[Entertainment] Aspiring Malaysian filmmakers shine at Sunstrong Entertainment's Scam Prevention Short Film Contest Awards Ceremony in Beijing

[Entertainment] Aspiring Malaysian filmmakers shine at Sunstrong Entertainment's Scam Prevention Short Film Contest Awards Ceremony in Beijing

Beijing, 2023 – Recognising the greater need to raise awareness about scam prevention, Malaysia's SunStrong Entertainment recently held an awards ceremony in Beijing, China, where a total of US$128,000 (RM590,656) was awarded to winning entries, including a number of Malaysian-made works.

The international event, co-organized by China's Horizon Corporate Volunteer Consultancy (HCVC), began in November of last year and attracted 59 entries in the Open Category and 29 entries in the Student Category, respectively. Each category had ten entries shortlisted.

The contest, themed "Contribute Your Talent To Prevent Scam," also signifies a positive engagement in the arts between the people of Malaysia and China for a shared cause, as evidenced by performances of Malay traditional dances and Chinese fan dance at the ceremony.

SunStrong Entertainment founder Jment Lim, who is also a judge, says, "These works not only show the creativity and talent of the contestants, but also the significance of this contest as we get to see that society at large is concerned about the prevalence of scams, as well as everyone's enthusiasm and devotion for public interest."

He stated that the contest's attempt to combat frauds does not end there, as the winning entries will be made available on key social media platforms and the company's website, with the hope that these works will continue to play a part in scam prevention.

"We may not be able to completely prevent scams from occurring, but we can make every effort to prevent as many tragedies as possible," he argues.

Wang Zhongping, founder and CEO of HCVC, praised SunStrong Entertainment for putting together a unique initiative that helps society as a whole.

"I would like to thank Jment Lim for his strong support, as well as everyone else who has dedicated themselves throughout this contest to ensuring the process runs smoothly," he says. If it were up to me, all of the works on the shortlist should be recognised.

Despite stumbling barriers along the way to the award ceremony, we get to see it through to the end with perseverance. "We will continue to use short films as a tool to raise public awareness."

The first prize of US$5,000 (RM23,073) went to A Forever Promise (China), which centres on a young graduate who becomes a job scam victim, while the second prize, Got Trapped (Malaysia), and third prize, Sink (Malaysia), were awarded US$3,000 (RM13,844) and US$1,500 (RM6,922), respectively, in the Student Category.

Malaysia's The Distant Job, Got Trapped, The Untouchable Sight, Catherine's Love Story, and Anti- Fraud Operation won the US$500 (RM2,307.25) Excellence Award, as did China's The Naked Price and If.

Help (China), which narrates the narrative of a phone fraud victim, won the first prize of US$50,000 (RM230,725) in the Open Category.

Bad Days (Malaysia) finished in second, winning US$20,000 (RM92,290), and Scripted (Malaysia) came in third, winning US$10,000 (RM46,145). Thanking the judges for the honour, the Malaysian winners say it motivates them to create even better work in the future.

When Malaysian entries won every Excellence Award in this category, it was a proud moment. Putih Hati, Love Chess, I'm Here For You, Susan, Money Tree, Bungkam, and Desire were all given US$5,000 (RM23,073) each.

Winners of the Open Category will be able to submit their film proposals to SunStrong Entertainment for a chance to receive a grant of up to US$1 million (RM4.61 million) to help them realise their ambition of shooting a feature film.

Chong Keat Aun, a Golden Horse Award-winning Malaysian filmmaker who serves on the judging panel, stated that the majority of entries are based on human trafficking stories, demonstrating the scope of this troubling issue. He admits that there are sure to be difficulties when conveying a story in ten minutes. To his amazement, all of these submissions considered the mobile watching experience for viewers.

During the selection process, another judge, Oscar-winning Chinese-American documentary filmmaker Ruby Yang, praised the entries and was impressed by several students' entries, which employ news reporting as a style of storytelling and even cast their friends owing to low resources.

Shanxi Film Academy director Jia Yue, Leopard Change Academy director Zhang Dadou, and Nanhai Academy of Arts and Technology honorary dean Zhou Shixing will also be on the panel.

The short films can be viewed at https://sseshortfilmcontest.com/Gallery .

Keywords: #SunstrongEntertainment #ScamPreventionShortFilmContest #FilmAwards #MalaysianFilmmakers #Beijing2023 #AwarenessCampaign

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