After audio post-production, we took the final sound mix to the Timecode film editor Joe, to lay the sound over the visual. When he was done, he played the cut for us. All of us were lost for words.
It was awful.
It was awful.
It was awful.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Wahab fulfills his spiritual quest in 113 days
By Johan Jaafar, NST Aug 21, 2010
A. WAHAB Hamzah is a dramatist and an award-winning film critic. He is better known as the man behind Stor Teater (literally Theatre at the Store), an initiative taken by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka to encourage young and budding theatre enthusiasts to "test" their works.
He was a stagehand who helped me light my productions back in the 1980s beginning with Salina (1986) and Rumah Kedai Di Jalan Seladang (1989). He first partnered Zakaria Arifin to direct Teman, an adaptation of Kobo Abe's play. He took a big challenge directing Sungai Mengalir Lesu, a play adapted by Zakaria from Tan Sri A. Samad Said's novel of the same name.
In 2000, he directed the stage adaptation of another Samad work, this time a long poem on Prophet Muhammad entitled Pesona Al Amin. He directed Amiruddin Ali's Telegram in 2001, Siti Jasmina's Hikayat Qasiq (2007) and last year, he directed Nordin Hassan's Intan Yang Tercanai.
This year, he decided to do something different -- go on leave and travel. That has been his plan since 1999. He started his journey on April 3 and ended it 113 days later in Cabo del Roca, Portugal, the western-most point of the European land mass.
He went through 21 countries from Thailand to Portugal. He spent all his savings (RM30,000) to fulfil his ambition. He had to be thrifty, staying in cheap hotels, motels, railway stations or bus depots, or just shacks, by the roadside and in the fields.
He wanted to trace cities and towns where great Muslim scholars, thinkers, writers, scientists, mathematicians, statesmen and warriors were born, lived, worked or died. It was a quest unlike any other -- for no Malaysian has done that.
He was harassed, picked by the police, almost jailed, mugged, you name it. But he saw a different world -- one beyond the headlines. He met people with hearts of gold. He met strangers, who helped him when he was in dire need. Others welcomed him to their homes. He was feted, guarded and given five-star treatment in the homes of those who survived on meagre incomes.
He started his journey in Kuala Lumpur, taking a train to Haadyai and later to Bangkok. He was caught in the Red Shirt demonstrations. He took a train to Vientiane and later Luang Prabang in Laos.
From there, he took a 24-hour bus ride to Kunming, China. The border city is where Shuncheng Jie, the last remaining Muslim enclave, is found. Kunming's development is at breakneck speed, as a result of which large parts of the historic quarters were demolished. About an hour from the city is the birth place of Zheng He, the famed Muslim-Chinese traveller who started his journey 87 years earlier than Christopher Columbus.
His next destination was Xian, the gateway to the famous Silk Route. Two of the mosques were built in the 6th century and still in use today. A Chinese imam, who spoke Arabic, and was a notable cartographer and assisted in Zheng He's travels made his mark here. Xian is also home to two famous Sufi and Chinese intellectuals, Wang Tai-yu and Liu Chih. His next destination was Lanzhou, now an industrial city and Lixia, where he visited the tomb of Ma Laichi (1671-1766) another famous Sufi sage.
From there, he proceeded to Dunhuang and later to Turpan, an oasis amid a desert. It was another must-stop for the Silk Route travellers of the old days. An important Muslim legacy here is the karez, a complex underground water system that extends hundreds of kilometres that is still functioning.
Urumqi recently saw various skirmishes between ethnic Uighurs and Han Chinese. He then went to Kashgar and Yarkant. While Kashgar is known as the place where scholars like Muhammad al-Kashgari and Abakh Hoja worked, Yarkant is proud to have Amani Shahan, the consort of King Abdul Rashititan. She was a famous poet and composer.
He moved on to Almaty, capital of Kazakhstan, and later to Turkistan. This is the birthplace of al-Farabi, the Muslim thinker and scholar who had a big influence in the West. In Uzbekistan, he visited places where Alisher Novoiy, Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Ismail (better known as Iman al-Bukhari, one of the compilers of the Prophet's sayings), Ibn Sina (another hugely influential Muslim scholar), al-Khorezmi (originator of algebra) and al-Biruni worked and lived.
