It isn’t all the time that films that don’t feature the likes of celebrities such as Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, Angelina Jolie or Aaron Aziz get’s a high profile platform.
So when the organiser’s of the 2013 Borneo Eco Film Festival contacted me to attend the festival and become a trainer and panelist this year (for the second time), I jumped at the chance.
Held in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, the festival is now running into its third year and is one of the state’s anchor annual highlights when it comes to entertainment and also cultural events.
Aside from new and historical films with an environmental twist, it also organises a year-long documentary film workshop for indigenous communities that is conducted by industry professionals on a volunteer basis.
The festival works with numerous NGOs in Sabah and Malaysia to achieve their objective of empowering locals to tell their own stories and also to create awareness regarding the importance of biodiversity and the environment.
Aside from the workshop, which is by invitation only, this year’s Borneo Eco Film Festival boasts an impressive line-up of films:
Oceans (2009, France)
Murasaki (2011, Japan)
I Married Adventure (1940, USA)
A Fierce Green Fire (2012, USA)
Black Fish (2013, USA)
With Williamson Beneath The Sea (1932, USA)
Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth (2011, Germany/USA)
Ches Les Muruts, Peuplade Sauvage Du Nord De Borneo ‘Amongst The Muruts, Wild People of North Borneo’ (1911, North Borneo/France)
The Giving Tree (1973, USA)
Kemajuan Sabah (1963, Malaysia)
Subur Sabah (1963, Malaysia)
The 2013 Borneo Eco Film Festival takes place in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, from 27th to 29th September 2013. For more information, please visit http://beff.org.my.
Zan Azlee
Sun Sep 29 2013
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