PROCRASTINATING

I'm getting lazy. Procrastinating. It's been a week and I haven't written much (apart from blogging). I'm supposed to be writing two screenplays. A comedy called Satay Wars and a full blown spoof called Filem Melayu.
And then there's my third feature film - bringing Bilik No. 13 to the big screen. Arggghhh.
I'm also waiting for my staff to get me costings for various things so that I can prepare a detailed production budget. What's worse, I hope to start shooting the movie in December!
My Indonesian project is also falling into place. An Indonesian producer has already sent me a synopsis to consider - a comedy with an interesting title.
The Indonesian producer isn't one of the big guys, but has done two movies recently - one a remake of Teguh Karya's masterpiece (Badai Pasti Berlalu) and the other a remaja movie about bike racing. You need big cojones to do a remake of a Teguh Karya movie.
I'm supposed to fly to Jakarta in a couple of weeks to discuss the project with the Indonesians, but I also need to sort out my own local production. It all depends on my partners.
Anyway, I need to go out. Need to clear my head. It's swirling.
I gonna prepare dinner for the family today. It's one way for me to relax. I'm trying to serve Bulgogi tonight. Looking for the sauce Ssamjung for the dish. Wonder where I can get it.
Also need lots of salad leaf.
So many things to do. So little time.
Hope you guys out there have a better weekend.
My younger brother, Asnadi, who is working in the U.S. with AT&T is having a worrisome Ramadhan weekend in New Jersey. According to weather reports, hurricane Hannah is heading his way and may bring down 5 inches of rain over the next 24 hours. For NJ that's a lot of rain water. It may cause some flooding and damage as the winds are expected to reach 100km/hr in some parts.
According to him, this is his first time experiencing a hurricane head-on. He was supposed to drive with his wife to a friend's buka puasa (a one hour drive) but if the weather worsens, they might just take a rain check (hurricane check more like it).

KL FILMFEST, SCREAMFEST INDO AND JIFFEST 07

It's the season to watch movies I guess. As a movie fan, such news are like locating the holy grail - we live only to watch movies - great ones, bad ones, crap ones, fantastic ones. So when there's a few film festivals literally at your doorsteps - it should be great fun. So, if you don't know, today, begins the KL International Film Fest or KLIFF. Yes yes...a film festival, an international film festival...you don't know anything about it? Don't blame yourself, not many know about it...including industry professionals. Yes and Majid Majidi is in town to give a talk about story telling. When? Where? Whaaa? Well check out their website - www.klfilmfest.com - simple enough website - with schedules of workshops listed - mostly about animation and 3D - again the hope that Malaysia will one day be a global animation hub...but heck..there's no film screening schedule!! What's the point on having an international film festival when you can't get hold of the film screening schedule? I know there's about two dozen movies participating from all over the world - really unknown movies except for 1957 Hati Malaya representing Malaysia - but if someone wants to know what movies to watch, where's the info?
Unlike the First Indonesia Horror Film Fest - ScreamfestIndo starting today (the 28th of November) in Jakarta. An official offshoot of the ScreamFest Horror Film Festival in the US, the festival looks and sounds fun. Check out their website at www.screamfestindo.com. Dozens of horror, thriller, fantasy, anime and sci-fi movies lines up for movie fans! It's really a festival for movie goers unlike KLIFF who was organised for whom?? The opening film tonight in Jakarta is Guillermo Del Toro's latest movie The Orphanage. And then the screening goes on and on for five days plus a workshop helmed by Indon director Rizal Mantovani and featuring top horrormeister Brian Yuzna (Re-Animator series). The workshops were fully booked weeks ahead.
And then a week later, in Jakarta, begins the 9th Jakarta International Film Festival - yes the ninth year! Ten days of movie watching!! Checkout their website at www.jiffest.org. And surprise surprise - our neighbours are actually screening plenty of Malaysian movies - old and new! Look at the list of Malaysian movies to be screened: Bujang Lapok, Labu Labi, Laksaman Do Re Mi, Hang Tuah, Mukhsin, Chalanngai and The Last Communist.
Then the screenings of more than 40 movies!!! And movies of note - if you happen to be in Jakarta at that time check out the following movies - Hula Girls from Japan, La Vie En Rose from France, Sicko from USA, Persepolis from USA and Indigenes from France/Algeria. Just check out their screening list - you can just drown yourself in movies over the next two weeks in Jakarta at the Blitz Megaplex.
And the JIFFEST workshops are worldclass - participants of the screenwriting workshops stand to win more than 35,000 Euros for their work! Enough to complete or begin shooting their own masterpieces. This is what a true festival is about - getting the public - both general public and those in the local film industry to participate. KLIFF? Don't really know who they organised it for. Too bad we don't know where and when to catch any of the movies participating in the KLIFF here at our own backyard.

From Boon Teck Road to Kampung Tunku

Hi, my name is Anwardi Jamil. Friends call me Didi. Some call me Dood. The rest use various expletives. I was born on the morning of December 9 in 1958 in a clinic along Aljunied Road in Singapore. I was too impatient to come into the world so much so that my mom did not manage to reach Hospital Kandang Kerbau to deliver me. Lucky me. Always like to remind my two brothers (my elder brother Arjunaidi and younger brother Asnadi) that they were born in Kandang Kerbau..heheh.
I do not remember much about my childhood days...but the few memories that I have are quite vivid. It comes in flashes, very cinematic and mostly in black and white. I do remember certain events during my family's stay in Jalan Boon Teck Road where Shaw Brothers housed most of their creative and technical staff there. Amongst those who shared the same address were Jins Shamsudin and his late wife Rahmah Rahmat; Saadiah, Normadiah, S.Shamsudin and many others. I think we stayed there for a few years until my father made enough money to get us out of that place to a double storied terrace house in Jalan Chengkek (where the picture below was taken - (from left - my adopted sister Murni, Abah (Dad), myself, Arjunaidi, Mak (Mom) and my late adopted brother Zaimi). The little 2-room house in Boon Teck Road was just basic squarish houses with smelly old bucket toilet system in the rear of the house. In fact, Boon Teck Road can actually be compared to a squatter area.
I went to Kindergarden at Macpherson Road (hardly remember anything) but I do remember a lot of incidences during my primary school days at Balestier Mixed Primary School. I was always the youngest in class. This is made 'worse' later on when my family migrated or moved to Kuala Lumpur in 1969. somehow I was allowed to skip Primary 5 and went to Primary 6 directly from Standard 4 (in Singapore). I saved nearly 2 years in my early school days.
Anyway, this blog will be...well...a journal or my journey...a non-linear journey as I will ramble to and fro, here and there and everywhere...and anything that interests me. You are more than welcomed to join me. Do post comments, queries and thoughts.
Til my next entry, cheerio.