Mentors for the Sabah Film Academy 2016

The KKIFF 2016 is pleased to introduce its two teams of mentors for the Sabah Film Academy.

As there are two streams in the SFA this year: narrative and documentary, so there are two teams of mentors:

Narrative

  • Charlotte Lim, Director
    Charlotte Lim Charlotte began her path in filmmaking in 2002. She made her first film ‘MY DAUGHTER‘ in 2009. The film was world premiered in Rotterdam. It received the Grand Prix for Best Feature Film award in Croatia. Abbas Kiarostami as the head of jury for the Marrakech Film Festival praised it as ‘pure cinema’ and awarded the film Jury Prize. It was screened at the KKIFF 2015.
    Charlotte’s work is known for her meticulously chosen images. This is reflected in films like ‘IM LISA’, ‘HANGER’, and ‘BITE’.
    Charlotte has been Assistant Director for Ang Lee, Tsai Ming Liang, Ho Yuhang, and Anthony Chen in films like ‘LUST. CAUTION’, ‘I DON’T WANT TO SLEEP ALONE’,‘RAIN DOGS’, ‘AT THE END OF DAYBREAK’, and ‘ILO ILO’.
    Apart from making films, Charlotte is a volunteer for NCSM (National Cancer Society Malaysia), a medical base NGO. She pays visits to children undergoing cancer treatment in hospitals.
    ‘Filmmaking deals with fantasy; voluntary works deals with the basic needs of life.’
    Charlotte learns from her life experiences and this is what shapes her angle in filmmaking.
  • Jeffri Yusof, Director of Photography
    Jeffri Yusof Independent Motion Pictures and Film Professional
    Jeff has been in the film industry as a cinematographer for 30 years. He shot his first feature film when he was 32 years old. Since then he has shot tv dramas, documentaries and tv commercials. Jeff has been involved in both foreign and local productions.
  • Yasu Tanaka, Editor
    Yasu Tanaka Director, Scriptwriter, Script Analayst, Instructor
    Born in Japan, lived in Los Angeles. With a degree in Film/TV from California State University and Columbia College.
    His early films such as “EMBOLISM” and “PETRA” won awards such as First Place in 24th CA Media Film Festival and Gold Medal in 20th Japanese Media Film Festival.
    Yasu has been working as a Scriptwriter and Script Analyst in Hollywood and Japan for over 10 years and has taught classes in Scriptwriting in Tokyo, Los Angeles and Malaysia. He is currently working with his wife, Bea Tanaka, on developing TV and feature films for the domestic and international market.
  • Tom Mansur, Production Designer
    Tom Mansur Tunku Taufek Mansur better known as Tommy was born in Kuala Lumpur and has been described as a typical Aquarian Monkey. His creative nature was recognized from when he was very young and when he was sent to the UK at the age of twelve, he had the opportunity to further develop his natural ability, eventually focussing on Art and Design as his major subject. Upon returning to Malaysia in 1993, Tommy initially opened his own Clothing Design company. However, he soon developed a career in the film and advertising industry, after working with clients in this area. Tommy has worked as a renowned Production Designer for the past 20 years and is also recognised as an Artist and Ideas person.
    Tom’s awards include Penataan Seni Terbaik (2015) 27th Festival Filem Malaysia. Among many other experiences, he was also assistant to Oscar-winning Set Dresser, Ian Whittaker, in the making of “ANNA AND THE KING” (1999).

Documentary

  • David Yanez, Director
    David Yanez David Yáñez is a writer, filmmaker and teacher. David obtained a degree in Art and later in Audiovisual Communication from the University of Salamanca, training as producer and scriptwriter. He then started working in television as film editor and director of feature reports and documentaries, later shifting his interest towards advertising. At the same time, he started to work on his own film projects, with a small budget but with a distinctive voice that was soon recognised at film festivals.
    Interested in the poetic features of the image and the technical possibilities of digital work, he has just finished the production of his debut movie, “Many pieces of Something” (premiered in the Málaga Spanish Film Festival) and has thrown himself into what will be his second film, “Side-B”.
  • Rick Minnich, Director of Photography
    Rick Minnich Rick Minnich is an American independent filmmaker based in Berlin, Germany. He has been writing, directing and producing shorts and feature documentaries since 1993, through his company Rickfilms (since 2001) and in association with various German broadcasters, film funds, and production companies. His award-winning films include: “HEAVEN ON EARTH” (2001, IDFA, Fipa d’Or Biarritz), “HOMEMADE HILLBILLY JAM” (2005, Premiere at HotDocs, opening night film Hot Springs 2005), “FORGETTING DAD” (2008, Premiere: IDFA – Special Jury Award, Grand Jury Prize at GZ DOC in Guangzhou, China, screened at the KKIFF 2015), THE BOMB HUNTERS ( 2015). Minnich happily passes on his more than twenty years of filmmaking experience to emerging filmmakers through his part-time job at MET Film School Berlin and at film workshops worldwide.
  • Larry Johnson, Editor
    larry-johnson Lawrence Johnson has been making films and videos professionally since 1983. His work in history and culture has been distinguished through many awards and his films have been screened at festivals throughout the United States and Canada. Larry has also worked on video installations, as well as being story editor for a radio series. In 2012, Johnson received the prestigious Fellowship Award in Media Arts from the Regional Arts and Culture Council, honouring artists in the Portland metropolitan area who are the strongest representatives of the range and diversity of art in the Northwest.
  • Tom Mansur, Production Designer (as needed)
Trainer for the Sabah Pitching Training & Awards

