6 Dec – The upcoming 2013 Luang Prabang Film Festival will be a historic occasion indeed, as it was revealed that films from all 10 ASEAN countries will be represented at the event, including Brunei's first ever feature film since 1968, called "Ada Apa Dengan Rina?". The film, co-directed by Harlif Haji Mohamad and Farid Azlan Ghani and featuring an all-Brunei cast, had recently won the special Jury Prize at this year's ASEAN International Film Festival and Awards held in Kuching, Malaysia. It is set to screen again among other entries at the Luang Prabang Festival, which will be held at an indoor day-venue, the five-star Amantaka.
In addition to Brunei's first entry, the festival have also invited quite a number of filmmakers and celebrities, including Cambodian producer Fatily Sa and Thailand's Nontawat Numbenchapol, who will be participating in one of the panel talks. Malaysia's "Sembunyi: Amukan Azazil" ("The Hidden: Wrath of Azazil"), directed by Khabir Bhatia and stars Remy Ishak and Diana Danielle will be one of the festival's opening movies, while Jack Neo's highest grossing Singaporean movie of all time, "Ah Boys to Men" will be shown on the second day together with the Cambodia's international award-winning documentary film "A River Changes Course", directed by Kalyanee Mam.
The Luang Prabang Film Festival is a charitable cultural organisation committed to the celebration and growth of Southeast Asian films which is held annually in the World Heritage Site of Laos' Luang Prabang. A total of 28 films will be featured at the festival, which will be held from 7 to 11 December 2013.