I received a message from one Aurora who is writing her dissertation about women representation.
Here are my responses;
1) You mentioned that you do not overthink too much on your narratives and you leave it to the audience to derive their own perspectives. So, what areas or subject matters are you more sensitive/conscious about? Do you have any type of storyline that you're less inclined to be involved with?
Much of the stories I write are pretty much instigated by my mental state of affairs. It can be as random as food, religion/spirituality, sexual politics and social commentary about my Malay community. My Love Trilogy shorts, ie Lost Sole (2005), à la Folie (2008), Ameen (2010), Home (2016) reflects my observations about Malay spirituality and gender. Bila Larut Malam (2015) is about middle-class Malay women who despite their personality differences, shared a longing for love during post-war. The MINDEF-commissioned shorts, The Usual and Sama-Sama, breaks down stereotypes of Malays in the Commandos. In Sayang Disayang, I used a lot of metaphors to tell a story about love and loneliness.
I wouldn’t say that I’ll steer myself away from any topics ie no topics is taboo to me, I’ll visit these topics when I’m in the right state of mind or maturity to tackle these issues.
Regardless of the genres and stories, much of what I’ve written are based on my own life journey. Close friends would have spotted vignettes of my life in these films.
2) How much control do you have over the casting on your films and tv shows?
When I write for my films, I would have a cast already in mind. I would have known the cast in person or have watched him/her from his/her previous work. It helps me during the writing stage (character wise). But for television, 65% of the time i dont have a say in casting because much will be determined by the network (ie commercial value and no of followers on IG haha). When this happens, I’ll just accept it and pray for the best. Nevertheless, many of these cast that I've never worked with give surprising performances.
3) Are you, in any way, particular about whether you make English language films or Malay language films? (And why?)
The language of film is humanity. Regardless of spoken language, audiences will still be connected to the films by the story. On that note, I write mostly Malay-centric stories because that’s where I grew up in and I feel I can tell a story effectively when I know what I’m making about. The audience is not foolish. They can sense if you’re inauthentic from a mile.
4) Do you feel a sense of responsibility as someone who makes stories?
This is a very important question. Yes I do. I feel a responsibility to tell stories that I am familiar with, as authentic as possible. Yet, to highlight the ironies in the film long after the audience watched the film.
5) You have stated how one of the reasons you made Sayang Disayang was due to the fact that there weren't any films in southeast Asia centred around food. Are there any other type of films you feel is lacking in this region? And if so, what type of stories are you wanting to explore that has not been explored yet?
When a topic or story is done for the first time, there is ALWAYS a concern where people will ask “will people watch the film”. In filmmaking, many are scared to embrace new concepts and perhaps will only adopt (and rework) the idea when the first film find its audience.
When I did Sayang Disayang, a lot of people questioned me if my idea about Nusantara food that is embellished with some live-singing by the cast would work. None came forward. But I did it anyways with the moral support from the cast. I finished SDS with my own savings. I did not receive any funding help from any local government body. Also in Singapore, it was the first time that someone is making a Malay-language film, thus the typical question is “can this film make money”. In this case, ask yourself, if you want to create art or be a banker? Do all writers think if they can make money when they write literature?
6) Are you conscious of inclusivity when it comes to making your stories?
I think one of the reasons why I make my first short is the frustration that I did not see my own representation in films that were screened in singapore (Malaysian and Indonesian films do not count, because Singaporeans dont live in a kampong nor balik kampong during Hari Raya). This was from my graduation from film school till LOST SOLE was made, ie 1996-2005. Yup there were no films about Malay community by Malay community being made into films.
When it comes to inclusivity, think of it as the language being spoken (see my points in Q3).
7) As a male director/producer/writer, what are your opinions about the representation of Malay women?
As an extension of points 3 and 6, I only include genders when it is necessary. When I write about Sama-Sama, The Usual or Home, the story do not need a female character thus I dont include them.
In Bila Larut Malam, the women are strong women. But due to the nature of their situation, their respective longing makes them weak. Plus, the sexual politics between each character make the 3 women weak, in my humble opinion.
In Sayang Disayang, Murni may seem weak but the irony is that she runs the kitchen and by extension the household.
8) Are you conscious of the treatment and portrayal of women in your stories?
This goes back to the idea of authenticity. It’s not just about women. Each character, regardless male or female, is complex. Thus I am very particular that my characters are 3-dimensional and most importantly, relatable to the audience.
