Freedom Film Festival at Selangor, Malaysia

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"Would you buy candy floss from this boy?" - Ms Ng Sian Pei, 22 going on 23.

I burst out laughing when she asked me that HAHAHA I didn't quite expect that from her but still.. omg every time I look at their programme booklet I just wanna laugh my head off.

But anyway, (the answer is yes if you are wondering) Yes!!! Freedom Film Festival. - I've 30 minutes to write this post before it's 5pm and I gotta scoot out of this office.

This picture is kinda apt coz this festival represented largely the human rights issues of Malaysia.

And one of the films, "Viral Sial" talked about muslim issues and in particular the Hudud law in the state of Kelantan.

We were seated here together and watched films from SEA and Malaysia.

It's always a strange feeling to be watching your own film and cringing a little.

The Q&A sessions are always so scary but exciting. All of us had a chance to speak during the session and there was so much discussion about issues brought up in the films. I just wish SG has something similar!

The day session was quite empty, but the evening session was PACKED to the brim and the awards ceremony was also held.

We didn't win anything but it was a great experience~~

Check out our director, Amelia, on stage preparing for a photo hahaha. The rest of us didn't wanna go up, myself included.

It was one of the better film festivals I've attended so far. It's the best lah actually, considering it's an NGO.

And I really really enjoyed the political discourse during the festival. For example, in "Viral Sial", apparently a radio station produced a video criticising the party ruling Kelantan for enacting the Muslim Law and the lady who fronted the video received heavy backlash for it - with death and rape threats. And in this documentary, the radio station's staff themselves produced this documentary to shed more light on what happened and fight for what they felt right. They weren't condemning Islam, the main point was how officials forgot about the economic issues that were more important in Kelantan and instead, used religion as a distraction from these issues.

What was interesting was how the lady involved in the film and her father were present in the audience and they provided accounts of their harrowing experience receiving all these threats. It was emotional and everyone in the audience spoke up on their thoughts about what happened and showed their support for her. It was pretty damn amazing for me.

So all throughout the festival during Q&A sessions, people were bouncing off ideas and opinions amongst each other and I was engaged almost throughout the entire day with these documentaries. I say 'Almost' because after watching 5 documentaries, wahlau my brain started fizzing out. Info overload leh really.

I say it was a really great experience at the festival coz it has inspired me and made me wish that something like this in Singapore would be held. Omg we even watched a film that's probably never gonna be seen in the daylights of Singapore coz it was about the personal accounts of victims of the Internal Security Act (ISA). According to the film, subjected to physical abuse. Interesting eh? Something you'd definitely not read about in textbooks.

But I must say, one of the best parts was also... meeting my FYP girls~

I LOVE YALLL!!!!

We got ourselves acquainted with a filipino filmmaker as well. Her name is Wenna, she produced a film about a couple who lost all 4 of their children during Typhoon Haiyan. Heart wrenching just reading the synopsis. Didn't manage to catch it though!!!

What's exciting was I got to meet a Burmese playwright and film maker (holy cow) and I have to admit I only found out about what an important person he is when I told my Burmese colleagues that I met him and yadadyada and one of them told me he's well known here and was part of the 1988 political uprisings. Holy cow, what an honour.

Of course we had to celebrate too with food haha.

The next day, we binged with Thai food and market food and dessert as well before we flew. Insane leh, such gluttons.

What happiness.

What joy.

So of course I was sad when I had to leave for Yangon in separate directions hahaha I even looked at "Singapore" as the destination when searching for my flight on the airplane schedule board thingy. Yikes, is that an inner desire of my brain!??!

The picture of us that I posted on Instagram. Hehe.

As you can see we're not a very touchy kinda people, so I feel like our picture looks kinda awkward actually.

So happy we got to do this though!

Many friends fall out after FYP (and even during) so doing this together makes me grateful of how we have stuck it out through all the rough times. And this is one of the happy times we've got to enjoy after that.

My flight was at 5:50pm to Yangon and on my way....