20Jul

KK Jazz Festival Committee Meets Mayor

KOTA KINABALU: The Kota Kinabalu Jazz Festival (KKJF) 2017 organising committee led by its organising chairman Rotarian Jack Ong, paid a courtesy call on Mayor Datuk Yeo Boon Hai, recently . Jack briefed Yeo on the programme for the upcoming 11th KK Jazz Festival at the  Sutera Harbour Marina & Country Club Covered Tennis Courts on July 21-22 The two-night concert will feature international and local talents and bands to perform on either the centre or main stage. Malaysian celebrity, personality and TV anchor, Sabahan Daphne Iking, is back by popular demand to emcee again this year. Performers on the first night includes 2017 Bakat Interact winner from SM St Francis Convent; Butod Project (KKJF Talent Search winners);  Gordon Chin with his complex fingerstyle technique; the energetic pop fusion band – Dominant 5th of Borneo (D50B);  Sabahan Jazz piano Alton Wong and jazz ensemble Kangkung Belacan; the infectious rhythm driven sound of Nafas; Sada Borneo’s musical fusion of traditional, modern, ethnic and nature elements; and ending the night with the winner of Tiger Jams 2016 – Rozella. The line-up for the second night begins with sophisticated jazz, dance and Latin music by Borneo Big Band led by Joan Jim; Talent Search finalists – Zuhaili and Culumus; Good Messenger – professional musicians from Taiwan with their mix of jazz, blues, gospel and classical music; the first authentic Spanish Flamenco ensemble to perform in Sabah – Origen; the unique and virtuosic style of Shun Ng & The Shunettes, comprising of Stellar Award nominee Deon Mose, with their special guest – China’s The Voice finalist Melody Tan; a UK chart topper and daughter of the legendary Loganathan of the Alleycats – Dasha Logan; and Asia’s first and only Prince-inspired tribute band – Rainbow Children, to bring the festival into a spectacular ending. The festival opens at 6pm on both nights and ends at about 11 pm each night. There are tables and chairs provided at the venue but availability is on a first come first serve basis. This year  KKJF will have some of the best restaurants in Kota Kinabalu serving their best food and beverages such as The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Outlet, Party Play, Adelphi & Co, Alexys, Borenos, Fruto, Wine Shop, Carlsberg, and many more. F&B coupons of RM20 and RM50 per book are sold at the festival. Tickets will be available at the door on both days but purchase them now via website and at selected outlets in KK at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Party Play, Adelphi & Co, Alexys Cafe and Borenos Fried Chicken. Prices for the tickets are RM100 for a one-day pass (per pax per night) and RM150 for a two-day pass (per pax for two nights). Both tickets are for regular seating on a first come first serve basis. The price for one Premier table is RM1,000 per table per night (maximum of six pax) or RM200 per pax per night (maximum of four pax) for a premier seating on sharing basis where table and seats are specially reserved. F&B is not included but waiters are on standby to assist on getting your food and beverages. To avoid the hassle of parking, the festival will partner with Uber Malaysia this year. Ticket holders can ride with Uber to/from the festival by entering the promo code 11KKJAZZF in the Uber app and enjoy two  free rides worth RM5 each to/from the festival on July 21-22 only. The main sponsor of KKJF is Yayasan Sime Darby. Other sponsors are the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment Sabah, Pacificity and  supported by Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK) and Carlsberg. KKJF is jointly organised by RCKK and SPArKS, and the festival is an annual fund-raising festival, where money raised from ticket sales is used to fund deserving community projects of RCKK. For more information on KKJF, please log onto www.kkjazzfest.com or check out FB page @KK Jazz Festival. Source: The Borneo Post Online
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19Jul

