FreedomFilmFest – A Malaysian Human Rights
Documentary Film Festival
Anna HarT

he FreedomFilmFest (fff) is Malaysia’s first and only annual human rights documentary film festival. It began in 2003 with the aim
to create a much-needed platform for filmmakers and activists toshowcase their films and advocate their causes to the Malaysian public.
The fff was the brainchild of Pusat komas,1 a Malaysian popular communications human rights non-governmental organization (ngo), as ameans to promote human rights through social films.
Fff’s tag line - “Dare To Document” represents the spirit of the festival– to encourage filmmakers to document and share their stories without fearor hesitation.
It has grown from a small community screening event to the present
nine-day festival featuring over forty international and local films in Petaling
Jaya city and then travelling across the country to six different states and also
Singapore.
In January 2017, a non-profit entity called Freedom Film Network (ffn)2
was formed with the main objective of promoting and supporting the development of social films in Malaysia and is now responsible for organizing of
the film festival.
The film festival has several components:
a. Film screenings and post-screening discussions with the audience.
Each film is carefully selected to cater to the different social issues thatthe festival wants to highlight. The film screening will then be followed byfacilitated discussion session with the invited filmmaker or resource person;
b. “Freedom Talks” are one-hour interactive forums which go deeper
into a topic of film that is screened during the festival. The talk has two identified experts and a facilitator who would guide the flow of the discussion;c. Thematic Workshops
These workshops are skills and perspective-building workshops, usually inline with the theme of the festival or films and cater to particular target audience and feature a guest resource person/trainer;
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d. Master classes with guest filmmakers
These are workshops that provide opportunities for local filmmakers andpotential filmmakers to gain some knowledge and information from theprofessionals/experienced filmmakers.
e. Malaysian Film Grant program
Each year fff gives out small film grants and offer production support
to Malaysians with the best story proposals. The shortlisted proposals areinvited to pitch to a panel of judges who then select two to three winners.
The winners will then be given the grant and have to produce their shorttwenty-minute film that will be premiered at the festival.
f. Film Competition and Award ceremony.
There is an open call for submission of film entries to the festival forthree categories: Best International Film, Best Southeast Asia Film and Best
Short Film. There is a panel of judges for each category.
The winners receive the Justin Louis Award named after a beloved colleague who drowned in the Baram River while on a fact-finding mission
to investigate alleged human rights abuses inflicted on Indigenous Penan
women in the interiors of Sarawak.
FreedomFilmFest 2015
The theme of FreedomFilmFest 2015 (fff2015) was “unseen, unheard,untold.”
The festival began with a week-long festival in Petaling Jaya then went
on a nationwide tour to Johor Bahru, Muar, Penang, Ipoh, Kota Kinabalu,Kuching and Singapore.
Fff2015 showcased twenty-six carefully selected documentaries andhuman rights films from Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries(Indonesia, Singapore, Cambodia, Myanmar, the Philippines and Thailand).
There were also films from other regions such as Africa, Latin America andEurope. The films were organized under different human rights thematicconcerns rarely covered by mainstream media such as Livable Cities; Ageingand Dignity; Interfaith and Multiculturalism; and Sports and Squander.
Film screenings were followed by facilitated twenty-minute discussion
sessions where the audience had dialogue and exchange with invited filmmakers and relevant resource persons. Post-screening discussions are essential and powerful practice of the fff and is crucial in drawing out someFreedomFilmFest — A Malaysian Human Rights Documentary Film Festival