The KKIFF is delighted to welcome back Nick Deocampo as trainer for the Sabah Pitching Training & Awards at the KKIFF 2016. We are fortunate to have such a passionate and gifted teacher working with our participants.

  • Nick Deocampo
    Nick Deocampo Nick Deocampo is a prizewinning documentary filmmaker, film historian, and an Associate Professor at the College of Mass Communication at the University of the Philippines. He received his Master of Arts degree in Cinema Studies at the New York University through a Fulbright Scholarship grant. He also received his Film Certificate in Paris, France through a French Government scholarship. He has won numerous awards for his gritty documentaries and personal films and likewise received academic honours as Scholar-in-Residence in New York University and fellowships from prestigious academic institutions. He was among the pioneer recipients of the Asian Public Intellectuals fellowship grant. Nick has written books on cinema including an on-going work on a five-volume history of cinema in the Philippines. He has served as a film jury member in various international and Philippine film festivals.

Panelist for the Sabah Pitching Training & Award

  • Park Hemi
    Park Hemi Hemi received her Masters degree in Cinema Studies from the Korea National University of Arts. Since 2011, she has been working as an associate programmer for DMZ Korean International Documentary Film Festival (DMZ Docs). From 2015, she is in charge of programming Korean & Asian documentaries. In addition, she has also been managing DMZ Docs Production Funds to offer production support to Korean as well as pan-Asian projects. Hemi was on the SPTA Panel at the KKIFF 2015 and we welcome her back in 2016.
    DMZ Docs is offering the following award at the Sabah Pitching Training & Awards:

    • 1 award of 1,000,000 Won (about RM3500)
    • Opportunity to attend and pitch at DMZ Docs (22-29 Sept 2016) – accommodation provided
    • Winning project is shortlisted for the DMZ Docs Fund
ACTION10 Filmmakers’ Competition – Jury

It is with great pleasure that the KKIFF continues to have the invaluable services of Hassan Muthalib as a judge for our Filmmakers’ Competition. Working with him this year is Shanhjey Kumar, the director of the exciting new movie “JAGAT”, which will be screened at the KKIFF 2016.

  • Hassan Abd. Muthalib
    Hassan Muthalib Hassan Abd. Muthalib is a self-taught artist, designer & filmmaker who has been involved in the film scene for 50 years. He directed the popular, animated Sang Kancil series & Silat Legenda, Malaysia’s first animated feature film. He is officially recognized as the Father of Malaysian Animation & as an Animation Pioneer by Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.
    Hassan is a film historian & a film critic. His writings appear in many books & academic journals overseas. His book, Malaysian Cinema in a Bottle published in 2013, is a history & analysis of Malaysian cinema from the first film screening in 1897 right up to 2013.
    He conducts film & animation workshops in many countries on story development & visual storytelling & is also a jury member for numerous local & international film festivals. For his achievements, he was awarded an Honorary Masters in Creative Technology by UiTM where he was an Artist-in-Residence.
  • Shanjhey Kumar Perumal
    Shanjhey Kumar Shanjhey Kumar Perumal is a Malaysian director and writer with over 10 years of experience in the creative media industry. After earning a Communication degree in Film and Broadcasting from Universiti Sains Malaysia, he went on to write and direct more than 300 projects that featured on Malaysian television. Over the years, he has been involved in a diverse array of media ranging from documentaries and short films to musicals and children’s programmes.
    His short documentary, ‘Thaipoosam’, was screened at the 36th International Film Festival Rotterdam in the Netherlands. In 2009, his short film ‘Machai’ was awarded the Grand Prize at the BMW Shorties Malaysia. In 2013, his documentary, ‘The Day That River Ran Red’, won the Jury Award at The KOMAS Freedom Film Festival.