31 Mar – The Malaysia International Film Festival (MIFFest) and Golden Global Awards (MGGA) have recently announced a series of events for the upcoming 5th edition of MIFFest. In a press conference held recently, the organisers revealed that these include a collaboration with the Udine Far East Film Festival (FEFF) in Italy, a Short Film Competition co-organised by Samsung Malaysia Electronics, and MIFFest Project Market (MPM). "MIFFest Project Market is held so that Malaysia's best works can be discovered by the world and they should not be forced to stop making great films because of financial constraints," said MIFFest Chairperson, Joanne Goh. "Discovering great works and filmmakers is what we aim to do at the Malaysia International Film Festival, and this time, in addition to MIFFest Project Market, we will also be partnering with Samsung Malaysia Electronics to hold a short film competition," she added.
MIFFest actively seeks to discover the best local films in Malaysia, in addition to proactively recruiting talented filmmakers and productions from around the world. The MIFFest Project Market (MPM) 2022 will be held on 12th - 13th July 2022, with Wu Ke-Xi (actress), Keoh Chee Ang (Producer) and Vijay Munisamy (Executive Producer) in the jury panel. The Top 5 projects will be selected by the jury panel to attend the pitching session which will be held on the above-mentioned date. One successful project may be produced by the Production Partners: Sunstrong Entertainment, Jazzy Pictures and Lomo Pictures. Furthermore, the best script among the five projects will be selected and receive a RM10,000 cash prize as the Best Script Award, to be presented by Sunstrong Entertainment.
The theme of the short film competition is "Borderless with Nightography" and entrants must provide an outline of their story content that fits the theme and elements. MIFFest and Samsung Malaysia Electronics will work together to select the top 22 stories, and a Galaxy S22 Ultra will be provided to these teams for short film production. The first three best short films will be screened in selected cinemas during the 5th MIFFest. According to reports, MIFFEst and MGGA have received more than 100 film submissions from France, China, Italy, Iran, Korea, the United States, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, and other countries. The organisers have also confirmed that the Festival will run from 10-15 July 2022, while the MGGA ceremony will take place on July 16.