Tag - Culture

PENAMPANG: ‘Huminodun’ – the movie will be released in May, the month when the KadazanDusun Murut communities celebrate the Harvest Festival. It is also a time for the communities to reflect on Huminodun and her parents’ Kinoingan and Suminundu’s ultimate sacrifice for the people. Kinoingan sacrificed his only daughter so that the people could have food. Her body parts were planted as seeds and became the food resource of the world, rice. Huminodun will be in Kadazan language with English subtitles and is produced by Siung Film Productions. According to the movie’s producer, Jo Luping, the one-hour movie was filmed entirely in the Kadazan language and the cast are all locals. “This movie is 99 per cent Sabah ‘made’. The actors are all local talent. People were sceptical about us getting the talent in Sabah but we did it. Shooting took about a week and pre-production took about two years. “Because it is a historical drama we need to be accurate in terms of our research. It took a long time to research the costumes, the story, to talk to the different elders in the Kadazan community,” she said. Jo, who was met after the screening of the Huminodun trailer on Tuesday night, said that as part of their research, they consulted Auntie Rosnani who was trained as a ‘bobohizan’. “We just wanted to make sure that we had our facts right. We tried our best to be as accurate historically as possible,” she said. When asked about the message she hopes to get across to the community, especially the younger generation, Jo who is of Kadazan descent, said it was to remind them the importance of learning their mother tongue. “We want them to learn their mother tongue because through your mother tongue you can really identify with your culture and who you are and that gives you your point of difference in a world where things are similar. “It brings something that is close to your heart and that is how you differentiate yourself in the world,” she said. She disclosed that ‘Huminodun’ which casts Alexandra Alexander, Boni Mosios, Jenifer Lasimbang, Marc Abas ad Hazli Bojili in the lead roles, is slated to be released in May. They want it to be a cinematic release so the plan is to premier it in Sabah first and then distribute into international film festivals. It will come back to Sabah into a film format, she said adding, “that is the usual circuit and we want to sell it into the Hong Kong film mart. “The goal is to distribute it through Sabah and have a local film market but also definitely we also want to take Sabah culture and tradition and sell it to the world because I think everybody is interested in Borneo. In terms of a brand Borneo and Sabah are equally great,” she said. They are undecided as to where the movie will be premiered and are currently looking at different venues. On the Siung Film Production’s future plans, Jo said that they were planning to shoot ‘Pangazou’ – another Kadazan language movie. “We have other plans to do Dusun, Murut and Runggus movies. The reason is because we are from Penampang, we have access to Rita Lasimbang and then it is a natural progression to do it in Kadazan. “But we would love to ultimately do all Sabah legends because we are a hotbed and treasure trove of fantastic stories and the world is interested in legends. They want to know about these legends, they want something different and we got it all here,” she stressed. Jo’s husband Aaron Cowan directed Huminodun. Cowan, an experienced filmmaker, has been involved in many movies such as The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Chronicles of Narnia, Avatar, The Adventures of Tin Tin, Man of Steel and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Jo is also best known for her documentary Reframe about the Palestinian Israeli conflict. Meanwhile,  Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan, who launched the screening of the Huminodun trailer said: “I think tonight is the beginning of something serious done through the film industry. Asked how the movie could help in promoting the culture, language and history of the Kadazan community, he said: “I think it will serve the purpose because any pictorial or any movie that is created based on legends, culture, tradition language and all that will indeed promote the community itself.” Pairin, who is also KadazanDusun Cultural Association president and Huguan Siou, said producing a movie needed a lot of skills and participation and he would like to see the continuation of such commitment, such positive attitude towards the creation and production of what is valuable in the life of the community. The commitment will serve as a reference for the community itself and the future generations, he stressed. “Evidently, any movie based on historical background is something which will serve as a reminder, as a reference of what happened in the past. I hope it will encourage the younger generation to adapt themselves towards what is good, what is valuable towards the culture, the language so that all this will help to maintain and sustain what is the best in the life of the community itself,” he said. At the event, Kinsabina Group chief executive officer Datuk Francis Goh, who is an executive producer and financier of the film, presented RM50,000 to Siung Film Production on behalf of the Kinsabina Group. Source: Borneo Post

Kota Kinabalu: Everyone appears to be a photographer these days, especially with the availability of affordable digital cameras and the advancement of camera phones. A recent analysis validated the fact that cyberspace is filled with a huge number of 'photographers' as we now upload and share nearly two billion images on the social media each day. But only some are able to stand out from the rest and perceived as good photographers. Internationally-acclaimed Sabah-born photographer Amri Ginang said their level of seriousness and skills will set these good photographers apart from the rest of the pack. "Get serious (on photography) as I think most young photographers want to be photographers just for the sake of being one without knowing the actual process. "And this trend has been developing for the last ten years, especially when DSLRs are easier to be owned. "Photography is not just about the glamorous side of it… and I noticed that it seemed that everyone wants to shoot pretty women – that is basically what photography is for most new photographers," he said after the launching of Visual Journey, his solo exhibition, at the Sabah Art Gallery, here, on Thursday. The exhibition was launched by Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun. Amri also reminded aspiring photographers to grasp a sense of direction in their involvement in the field – to make a living by doing photography or only as a hobby. "If you want to make it a career, then you have to be very skilful and this requires you to polish your basics as well as understand the market around you. "There is a market within and around Asia. If you are based in Sabah, then you have to study the market in the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore and Hong Kong. "And with today's ICT (information and communication technology) advancement, it was possible for me to land a job in Chengdu, China as my client saw my website and contacted me." According to the 61-year-old photographer, getting the first job is not easy and getting the second and the subsequent jobs would be "almost impossible if you do not have the consistency." "Most people obtained their first jobs because they know somebody who knows somebody… after the first job, and that's the end of it," he said. Amri is widely regarded as one of the most influential commercial and portrait photographers in Malaysia and his photographs have been published internationally during his 35-year practice as a photographer. Born in Semporna, Amri moved to London in 1976. It was during his A-level studies in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire that he made his first attempt as a photographer, inspired by how photography masters documented the society of their times. He is now based in Kuala Lumpur, shooting commercials and fine arts. Visual Journey has also been an emotional effort from him as it is his first solo exhibition in the State. "Whenever I do exhibitions, I will specify a theme for them and for my first solo exhibition in Sabah, Datuk Seri Masidi had asked me to showcase something educational and at the same time represent me. "That is how I came up with Visual Journey. It is a journey with my camera because I used my camera to document all of my journeys. "And what I have showcased here is a simplified journey of around five to ten years back through about 100 meaningful shots." To make it more interactive and interesting, visitors are also allowed to feel and touch the photos. "You can touch the prints as one of the mission of the exhibition is to encourage people, especially photographers to print more as most of them do not print their photos anymore. They take photos and store them in their computers or mobile phones," he said. The exhibition opens on Thursday and will run for the next two months. During the exhibition period, Amri will also conduct weekly workshops and talks at the venue. "I hope more young people will come and visit this exhibition. The first thing that I want people to understand is not the art of taking photos but instead, the art of seeing. "I would also like to share about the reality of photography with others as some people do photography but they do not understand the art." Meanwhile, Masidi said the public, especially photography enthusiasts should take advantage of the opportunities offered by Amri through his exhibition. "I am pleased as we are able to gain more knowledge from the experiences shared by Amri and I am thankful as he is willing to spare some time to conduct workshops. "As such, I hope everyone will visit this exhibition," he said. Sabah Art Gallery is open from Monday until Sunday, from 9am-5pm. - Ricardo Unto Source: Daily Express