The film depicts the love-hate, sororal relationship between the single mother, who runs a barber shop, and her adolescent daughter. Structured around minimal dialogues, the characters’ emotions are revealed through gestures and appearances. Sequence shots and long takes, shooting with fixed camera, reflect young female sensitivity, and the film depicts a sharp, rawly physical mode of expression. The brilliantly delicate portrayal of scenery serves to describe the exquisite flow of sentiment underlying the whole film. This is the first feature film by Charlotte LIM, and the story unfolds in her hometown, the historic city of Malacca.

My Daughter is produced by HO Yuhang, for whom Lim has worked for years as an assistant director, and Michelle LO, the producer of Flower in The Pocket. It is the winner of The Jury Prize at The International Film Festival of Marrakech, and was an Official Selection for the Competition category of the 2009 Pusan International Film Festival and the 2010 International Film Festival, Rotterdam. The film was officially screened at numerous international film festivals, such as London International Film Festival, Buenos Aires International Festival.

Charlotte LIM has gained experience as an assistant director to the directors TSAI Ming-liang, Ang LEE, and HO Yuhang, and is now building her career mainly in the short film category. Full of wit and curiosity, insightful and thoughtful, Lim has become a great asset for the Malaysian film industry. Her past works include “La invitation” (2005), ”Escape” (2008/26mins), ”I’m Lisa” (2011/8mins, received Special Jury Mention at the Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films, International Film Festival Rotterdam), and ”Hanger” (2012/13mins). Lim is currently working on her first documentary film, which will also feature Malacca as its main location.

The director Ho Yuhang visits Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, to have an interview with Adian Napitupulu, the leader of a political group called BENDERA, which employs the slogan, “GANYANG MALAYSIA!“(Crush Malaysia). Why do they want to crush Yuhan’s mother country? In the process of seeking the source of their thoughts, the film cuts into the problems lying between Malaysia and Indonesia, and the historical relationships between the two countries.

“No One is Illegal” is the latest documentary film by Ho Yuhang, who has led the “Malaysian New Wave” with films including Rain Dogs, and At the End of the Daybreak. The film was produced as a project of the Rotterdam International Film Festival. It is a pop piece filled with innovative, unique ideas such as the use of animation, and distinctive tickers.

”GANYANG MALAYSIA”, the slogan put up by BENDERA (BENTENG DMOKRASI RAKYAT- the Fortress People’s Democracy), was originally propounded by the first President of Indonesia, Sukarno. It has its origin in the conflict over the sovereignty of Sarawak in Borneo (Kalimantan) Island and northern Borneo, which arose when Malaysia became independent. In August 2010, three Indonesian officials of the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries who had encroached into Malaysian waters were arrested. Angered by this act, the members of BENDERA held a demonstration in front of the Embassy of Malaysia in Jakarta. The number of Indonesians working in Malaysia amounts to about 2.2 million. It equals 8% of the whole Malaysian population, five hundred thousand of which are said to be illegal immigrants. In recent years, incidents in which they are treated unjustly in Malaysia have occurred. These incidents are one of the factors worsening the emotions of Indonesian people.

The setting is an office in a Fukuoka skyscraper. Junko has unsuccessfully undergone fertility treatment and recently gave up on the idea of having a child. A middle-aged woman, Shino, becomes puzzled at the sudden contact of her old boyfriend, who wants to see her again. Momo, who delivers lunch to their office, loves to talk about the dreams she has had. As is symbolized by the three different meanings of the Japanese word “hashi”: “bridge”, “chopsticks”, and “edge”, the film depicts the multiple faces of Japanese women through the three female characters who gather at the same office in Fukuoka.

Hashi is the first feature film by the director Sherman ONG . The film was shot while he was participating in the “Residence Program” at Fukuoka Asian Art Museum. ONG selected 14 cast members through an audition and reflected their actual experiences in the script, completing all of the production process within three months of the program. Since the amateur cast were working in their own daily jobs and did not have much free time to work on the film, each character was played by several actors. Nevertheless, the method does not seem unnatural, rather it adds an intriguing atmosphere to the film. The director says that this film was also inspired by Luis Buñuel’s That Obscure Object of Desire. Another documentary-like film by ONG , Memories of a Burning Tree (2010), which was shot in Tanzania, was screened at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Born in 1971, Sherman ONG began his career as a television director and is actively working as a photographer and installation artist, holding exhibitions all over the world. His works have been highly acclaimed at biennales and film festivals in many countries. Hashi won the Best Screenplay Award at the Singapore International Film Festival 2009. In recent years, ONG has been serving as the Artistic Manager of the Singapore International Photography Festival, and also as an educator at universities.

Official website：www.shermanong.com