29of the core issues and questions from members of the audience who found
the film very meaningful and informative.
Almost all the Malaysian and Southeast Asian filmmakers were in attendance to interact directly with the audience after the screening of theirfilms, whereas directors of the international films were on skype to speak to
the audience from as far as Holland, Australia and Chile.
Some festival highlights included the film screening of Portraits of aMosquito Press by JL Burgos on media freedom in the Philippines during
the Marcos regime which was followed by a special forum on media freedom participated by the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (seapa), Centre for
Independent Journalism (cij) Malaysia, Gerakan Media Marah (Geramm)and filmmaker JL Burgos. The session ended with the launching of theMalaysian Media Monitoring Report 2015 prepared by cij Malaysia.
Other events included masterclasses to help facilitate exchange and dialogue among filmmakers and to develop capacity among first-time filmmakers learning from their more experienced counterparts. Among the speakers were renowned Indonesian filmmaker Hanung Bramantyo who directed
Question of Faith, and Senior Producer of Al Jazeera’s 101 East, TC Chan.
A Video Activist Forum was carried out on the last day of the festival to bring filmmakers from Southeast Asia together for an exchange ofideas, sharing of resources and building linkages among video activists inthis region.
The winners of the Malaysian Film Grants were:• David Buri for Viral, Sial! about the phenomenon of “viralling” on
the internet and its implication on security and safety especially forwomen;• Nizam Andan for Sindiket which offers a critical perspective at theresult of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the illegal issuanceof Malaysian identity cards to foreigners in Sabah state;• Chan Seong Foong and Victor Chin for Memory as Resistance:
Grandma Kong defending Her Village about the memories of an
octogenarian who has lived in a hundred-year old Chinese Hakka
village that is now at risk of being torn down to make way for newdevelopment;• J Arrivu Jacob for Di Sebalik Runcit about the way the local small
grocery shop owners are coping with new business models such as

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H U M A N R I G H T S E D U C AT I O N I N A S I A - PA C I F I C•hypermarkets and also new requirements such as the newly imposed goods and services tax;
Jason Soo for 1987: Untracing the Conspiracy, a documentation ofstories of detainees of Operation Spectrum in Singapore in 1987.

The winners of the film competition were:• Best Short Film: Living In The Drains by Marcel Simok (Sabah,Malaysia);• Best International Feature: I Will Not Be Silenced by Judy Rymer(Australia);• Best Southeast Asia Feature: 1987: Untracing The Conspiracy byJason Soo (Singapore);• Most Outstanding Human Rights Film: Malaysian Film Grant
Winner: Viral, Sial by David Buri (Malaysia).
The festival was organized with the cooperation of the Delegation ofthe European Union to Malaysia, Petaling Jaya City Council, Penang State
Government and Selangor State Government. Other sponsors for thefestival were the Penang Institute, Goethe Institute, Movies that Matter(Netherlands), MyDocs (Malaysian Documentary Association), PJ Live
Arts, and the Royal Netherlands Embassy.
FreedomFilmFest 2016
The FreedomFilmFest 2016 theme “What Lies Beneath” spotlighted the underrepresented human rights and public interest issues through the powerful medium of film. It was a call for everyone to dig deeper into the many urgent issues that individuals, groups, society and humanity are facing today.
Documentaries included fresh views into the war in Syria, Germany’s
open-arms refugee policy, Indonesia’s six-religion administration, Sarawak’sforest destruction and corruption, worldwide food security, the cost of fashion, and women sustaining their role in the religious clergy in the UnitedStates; and also rare views into Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Kenya andeven Estonia.
The ensemble was peppered with award-winning films, including
Radical Grace produced by Susan Sarandon, Among the Believers directedby Hemal Trivedi and Mohammed Ali Naqvi, A Syrian Love Story directedFreedomFilmFest — A Malaysian Human Rights Documentary Film Festival

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by Sean McAllister, and A Very German Welcome directed by Carsten Rau
and Hauke Wendler.
Fff2016 was also attended by filmmakers Marcus Vetter (Germany)and Sean McAllister (United Kingdom) as well as all filmmakers who werebased in Southeast Asia. The festival also featured masterclasses and theinaugural Freedom Talks Series.
The festival screened a total of thirty documentaries and short films.
The festival program included four masterclasses, a Southeast Asia (SEA)
Video for Change network meeting and the introduction of FreedomTalks,a series of panel discussion and events related to some of the themes carriedin some of the films.
The festival finale gave away three awards:

Freedom Talk, 2016.

Freedom Talk: The Good Food Revolution.

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Masterclass with Marcus Vetter on “The Thin Line Between Documentary & Fiction.

••••

Best International Feature: A Syrian Love Story by Sean McAllister(United Kingdom);
Special mention – Among the Believers by Hemal Trivedi andMohammed Ali Naqvi (India/Pakistan);
Best SEA Feature: Emak Dari Jambi by Anggun Pradesha and RickyM. Fajar (Indonesia);
Best Short Film: Unsilent Potato by Sein Lyan Tun (Myanmar).