High Benchmark Set for Film Festival

Kota Kinabalu: The Kota Kinabalu International Film Festival (KKIFF) Buzz10 Filmmakers' Competition has set a high benchmark with its outstanding entries this year. Hassan Muthalib who has been judging the competition since six years ago said he witnessed a progress in the quality of entries for the competition's eighth edition. "When I first started judging the competition, I can see some of the films are good but at the same time, there are quite a few which were not up to the standard. "And now, I saw entries which are very personal... they go very deep into their subjects. "They films are also cinematic… the makers have used the language of film well in their films," he said after the KKIFF 2017 Awards Night at the Black Box, here, on Sunday. He added almost 90 per cent of the entries this year have shown professional work compared to the previous ones. "Usually when we are sitting in the judges' seats, we will be cringing at certain films which should have never entered the competition … but in Buzz10, we only find a minimal number of films which are not really up to the mark." The self-taught artist-animator-film director-writer has been involved in the Malaysian film industry for 52 years. His creative works have won numerous awards and currently he is a film critic and writer where conduct researches and writings on the Malaysian cinema. He had also written two books – Malaysian Cinema in a Bottle in 2013 and From Mousedeer to Mouse: 70 Years of Malaysian Animation (2016). Al Jafree Md Yusop, the other judge for the Buzz10 Filmmakers' Competition said he was surprised by the entries and had a difficult time judging them. "The entries were amazing… the films put hope back in the Malaysian film industry," said Jafree. Hassan said the Sabah Film Academy (SFA) – the mentorship programme under KKIFF had contributed much in the improved quality of the entries. "In SFA, there are mentors who guide the participants and these participants were also among those who have entered the filmmakers' competition. "I was also told that the comments which the judges, including me, had given on the works in previous years had helped this year's participants to understand the do's and dont's on the technical and creative side of filmmaking. "I think what KKIFF has done is that it produces filmmakers who think, instead of filmmakers who would go out and shoot… these filmmakers put much attention to their subjects and the art of filmmaking. "I think this would go a long way in creating good storytellers in Sabah." According to him, good filmmakers should go beyond the technicality of making films. "They should read a lot, watch other people's films, mix with those who are smarter than them and they need to travel a lot. "If they can do these things, we can expect to see the production of great works which can reach international-level standards." As the standard of competition is high this year, Hassan said it will motivate and inspire the next wave of filmmakers to reach for greater heights. "Festivals such as KKIFF are very important and I hope they will get some support from the government as well as from the Kuala Lumpur side. "These festivals need funding and it is important for KKIFF to be expanded so that it can bring more foreign filmmakers who can interact with the local culture," he said. Meanwhile, more than 40 films from Malaysia and Asean countries took part in the Buzz10 Filmmakers' Competition to vie for the Golden Kinabalu Awards in three categories – narrative, documentary and indigenous language. In the narrative category, Si Tommy by Kubendra M.S. Mahadevan from Malaysia won while When Our Gardens Grow Silent by Mzung from Vietnam came out on top in the documentary category. The indigenous language category was won by Kwan Thung Seng from Sabah for the film Hello Pirit. During the event, films produced by the SFA participants were also screened. Prizes were presented by Sabah Tourism Board (STB) Chairman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai, Kadazandusun Language Foundation Chief Executive Officer Rita Lasimbang, Society of Performing Arts Kota Kinabalu (SPArKS) President Roger Wang and KKIFF Director Jude Day. - Ricardo Unto Source: Daily Express
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28Oct

