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Malaysia PM urges filmmakers to seek more creative freedom
Anwar said censorship approvals for individual scenes can force filmmakers to ask multiple times whether content will be allowed, as Malaysia prepares a film policy through 2035.
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has urged local filmmakers to think more freely, arguing that an industry which must repeatedly seek official approval for scenes cannot become more creative or competitive, according to SCMP Economy.
Speaking at the opening of the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas) outside Kuala Lumpur, Anwar questioned where creativity can exist when restrictions are too heavy, and he said filmmakers should not feel pressured into asking multiple times whether a scene will be approved.
His comments came less than six weeks after Malaysia’s Court of Appeal upheld the government’s ban on the independent film Mentega Terbang, and nearly three years after the Cannes-winning film Tiger Stripes reached local cinemas only after its director disowned the final edited version, the outlet reported.
SCMP Economy also noted the government is preparing a national film policy through 2035, raising the question of whether Anwar’s push for creativity will translate into looser rules or remain constrained by Malaysia’s longstanding sensitivities around religion, culture, and morality.