Introducing Dali Abdul Azis, Taufiq Kamal’s Leading Man In ‘Terbit23’!

After taking BMW Shorties by storm last year with his ode to young, urban love in Rozita Binti Roslan, Taufiq Kamal received a production grant of RM75,000. He then made a short film called Terbit23, which will have its first public screening tomorrow at the BMW Shorties Festival.

Terbit23 tells the tale of a struggling writer who finds himself in a strange state after meeting a mysterious woman. Directed by Taufiq and written by Firdaus Karim (known to most as Pidosan), the film was shot earlier this year in an abandoned house in Damansara Heights, Kepong Metropolitan Lake Garden, and Seni Lab over the span of one week.

Playing Terbit23‘s protagonist, Aditya, is Dali Abdul Azis. He shares the screen with Bianca Li Wei Brand, who plays Airis, and both make their screen debut with Taufiq’s short film project.

Born in 1981, Dali is an artist as well as the co-founder of Minut Init in Damansara Uptown. Devoted full-time to the multi-storey gallery and social art space, this man also holds a Master of Fine Art from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Techonology (RMIT).

Dali has a number of interests, among them acting. Prior to appearing in Taufiq Kamal’s project, he had been in commercials for products such as Sunsilk (with Diana Danielle) and Brylcreem.

“As the main actor,” Dali recalled pleasantly, “I was pampered — they made me sit in an air-conditioned room in-between scenes so I don’t sweat.”

He wasn’t expecting to lead the short either; highly-interested in a part-time job as an extra, Dali found his way to the role after video editor John Hafiz attended an exhibition at Minut Init.

Soon after, he found himself rehearsing in Happy Mansion with the Terbit23 team.

We first wrote about the film upon catching the press premiere at the launch of this year’s BMW Shorties. Running at 17 minutes in length, Terbit23 is a highly-stylised, visual piece with some attention-grabbing art direction.

“Money definitely went to the set, and as a result the film looks awesome,” Dali enthused.

“They went out and found a big-ass abandoned bungalow, and then managed to create a turning dinner table and a bedroom full of lights for the film.”

Describing Terbit23‘ as a love story and a tale of self-reflection, Dali was drawn to the script.

“Each scene in the film contains something significant,” he informed us.

“Even the girl on screen — she could be a lover, an alter-ego, or a figment of Aditya’s imagination.”

But as Aditya struggled with his inner demons in the film, Dali’s main challenge was keeping healthy and functional despite an intense schedule. While cameras were rolling, Minut Init was growing a whole new floor.

“During the shooting process, I had about two hours of sleep a day. I’d be up from 6pm to 6am for Terbit23, then head straight to Minut Init as we were still working on our recently-opened second floor and we had a deadline to meet.”

At present, Dali spends most of his time at the art space. Frequently hosting experimental art exhibitions and works by local artists, Minut Init has been operating since 2010 as a place to “explore medium, form and message and discover new personalities within the creative industry”.

Potential fans of Terbit23 can check out  on Facebook to have a look at production stills. The trailer of the film meanwhile has been put up on Youtube, courtesy of Pidosan.

Terbit23 premieres on 28 November at Cathay Cineplexes, E-Curve to members of the public who have registered via email.

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For more details on Dali Abdul Azis or Terbit23, make sure to head over to  and the !