These awards were presented based on how the films portrayed personal stories affected by national issues in ways that were compelling andemotive.
The festival also saw the premiere of a first of its kind animation film
series – Moving Voices, in collaboration with Dasein Academy of Art and
BFM: The Business Radio Station. The animation film series featured six
personal stories of urban poor community of Jinjang Utara, with membersof the community in attendance at the premiere screening.
The Malaysian film grants were awarded to:• Nova Goh – Unlocking Bengoh, about an Indigenous Bidayuh community in Sarawak which had to relocate to make way for becauseof a water catchment dam;FreedomFilmFest — A Malaysian Human Rights Documentary Film Festival•

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Ashleigh Lim – Stories of my Father, the filmmaker chronicles her
father’s past as a political detainee.

Fff2016 ended its weeklong run in Petaling Jaya and then continued ona nationwide tour to cities around Malaysia. Compact versions of the festival
were also screened in Johor Bahru, Penang, Muar, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu,
Ipoh and Singapore.
FreedomFilmFest 2017
FreedomFilmFest 2017 (fff2017) offered a compelling line-up of forty mustsee films, showcasing the very best of local and international talent, boldly
uncovering some of the most prominent issues of our time.
Fff2017 also offered festival-goers the opportunity to get up close andpersonal with cutting-edge filmmakers from across the globe, and brandnew interactive workshops, talks, food-tasting events and musical performances – all expertly curated to complement the festival’s film screenings.
This year’s weeklong festival focused its attention on the United Nations’
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in particular the recognition
that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”3 With
thought-provoking films and talks, focusing on globally relevant issues
such as environmental degradation, ageing, food activism and countering
extremism,fff2017 catered to everyone.
Fff2017 also offered a thrilling addition to the usual program, debuting
talent from Malaysia’s newly formed Freedom Film Network (ffn). Homegrown ffn filmmakers, including two winners of the FreedomFilmFest
Grant, took an in-depth look at local issues including rapid development
and its impact on flora and fauna in Penang, (The Hills and The Sea), theplight of Rohingya refugees in Malaysia (Selfie With The Prime Minister),the consequences of unilateral conversion (Diary for Prasana) and policies
surrounding the much anticipated 14th General Elections (Saving Malaysia).
The following awards were given out:
• Best International Film: An Insignificant Man by Khushboo Ranka
and Vinay Shukla (India);• Best sea Film: Nokas by Manuel Alberto Maia (Indonesia);• Best Short Film: Sittwe by Jeanne Marie Hallacy (Myanmar/Thailand/UK);

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H U M A N R I G H T S E D U C AT I O N I N A S I A - PA C I F I C••Best Malaysian Film Grant Award The Hills and The Sea by Andrew
Ng; andIdfa Pitch/Grant Recipient: Eye on The Ball by Chen Yih Wen.

Fff2017 continued its festival tour to five major cities in Malaysia,
namely Sabah, Sarawak, Perak, Johor, and Penang from 14 October till 26
November and in Singapore on 11 and 12 November 2017.
Young Malaysians who attended fff2017 called the experience “eyeopening” with the festival bringing them “untold stories” not usually highlighted by the mainstream media. But aside from youngsters gaining newexperiences at this year’s festival, one of the benchmark events was an empowering filmmaking workshop aimed at promoting life-long learning forseniors, who gained new skills in documenting their own stories.
Fff2017 also engaged members of the Orang Asli (indigenous) community, as well as indigenous filmmakers from across the region who showcased and discussed their social films with the public. Seasoned indigenous
activist and filmmaker, Shafie Dris, told the media that his filmmaking wasa crucial tool to counter misinformation about the Orang Asli community.
Another event highlighted the digital stories of eleven Temuan Orang Asliyouth members from two villages in Negeri Sembilan who shared their experiences, aspirations and challenges in accessing adequate education inMalaysia.
The success of fff2017 was in large part due to the support and active
involvement of its partners/collaborators who engaged and connected different communities in important human rights workshops and discussions.
Tenaganita for example helped fff mobilize Overseas Filipino Workers residing in Malaysia to join the screening of multi-award-winning documentary Sunday Beauty Queen. Following the screening of Theater of Life, Pit
Stop Community Cafe and Dapur Jalalan introduced the public to a lively movement helping to redistribute waste food to the homeless in Kuala
Lumpur. Civil society organizations, Amnesty International Malaysia andSuara Rakyat Malaysia (suaram), also collaborated with fff to discuss
Malaysia’s use of the death penalty following the screening of Filipino documentary Give Up Tomorrow.

