test the standard of a local film, send Majika, Evolusi Drift 2 and Ice Kacang Puppy Love to a known film festival - see which film the festival organisers choose as an entry from Malaysia. Try it. See which film they accept.
Feeling sad about the state of the country's film industry, I decided to go on an Indonesian film watching binge...yeah yeah...I know..they burnt our flags...they stomped pictures of our leaders...but whatheheck, they make good movies.
So, it's been awhile since I watched their best and I decided to take some time and view them.
Over the weekend, during my trip to Yogya, I managed to pick up a few DVDs including Deddy Mizwar's critically acclaimed Alangkah Lucunya (negeri ini), Joko Anwar's much talked about Pintu Terlarang, Riri Riza's Sang Pemimpi which is the sequel to his megahit Laskar Pelangi, Ratna Sarumpaet's Jamila dan Sang Presiden and Aidtya Gumay's Emak Ingin Naik Haji and Ayu Utami's Ruma Maida.

All these films, without a shadow of doubt, are miles ahead of any of our movies in FFM 23. Including Ice Kacang. Sorry Ah Niu.

These are quality cinema. With real subjects and real soul. With real intent.

I've always loved Deddy Mizwar's sense of humour through his previous films including Nagabonor 1 and 2 and Kiamat Sudah Tiba. In his latest directorial effort, Alangkah Lucunya (negeri ini), he has decided not to put on his comic-genius hat. He instead brings to the screen a Dickensian tale of an unemployed graduate trying to help a bunch of young street pickpockets to earn a 'halal' living much to the chagrin of his pious father.

Jamila dan Sang Presiden, is a surprising production from Raam Punjabi's MVP Pictures, the company more famous for producing thrashy horror flicks like the Kuntilanak series. Starring the beautiful Atiqah Hasiholan as a prostitute sentence to death for killing a VVIP client, the movie keeps a tight rein on prosidings keeping up the suspense and drama til the final fade out. The ever amazing Christine Hakim plays a support role in this movie as a female prison warden.

Riri Riza's sequel to Laskar Pelangi, Indonesian record breaking movie, isn't as good as the first instalment of the so-called Laskar Pelangi tetralogy. Nevertheless, we follow the main characters again as they go through adulthood with the main character of Ikal still chasing his dreams of being a writer.

One of my favourite Indonesian film directors, Joko Anwar, again keeps up his momentum as one of the most original of Asian auteurs, with his numbing Pintu Terlarang. Maintaining his filmnoir canvas signature to paint his psychological thriller, the movie is unlike any Indonesian film you have ever seen over the past few years.

Acclaimed writer Ayu Utami's screenplay entitled Ruma Maida, and directed by Teddy Soeriaatmadja, created a film that lays waste to corporate leaders who are eager to destroy the country's checkered past and history in their chase for the almighty bigbucks. A complex story that defines the need for the new generation to embrace education and history.

The above are just one liners of the movies. For the love of me, I can't bring myself to create one liners for our local movies that means anything.

Our films lack depth, history and soul. Our films lack cinema. Our films lack maturity.
Unfortunately, our films make money. So any criticism about the quality of these films fall on deaf ears, as the gauge of a film's quality in our country depends not on the film itself but on the box office numbers. That is the measure of a film's quality. Nothing else matters.