More tattoo artists this year

Kota Kinabalu: The tattoo industry is a niche market that can be promoted further as a parcel of the tourism attractions in the State, said Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun. Masidi said his Ministry will continue to support events like the 2nd Sabah International Tattoo Convention (SITC) in the hope of making Sabah more known globally, especially in the tattoo scene. "This is the second time the convention is held in Kota Kinabalu and this year has been an overwhelming success. "This time they have 71 tattoo artists from 20 countries and that is a big improvement on the number of participants in comparison to last year's convention. "This is a niche event where it is targeted to a specific market and the people who come here are those who are very interested in tattoos. "While some may not want to get inked themselves, they have the curiosity to know more about tattoos," he said after visiting the convention at the Hyatt Regency Hotel ballroom, here, Saturday. He also hoped the venue will be shifted to a bigger area next year to accommodate the increasing number of participants and visitors. "It is a niche area which I think can be promoted as part of the tourism attractions in Sabah, especially in Kota Kinabalu. "I believe we can make Sabah more popular to the rest of the world through this event. "The fact that the participants came from 20 countries itself is a great success to promote Sabah." Masidi was also impressed with the dedication and the skills shown by the tattoo artists in the convention. "Some of us perceive that it (tattooing) is just a simple thing…putting up designs on your bodies, but it is not. "It involves a more intricate work where you have to master the art of tattooing and the most important thing is to come up with interesting designs," he said. Organiser Carlos Benny Majakil, who is also the owner of Koiyak Gloves, said SITC is the biggest tattoo event in the country and he expected a crowd of more than 2,000 visitors over the three-day period beginning Oct 21. "The inaugural SITC which was held last year broke boundaries by being the first ever tattoo event in Sabah that was endorsed by Sabah Tourism Board (STB)," he said. According to Benny, SITC aims to celebrate and promote all aspects of the professional tattoo industry – from the participation of famed tattoo artists to the presentation of various modern and traditional tattooing styles. "We hope to bring more tattoo artists and visitors from more countries next year, including talents who are not directly involved with the tattoo industry but related to arts." This year's convention is participated by a line-up of renowned tattoo artists from all over the world. Among them are Norm from the US, Mattia Maranggoni (Italy), Guy Le Tattoer (France), Nic Tse (Hong Kong), Christian Nguyen (Switzerland), Gino Angelov (UK), Ernesto Kalum (Malaysia) and Rojan Shrestha (Nepal). Los Angeles-based tattoo genius, Norm said he was excited to join the convention again after a memorable experience last year. "The convention is great and Sabah is nice… it is also a good time to come here for a vacation as well. "Last year, I managed to visit the highlands and it was a good experience. This time around, I am going to stay here for about a week and I will rent a motorcycle to go around the city," he said. The former graffiti artist disclosed that his friends and fans had contacted him prior to his trip to the city and made appointments with him. "About six to seven people came for tattooing sessions with me in last year's convention and I'm expecting the same number of customers as well for this year's event. "Sabah is a great place to relax and converge with other tattoo artists and enthusiasts… as well as to enjoy the seafood." Apart from live tattooing sessions by artists at their booths, a range of tattoo contests will also be held during SITC which will be judged by tattoo maestros in the likes of Benny, Marco Leoni from Italy and Ernesto. For more information, visit www.sabahtattooconvention.com.   Source : Daily Express
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24Jul

Global tattoo artists due October

Kota Kinabalu: A Penampang boy who had set out to see the world and established himself as a professional tattoo artist is sharing the love with his home State in a big way. Carlos Benny, 32, who has been inking bodies for over 18 years, is rallying tattoo artists from all around the world to join the first Sabah International Tattoo Convention set to take place in Hyatt Hotel this October. "Around 50 tattoo artists from all over the world including Japan, France, Switzerland, Spain, Germany and Portugal will be taking part in the event," said Benny, who is based in Kuala Lumpur now. "I left Sabah when I was 21 to further my studies, before deciding to travel all over the world for experience and exposure," he added. Benny said Sabah was chosen as the venue because he wanted to expose Sabahans to something that could bring awareness and unity through art. "It's a different approach," he said, adding that it would be a boost to tourism as well. He cited renowned Parisian tattoo artist Filip Leu as among the figures that had inspired him throughout his art journey. The social media campaign of the event which started early this year had garnered much attention with around 3,248 likes. Singaporean artist Julian Chia said he had faith in the convention as the organisers had put in much effort in realising the event. "I think the organisers have put a lot of work into it. "I've been to big conventions that have ended up having a miserable turnout and small conventions that have been very well received. I have a good feeling about this convention. "Plus, you have the most beautiful beaches and I can go diving after the convention," said Chia who has a degree in Arts Management from Lasalle College of the Arts in Singapore. He also advised those who were keen on inking their bodies to think hard and decide beforehand. "Love lasts forever, but a tattoo lasts 10 years more. Pick your artist wisely," he said. Among other big names that would be part of the event includes Ernesto Kalum from Kuching who is hailed as the first Malaysian who had set up professional tattoo service in the region. Kalum was also chosen as the tattoo and design adviser for The New Line Cinema film production "Sleeping Dictionary", directed by Guy Jenkins and starring Jessica Alba and Hugh Dancy. Source: Daily Express
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