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Thematic Workshop: Shoot and Edit using an HP with the indigenous people.

Achievements and Impact
As a result of the yearly Malaysian Film Grant program, fff has created agrowing collection and continuous production of alternative, human rights
films about Malaysia, made by Malaysians, from the perspective of the marginalized and different from the content of mainstream media.3
This collection of films can be accessed online and forms part of thealternative resource materials on important Malaysian issues. The films areused in class by teachers, lecturers and researchers. They also play an important part in advocacy of issues and have been used as a tool to bring awareness, educate and as part of campaigns.
The sustained yearly film festival and the creative, strategic curation andprogramming have also earned the festival a positive reputation among human rights activists as well as film enthusiasts.
In its fifteen years of existence, fff created and enlarged the audienceand popularity of non-fiction films. More importantly, it introduced anddemonstrated the power of films not just to entertain but to inform andmove people to action on human rights violations.
Fff also plays a vital role in creating and maintaining a safe space whereMalaysians can come together to discuss issues in a safe and open man-

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ner via the facilitated post-screening discussions and Freedom Talks. Thisis important especially in a society where there are laws that go against theprinciples of freedom of expression.
It has also become a much awaited, key civil society event that brings
activists, ngo workers and members of communities together under one
roof.
Challenges
Fff is constantly under the radar and monitored by authorities for content
in films that may be deemed unsuitable (such as lgbt themes, those criticalof the government and its friendly neighbors), with “sensitive” content (suchas those that are sympathetic to or glorify the communists or touch on raceand religion in Malaysia).
The law regulating film and screening is also very strict. The Film
Censorship Act 2002 states that all films with very few exceptions (suchas government-produced films and those meant for export only) must gothrough and obtain a censorship certificate before they can be screened.
A closed-door private screening of award-winning documentary No
Fire Zone; The Killing Fields of Sri Lanka resulted in the raid and subsequentarrest of three staffmembers of Pusat komas and subsequently one of thethree (Ms. Lena Hendry)4 was criminally charged and found guilty of failingto obtain prior consent and license/approval from the censor board. Fff
does not send to the censor board the films to be shown.
The human rights branding and semi-illegal status have also been a deterrent to the organization from obtaining support and sponsorship fromcommercial/corporate companies that do not want to be seen as supportingan event that could potentially get in trouble with the authorities.
In the past year, fff shifted to putting the films online and conducting
the screenings via projected online screening to avoid potential legal persecution. This is still a challenge because of bandwith and other technicalities
related to streaming a film online. Nevertheless, the audience is informed
and understands the predicament.
Other constant challenges being faced by all film festivals are how toreach new audiences, secure enough funding for the next edition and also
have a skilled and capable team to run the festival.

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Future
The creation of the Freedom Film Network led to the forming of a networkof social filmmakers - most of them are alumni of the festival - who areinterested in working together to produce alternative films. fff hopes that
this structure becomes a model that ensures the sustainability of social films
in Malaysia.
Fff continues to try to enlarge its audiences and find new ones by thechoice of topics and themes undertaken every year. The themes of the films
have now widened to include films that touch on contemporary social andcultural rights and issues such as ageing, mental health, food security, livable cities and sustainability.
Endnotes
1 See Pusat KOMAS website for more information http://komas.org/.
2 Freedom Film Network, https://freedomfilm.my/.
3 Freedomfilm.my/festival/films
4 “Film Censorship Act provision constitutional, Federal Court rules
Diterbitkan pada,” Berita Malaysia, 14 September 2015, http://english.astroawani.
com/malaysia-news/film-censorship-act-provision-constitutional-federal-courtrules-73266.