KUCHING: Two local film makers, Samuel Wong from FilmCo and Iain Raphael from IAINWITHEYES Studios welcomed the proposed RM102 million allocation for the Digital Content Fund.
Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced the grant when he presented Budget 2023 recently.
During the tabling of the budget, Anwar said the fund would promote the works of local artists and encourage more original productions.
He said that the government would provide a fund of RM25 million for related activities such as promoting and preserving art, culture and heritage at the community level
Iain lauded the allocation and said when done right, it could contribute towards a significant Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the country, eventually spilling over to other industries such as tourism, and food and beverage.
“I think having the allocation is great. It’s wonderful to see progress, to see that the government finally recognises that films can be a great source of income for the country, when investment is done properly.
“In fact, we have great examples of it from countries such as Indonesia, Korea, and Taiwan.
“The exporting of a culture can only be done through stories, and what better way than films in the 21st century. I don’t think we lack great stories. I think we lack investments and up to date infrastructure to aid our local filmmakers in order to be able to compete with the world,” he said.
Iain, when contacted, said that the film industry could only move to greater heights when the government initiated investments for it, much like how the Malaysian film industry boomed during the late 20th century in West Malaysia.
However, he added that Sarawak and Sabah had great potential in the film industry, calling it a ‘gold mine’.
Iain was optimistic that the allocation would be great for the film industry, noting that Sarawak and Sabah had great stories waiting to be told, stories that appealed to the global audience and were waiting to be discovered.
On the other hand, Wong felt the process of allocating the budget grant could be quite bureaucratic and might not be openly known to the film community.
“Some funds may take six months, some after a little while, disappear and only towards the end, are awarded,” he said speaking from a friend’s experience of applying for funds from the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (FINAS).
He hoped the process of applying funds from FINAS could be simplified and straightforward.
Speaking from over ten years of experience, he said, ”When film industry players give talks and you hear their experiences, they are quite sad.
“They succeed mostly by sheer power, luck and opportunity.
“People are in the film industry because of passion and love, not money,” he said.
Wong also said that the film industry required money and time.
“When you make money, you are definitely going to create a thriving ecosystem and you can make a difference to contents.
“Some people don’t appreciate what we do. They are more appreciative of films done outside Malaysia,” he said.
However, Wong said people in either Thailand, Indonesia enjoyed the films he and his team made.