It was in Afghanistan that Wahab encountered the effects of the war on terror at first hand. He was at Mazar-e-Sharif and later Balkhi, where the famous thinker and Sufi sage Jalaluddin Rumi was born. Balkhi was home to intellectuals Sanih Balkhi, Nasir Khurraw, Rashidin Watmat and the most famous woman poet of the 10th century, Rabia Balkhi.
The journey to Kabul was a nerve-racking eight hours. He visited Herat before he crossed over to Mashhad in Iran. It was near Masshad that Abu Hami al-Ghazali or al-Ghazali, author of the world famous Ilya Ulumuddin was born. Nishapur, his next stop is the birthplace of Ummar Khayyam (who wrote the Rubaiyat) and Farid al-din Attar, a poet. Imam Muslim died there.
From Iran he went to Damascus, believed to be the oldest structured city in the world, then to Beirut, home of Khalil Gibran before moving on to Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The country is still edgy, where an air of distrust among the ethnic groups is still palpable. One of the greatest tragedies of the civil wars of the early 1990s was the destruction of the major library in Sarajevo, which housed rare and priceless Muslim manuscripts. From there, he went to Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Monaco, France and Spain. Spain is home to the grandeur that was Islamic civilisation. Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Ronda and Tariffa are the legacy of the greatest days of European Islamic empires.
He ended his journey on July 24. According to Wahab, the pain was worthwhile. He met many fellow travellers along the way, some in their 60s and many were women travelling alone.
But he noticed something significant: he did not meet a single Muslim traveller along the way.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Taking the last shots
Whatever we need, we have to get it today because today is our last day of filming.
Our second attempt to film schoolchildren returning from school failed. They went home early and when we arrived at the school, the compound was as silent as a graveyard. Pakcik guard tu macam meluat je tengok kita orang.
Bost of us were fasting, and the sun was scorching.
3.30pm, the main entrance of Shah Alam court: This is where the cow's head protesters were charged and recently sentenced. Four of them walked free, discharged but not acquitted. A slap in the wrist, as described by many.
4pm, SACC Mall: Taking a general shot of shoppers, crowd entering and leaving the shopping complex. This is another pickup shots used during interviews to describe the people of Shah Alam.
4.30pm, Bazaar Ramadan Kompleks PKNS: This photo is out of focus but it is the only photo of me shooting without a tripod. By now I have gotten the hang of holding my breath and keeping my hands steady to film.
6.30pm, Masjid Ubudiah Section 19 Shah Alam: After getting the permission from the committee members to shoot during the Maghrib, Isyak and Tarawih prayers, we sat talking to one of the committee members at the zakat counter. Sheridan is listening to his advice on 'mendirikan masjid'.
10pm, wrap: We went home, hoping we had all that we needed.
Our second attempt to film schoolchildren returning from school failed. They went home early and when we arrived at the school, the compound was as silent as a graveyard. Pakcik guard tu macam meluat je tengok kita orang.
Bost of us were fasting, and the sun was scorching.
3.30pm, the main entrance of Shah Alam court: This is where the cow's head protesters were charged and recently sentenced. Four of them walked free, discharged but not acquitted. A slap in the wrist, as described by many.
4pm, SACC Mall: Taking a general shot of shoppers, crowd entering and leaving the shopping complex. This is another pickup shots used during interviews to describe the people of Shah Alam.
4.30pm, Bazaar Ramadan Kompleks PKNS: This photo is out of focus but it is the only photo of me shooting without a tripod. By now I have gotten the hang of holding my breath and keeping my hands steady to film.
6.30pm, Masjid Ubudiah Section 19 Shah Alam: After getting the permission from the committee members to shoot during the Maghrib, Isyak and Tarawih prayers, we sat talking to one of the committee members at the zakat counter. Sheridan is listening to his advice on 'mendirikan masjid'.
