Industry bursts into support for FINAS and Kamil Othman after GAFIM’s major gaffe
LAST Friday at TanyaFINAS 2.0, many waited with baited breath to hear Dato Kamil Othman‘s response to Gabungan Persatuan Karyawan Filem Malaysia (GAFIM)‘s allegations. Arriving at the Content Malaysia Pitching Centre hours after touching down from Los Angeles, the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (FINAS) director-general began the session by addressing audiences with an honest, candid speech.
Following his keynote in which he addressed GAFIM’s complaints, members of the film industry who were present erupted into strong support for Kamil.
Industry veteran Dean Lau for instance took to the mic to call on attendees to sign a petition expressing their solidarity with Kamil, while Sabahan filmmaker Nadira Ilana recalled how Kamil and FINAS jumped to the rescue when she was in dire need for help working on the first Malaysian installment of Big Stories Small Towns.
But dissenters were present too, as in the case of Persatuan Penerbit Televisyen Malaysia (PTVM) Vice President, Richard Ang.
Sitting beside the microphone stand, Richard at one point nonchalantly grabbed the mic to speak out of turn and voice his support for GAFIM President Dato Jurey Latiff. Despite observing the protocol at TanyaFINAS sessions, Richard cut queue twice to air his negative opinions, upsetting other attendees present.
Here’s a collection of quotes from the most memorable TanyaFINAS to date.
On GAFIM’s letter to the Communications and Multimedia Ministry…
On GAFIM’s state following reveal of the letter…
On FINAS’s stance towards detractors and critics…
On FINAS’s response towards GAFIM’s surprise move…
On the abuse of skim wajib tayang…
On criticism that Kamil is running FINAS like a business…
On FINAS when Kamil first got into office…
On potential opposition from within FINAS…
On the film industry over the past 18 months…
On Kamil’s soon-to-end term at FINAS…
On the Filming In Malaysia Incentive (FIMI)…
On creating new avenues for investment in film…
On getting the local film industry noticed…
Following TanyaFINAS 2.0, industry practitioners took to social media to express their approval of Kamil.
On Sunday afternoon, actors, directors and writers used the hashtag #KamiSokongKamil to plead for an extension for Kamil’s term in FINAS. Coupled with the hashtag #TakdoJureyAntaroKito, the campaign, which began at 4:00pm, trended within an hour.
Aside from significant contributors to the film industry such as Nam Ron, Susan Lankester, Beto Kusyairi, Sharifah Amani and Sofia Jane, actor Afdlin Shauki posted a particularly heartfelt tribute on Instagram detailing Kamil’s .
Due to the intensified industry attention on the issue, major media portals are finally picking up the news, including Astro Awani, Malaysiakini and the Malaysian Digest.
As of Monday, a picture of Kamil and Jurey shaking hands were circulating on social media, suggesting that the latter has decided to bury the hatchet. Both will address the press tomorrow at the Content Malaysia Pitching Centre in a conference featuring both FINAS and GAFIM.
For more updates on this topic, make sure to check out the hashtags , and . Featured image via FINAS.
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