CRITICAL TIMES FOR LOCAL TV PRODUCERS

Things are getting weird and critical in the TV production industry. It seems no one, or rather very few producers, is looking at RTM as a revenue source for the time being. This is because it seems that RTM has not enough funds to commission new programmes. The most recent call for tender was an eight-programme tender for the Chinese New Year programming. And that's it.
Furthermore, only Chinese producers or Chinese-owned production companies took part in this tender process as there is an unwritten law that Bumiputra producers are not allowed to pitch for Chinese programmes. The same goes for Indian-language programming too which are meant for Indian producers.
However, for normal programming in Bahasa Malaysia, everyone is allowed to tender. So much for affirmative action right?
Anyway, luckily for some Malay producers, the new TV station Al Hijrah has started to commission some programmes.
So far so good. In terms of quantum, Al Hijrah is offering much the same as Astro - averaging less than RM40k per commissioned hour (unless it's a special project and screened on Citra which currently offers the best budgets for any TV stations in the country). But Al Hijrah's payment terms is the best in the industry (if they keep to it).
For other producers, ASTRO who carried out a full blown pitching process in August, their fate will be made known this week. The results of the pitching process will be out. Those who sent in proposals will know if they would have any projects to role before the end of the year.
Media Prima? Well, not many producers have access to Media Prima projects. It's like a very close knit community with only a few producers given a look-see, and with producers that they are already comfortable with. My proposal for a secret agent series ala my father's Jefri Zain character made it to the Carcosa list (the final presentation). But alas, TV3 did not bite.
I know a couple of friends who got commissioned by Media Prima for some of the proposals they submitted at the same pitching session. Good for them.
So, for nearly 300 producers, the emails from Astro therefore becomes more and more important for their survival.
I have received my emails, and if all goes well, I can breathe easier next year. Thank you Astro.
I got ziltch from TV3 and RTM.
But I will be going into production immediately for Al Hijrah. Terima kasih Al Hijrah. Another life saver.
I only wish that RTM would get their act together and actually be the main source of revenue for top producers in the country like they once used to. If RTM doesn't invite and commission programmes by the end of this year, I believe many producers who depend solely on RTM will go bust.
It would be a sad state of affairs, especially when the Minister of Information recently said the industry is a multi-billion ringgit industry. Where the billions go to I don't know.
I know desperate producers are sending in proposals to FINAS to survive.
FINAS is paying good money for documentaries and has an ongoing request for proposals with the deadline closing on the 14th of October.
These documentaries have handsome budgets and most producers are already lobbying whoever they think can pull strings in the Ministry to approve their proposals. Worse thing is, most of these producers have never ever done documentaries before. Magazine programmes yes but documentaries - I doubt it.
I got no strings to pull but still I am submitting two proposals.
Having survived the past two years by producing documentaries for Awani Astro, I believe I have the ability to produce quality documentaries. So I hope my cv and resume will be attractive and impressive enough for FINAS.
What did I propose? Two documentaries - one on Wan Mat Saman, the Menteri Besar of Kedah in the 19th Century who built the longest canal in Malaya, and another documentary on the concept of Kapitan China in our history - with a focus on Yap Ah Loy. Who are the Kapitans? Who appointed them? What are their powers and responsibilities? Who is Yap Ah Loy? Who was the last Kapitan? Why did the post end?
That would be interesting isn't it? Even something that could be screened on History Channel.
Anyway, I do hope FINAS remains objective and study proposals on merit. (Okayyyy I'm trying to keep a straight face here and not fall off my chair laughing).
Anyway, after this week, many producers will either sigh with relief or break down and cry.
It is sad.
After ASTRO's decision to release titles they want to commission this week, they will be no other commissioning process in sight from any of the four channels anymore this year.
To my friends and fellow producers, directors, writers and filmmakers, I wish you all the best of luck. Be brave. Be positive. Kalau satu pun tak dapat, there's quite a lot of gerai stall space available at the food courts in Kota Damansara.
We Malay producers kalau tak dapat project, usually think about selling nasi lemak or tomyam.
Sad isn't it?

The things I hope to do in 2011

It's only three months to the end of the year. Time flies. Really flies. Supersonic lightspeed kinda speed.
It has been a weird year so far. Detik 12 Malam completed and awaiting screening on RTM. My new telemovie entitled Pontianak: 3 Cerita 3 Sutradara has just been completed. My documentaries for Awani, especially the one on Mustapha Hussain, was well received.
Personally, things are still quite a mess. Financing my docus has been problematic and tricky. Used to have things financed through SME Bank, but when the process and procedure became too taxing and mindboggling, I decided to try private funding from outside. I make less profits but to tell you the truth, it was still worth it because I don't have to deal with twits. Mind you not all bankers are twits. They are actually some bankers out there who do their best to help entrepreneurs - even those in this wonky film industry of ours. But they are just but a few. Most seem to despise dealing with us producers eventhough we have a government contract in hand (0r used to).

What I am trying to do now, is actually trying to see if I can get a loan from FINAS to produce my movie under the Negarawan film programme.

I mean if any tom dick and harry seem to be getting their proposals approved, and if people out there says that it is free money (which I doubt), I do think I stand a chance of getting a loan right? I mean I know I'm not in the same league as Shuhaimi Baba or the KRU brothers or even the Maidin film group, but still, I think I have some track record to boast of. The problem is whilst I love making horror movies I think by the time I complete a horror movie, the local audience might be jaded.

What about comedy? If Prof Hatta Azad Khan can direct a senario movie and rake in more than RM2m, why not do a comedy? The problem is the kind of comedies I do is not the kind those who pay to see Malay movies go to.

What's left? Would I risk it all for an epic movie? Would I dare take a multi-million ringgit loan to make a movie about Dato' Sagor? About Pangazou the Sabahan warrior? About Datuk Bahaman? ABout Tok Naning?

Would anyone want to see these movies?

I don't know. Do we make movies that the audience want to see or to we make movies that we want the audience to see?

This is the problem producers have right now.

Do we still keep producing lame horror movies, mat rempit half baked racing movies, slapstick comedies for the same market segments or do we try something else?

Do we instead improve ourselves as filmmakers and produce things that we are proud of as filmmakers.