10pm, wrap: We went home, hoping we had all that we needed.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Dare to document
Life and Times, NST, July 17, 2010
A film proposal to unearth the real story behind last year’s protests over a temple’s relocation in Shah Alam has won two journalists top honours, writes DENNIS CHUA
JOURNALISTS Sheridan Mahavera Shakir and Siti Nurbaiyah Nadzmi have come out tops in the Freedom Film Festival 2010 for Kuil, their proposal to unearth the real story behind the protests over a temple’s relocation in Shah Alam last year.
The annual film-making competition, themed Dare To Document, is organised by Komas (Pusat Komunikasi Masyarakat), a human rights and media organisation.
It’s now in its seventh year.
Former student activist Loo Que Lin and Semai Orang Asli activist Abri Chupil are also winners.
Loo’s Campus Elections takes a closer look at student council elections in universities while Abri’s Hak Dinafikan documents the Semai battle to preserve customary land rights in Bidor, Perak.
The winners were selected from more than 30 entries by a panel of four judges, including Universiti Sains Malaysia Department of Communication Associate Professor Dr Mustafa Anuar, Sunway University College Department of Performance and Media head Leow Puay Tin and Komas board member Anna Har.
The winners get a grant of RM6,000 each to turn their proposals into film. Komas will assist in the production. The film screenings will be held in the Klang Valley, Penang, Johor and Sarawak throughout October.
For details, visit freedomfilmfest.komas.org.
A film proposal to unearth the real story behind last year’s protests over a temple’s relocation in Shah Alam has won two journalists top honours, writes DENNIS CHUA
JOURNALISTS Sheridan Mahavera Shakir and Siti Nurbaiyah Nadzmi have come out tops in the Freedom Film Festival 2010 for Kuil, their proposal to unearth the real story behind the protests over a temple’s relocation in Shah Alam last year.
The annual film-making competition, themed Dare To Document, is organised by Komas (Pusat Komunikasi Masyarakat), a human rights and media organisation.
It’s now in its seventh year.
Former student activist Loo Que Lin and Semai Orang Asli activist Abri Chupil are also winners.
Loo’s Campus Elections takes a closer look at student council elections in universities while Abri’s Hak Dinafikan documents the Semai battle to preserve customary land rights in Bidor, Perak.
The winners were selected from more than 30 entries by a panel of four judges, including Universiti Sains Malaysia Department of Communication Associate Professor Dr Mustafa Anuar, Sunway University College Department of Performance and Media head Leow Puay Tin and Komas board member Anna Har.
The winners get a grant of RM6,000 each to turn their proposals into film. Komas will assist in the production. The film screenings will be held in the Klang Valley, Penang, Johor and Sarawak throughout October.
For details, visit freedomfilmfest.komas.org.
Friday, July 9, 2010
A day out with Malek Abdullah
Today is our third day of filming. Malek Abdullah, an award winning cameraman, helps us film under more challenging conditions including night shots of the temple, Friday prayers and the general shot of Shah Alam. As I do not have to do filming I took this 'break' to take a series of stills on the making of our documentary.
9am Call time: Malek arrives in a pair of shorts, which he termed as 'seluar pendek tapi menutup aurat'. Yeah, but since we will be filming mosques and temples and religious rituals, he has to be 'properly' attired. Here is the briefing session after Malek got himself a pair of long pants...
10am Shah Alam MP office: Malek expertly sets up the tripod, slid the foot and lock the camera in position. Push some buttons, adjust dials, switch this and that, clips and attaches cables and finally puts on the headphones. Like clockwork, his action is mechanical and precise. Malek waits for directions from two first-time directors. I was in awe.
10am Shah Alam MP office: While Malek sets up the camera, Director One briefs MP Khalid Samad on the questions that we are going to ask, and how he should pause between answers and what the director will do to him next...
10am Shah Alam MP office: .... Director One gracefulling swirling and dusting beige compact on Khalid Samad. An essential filming process.
1.30pm State Mosque: After filming Khalid we followed him to a mosque at Section 17, before rushing to set up the camera at Masjid Negeri Shah Alam, the iconic mosque of the city. It is here that the cow's head protesters started their demonstration before marching to the State government building toting the severed cow head.
