Acclaimed South Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong and Chinese action star Wu Jing will be honoured at the upcoming Malaysia International Film Festival (MIFFest, July 18-25).
The 9th edition of the festival, held in Kuala Lumpur, will open with the world premiere of Malaysian director Ariff Zulkarnain’s BAGA: Tomorrow Belongs To No One and close with İlker Çatak’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Yellow Letters.
BAGA… marks the feature directorial debut of Zulkarnain and is set in a conservative fishing village in Kuala Terengganu, revolving around a struggling boatman battling addiction and a batik artisan dreaming of a better future.
This year’s lineup comprises 65 films from 35 countries and regions in 27 languages.
Lee will receive a lifetime achievement award in recognition of his contribution to world cinema. Two of his celebrated features - Peppermint Candy and Oasis - will be screened at the festival. He has been selected to play in Competition at Cannes three times with Secret Sunshine (2007), Poetry (2010) and Burning (2018).
An excellent achievement in film award will be presented to actor and filmmaker Wu for his impact on contemporary action cinema. The festival will screen Chinese New Year box office hit Blades Of The Guardians: Wind Rises In The Desert, a wuxia epic starring Wu and directed by Yeun Woo-ping.
The Malaysia Golden Global Awards (MGGA) will continue to spotlight 10 emerging filmmakers who have made no more than three narrative feature films. Titles include Ah Girl by Ang Geck Geck Priscilla, Lucky Lu by Lloyd Lee Choi, Girl from Shu Qi and Aisha Can’t Fly Away by Morad Mostafa.
The selection for the awards is rounded out by Lau Kek-Huat’s The Waves Will Carry Us, Polen Ly’s Becoming Human, Ondřej Provazník’s Broken Voices, Lalith Rathnayake’s Riverstone, Marie-Elsa Sgualdo’s Silent Rebellion and Juan Pablo Sallato’s The Red Hangar.
Acclaimed Indian filmmaker Anurag Kashyap will preside over the jury. His 2004 classic Black Friday will be screened at the festival in the New Rhythms of Indian Cinema section.
Debuting this year is Korean Cinema: A Culture in Motion, a new section that will include Lee Sang-hoon’s Bluefish and Mr. Kim Goes To The Cinema, directed by Busan International Film Festival founder Kim Dong-ho, who has served as MIFFest’s honorary chairman since its inaugural edition in 2017.
MIFFest will also host Russian Film Week, presented in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and promotional body Roskino
Returning programmes include ASEAN On Screen with six films from Southeast Asia and Hong Kong Cinema in Flux with five titles.
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