4pm MBSA: Filming aerial shot of Shah Alam from the tallest building in the city. Malek in action.
4pm MBSA: Director One holding the window for Malek, at the same time peering at what Malek is picking up.
4pm MBSA: And this is what Malek took.
5pm from inside a moving car: We are taking pick-up shots for the film and here we are re-tracing the route taken by the cow's head protesters from the State Mosque to the State Government Building. Of course Malek continues to amaze us with his steady hold of the camera.
6pm outdoor: At the public area between the MBSA building and State Museum. Malek is getting the best shot of MBSA building while Director One strikes a pose.
At 9.30pm: Before calling it a day, it is terribly important to keep tabs of the days' filming. I will log and mark the footage, remarking on what we have or missed. While waiting for dinner, Malek takes this picture of me labelling the tapes. Shortly after dinner, Sheridan and I sit to prepared the following day's schedule.
9am Call time: Malek arrives in a pair of shorts, which he termed as 'seluar pendek tapi menutup aurat'. Yeah, but since we will be filming mosques and temples and religious rituals, he has to be 'properly' attired. Here is the briefing session after Malek got himself a pair of long pants...
10am Shah Alam MP office: Malek expertly sets up the tripod, slid the foot and lock the camera in position. Push some buttons, adjust dials, switch this and that, clips and attaches cables and finally puts on the headphones. Like clockwork, his action is mechanical and precise. Malek waits for directions from two first-time directors. I was in awe.
10am Shah Alam MP office: While Malek sets up the camera, Director One briefs MP Khalid Samad on the questions that we are going to ask, and how he should pause between answers and what the director will do to him next...
10am Shah Alam MP office: .... Director One gracefulling swirling and dusting beige compact on Khalid Samad. An essential filming process.
1.30pm State Mosque: After filming Khalid we followed him to a mosque at Section 17, before rushing to set up the camera at Masjid Negeri Shah Alam, the iconic mosque of the city. It is here that the cow's head protesters started their demonstration before marching to the State government building toting the severed cow head.
4pm MBSA: Filming aerial shot of Shah Alam from the tallest building in the city. Malek in action.
4pm MBSA: Director One holding the window for Malek, at the same time peering at what Malek is picking up.
4pm MBSA: And this is what Malek took.
5pm from inside a moving car: We are taking pick-up shots for the film and here we are re-tracing the route taken by the cow's head protesters from the State Mosque to the State Government Building. Of course Malek continues to amaze us with his steady hold of the camera.
6pm outdoor: At the public area between the MBSA building and State Museum. Malek is getting the best shot of MBSA building while Director One strikes a pose.
About 6.30pm: We are already losing light. Moving on to the next location, Kuil Sri Maha Mariamman Section 19. At the next location we manage to film devotees praying at the temple and interview them. Malek again takes some really beautiful shots of the religious rituals, the mingling of the bells and the azan from a nearby mosque, and makes excellent pick-up shots for the film, even under low light. I didn't take any pictures at the temple.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Getting the opening scene
Second day of filming and just before we started, one of our contacts pulled out from the interview. He had asked for payment to appear on the film.
"You do not have budget? Impossible," he said, after I explained that our were independent filmmakers and we were on a shoe string budget.
I felt cheated. Wasn't it two days ago we sat on his posh and lush sofa listening to him bragging about the family trip to South Africa catching the momentous Germany vs England match? He had agreed to do this interview then, but changed his mind just hours before the shoot.
We dropped him like a rock. Biar terbenam.
"You do not have budget? Impossible," he said, after I explained that our were independent filmmakers and we were on a shoe string budget.
I felt cheated. Wasn't it two days ago we sat on his posh and lush sofa listening to him bragging about the family trip to South Africa catching the momentous Germany vs England match? He had agreed to do this interview then, but changed his mind just hours before the shoot.
We dropped him like a rock. Biar terbenam.
 |
| Near Masjid Ubudiah Section 19, while waiting for Maghrib. We recorded the muezzin call for the opening scene of the film. |
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