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The Macao International Film and Video festival presented 13 outstanding international films in March and April, and continues in May with the focus turning to local filmmakers.

The Macao Indies will screen 26 locally made short feature films and documentaries, offering an opportunity to see lesser-know yet intriguing and thought provoking sides of the city we live in. 

CLOSER spoke with three local directors about their latest productions.

Chasing Mermaids

 

The name of the film ‘Sirena’ literally means ‘mermaid’ in Tagalog, the national language of the Philippines. And this story is all about the life of a lady-boy in Macau. 
 
“The name itself is interesting, as a mermaid is half woman and half fish, and they sing for the sailors to get the men they like, trying to fool them by the way they look,” says Nuno Viegas, the film director. “It’s similar to lady-boys – half woman and half man – wishing to seek love in their disguise.” 
 
This is the second documentary that Viegas has made in Macau, after the first one he filmed last year about lesbian migrant workers. 
 
“Filming is part of my life, a way to stimulate my mind,” he says.
 
To encounter lady-boys, Nuno took a stroll near Hotel Sintra at night with his friend, and saw many of them wandering the streets. He approached them for his project and held a lot pre-interview meetings.
 
“We went there and bought some beers for the girls. When you show respect and interest, they talk a little bit.  I let them feel assured that this was not a scandal. I was just interested in showing their reality,” Nuno says.
 
Viegas appreciates that the lady-boy in his film was willing to talk and to be filmed. Some months after he met her, she underwent silicon implant surgery, and Viegas followed her to Bangkok to film the scene. 
 
“I also took some extra days off to follow her to the Philippines and film her birthplace and living environment. She was very open to working with us,” he says. 
 
The film aims to pique audience’s curiosity to learn who lady-boys are and how they come to be the way they are. In reality, most people never get close as they are afraid to be associated with them. Nuno hopes to show people that it’s not a big deal and they are just like everyone else, wishing to love and be loved. 
 
“This girl works here as a prostitute. She desires a boyfriend as well as a home. Even if her sexual orientation and lifestyle are so different from ours, in the end we are just looking for same things – economic and family stability,” he says.
“I don’t believe in miracles,” Viegas acknowledges. “People won’t change their attitude overnight. It’s a gradual revolution process.” 
 
 

A New World Record

 

 

The inspiration for the film ‘I repeated’ came when director Penny Lam was in London, reading an online newspaper. A headline drew his attention: ‘the number of students repeating a year of schooling sets a new world record’.
 
“I was so shocked when I saw the news. The figure was negatively eye-catching, and it bothered me a lot. I believed that it would be a good topic to discuss,” Lam says.
 
“Now we have two world records in Macau. One is the wealth of the gaming city, and the other is school level repetition rates. Perhaps there is something connected between the two,” he suggests. “While we are enjoying an economic boom, it’s quite difficult to convince our students to study hard. Our lifestyle is too comfortable.” 
 
The documentary is all about the personal story of a form 4 student, who has repeated the same school year three times and changed schools five times. Lam also spoke to his father and brother, and the director of a tutorial centre in regards to his poor academic performance. The film focuses on the student’s personal life without any comments from scholars or educational experts. 
 
“He is smart,” Lam observes. “What he has experienced at his age is much more than me.”
 
But students like this are generally stereotyped as bad students who are rebellious by nature, Lam notes. 
 
“One thing I admire about him the most is that he dares to question authority, the education system, questioning his teachers why he must bother to learn this or that.” 
 
“That’s something that well-behaved students rarely do. They just follow what they are told. He even demonstrated his ability to discuss social issues with me, which impressed me a lot. He reflects a lot on the current system that victimises and labels him,” says Lam. 
 
It took Lam over nine months to produce the film. He spoke to many people including principals, teachers and scholars, but in the end they do not appear in the film. 
 
“Those interviews were for research purposes only. I’m not an expert in education. I needed to read a lot to gain a better understanding as to why the rate is so high, and what is going wrong in our education system?”
 
The documentary is Lam’s sixth production. 
 
“Making documentaries as a career is not easy in Macau. It’s quite tough to find like-minded teammates to work with,” he says. “Most people are only interested in drama films”.
 
“I couldn’t find sufficient resources locally for documentary productions,” Lam adds. “That’s why I approached overseas film companies for opportunities. Luckily, this film will be developed later into a new version for publication outside Macau.” 
 
“Macau does not foster a healthy market for documentary production. We don’t have any local TV stations willing to purchase documentaries,” Lam says. “So we have to go beyond Macau and compete with other filmmakers worldwide.”
 
 

A Wasteland of Literature

 

 

The film ‘Farming on the Wasteland’ is documentary about the writing journey of three respected local female writers, who have witnessed how Macau has evolved since it was just a quiet fishing village. 
 
“Their works showcase the old face of Macau, and thus are very representative,” says Tracy Choi, the film’s director.
 
“What I mean by ‘wasteland’ is that Macau is a rich soil of literary work, but local people don’t really care and value what we have. Many of us don’t even read works by local writers,” Choi says.
 
“The three writers I introduce in the film vary in their writing styles and they are very unique in the way they narrate their own perspective of life. They’ve also contributed a lot to Macau literature.”
 
Tracy is very curious about their way of viewing life. For instance, she interviews an Indonesian poet who began writing after she settled down in Macau decades ago. 
 
“Many might consider that what she wrote does not really matter, but it is part of the face of Macau. Her work gives us a diverse perspective of our city.”  
 
“In contrast, the other two are born and raised in Macau, but working in different newsrooms. Both are very open-minded and have a lot to share. They all helped me a lot to digest local literature,” she says.
 
Tracy admits frankly that she knew very little about Macau literature in the beginning. She had to do a lot of research and read their works in advance, as she didn’t want to speak on a superficial level. She also recieved a lot of help from her producer, a poet, who connected her with many local writers.  
 
“Their works are so inspirational. Some of their novels have the potential to be developed into short drama movies. It’s so thought provoking and I sort of already know how to adapt them into a drama film,” she says.
 
“The three writers are all sophisticated. They’ve experienced a lot. There are many soul-touching stories to tell,” Choi says. “I do wish that after watching my film, the audience will feel interested in reading their works. That’s what I’m striving to do.”
Ultimately, Choi believes that the landscape of Macau literature is vibrant. 
 
“I have even been asked whether I would do another documentary for local male writers. You know, it’s too much to show all within 60 minutes.”
 
MACAU STORIES
 
06.05.2014 / 19:30
Beyond the Walls | Wallace Chan
Photography | Yip Ting Hang
Armed Cockroach | Brian Man
The Lost Winner | Keo Lou
 
07.05.2014 / 19:30
To Age or to Rejuvenate? | Hugo Lok,  Vena Kou
Super Fat | Lei Ka Wai
Falling in alley | Sam Tong Teng
Legendary Tea | Catarina Cortesão
 
08.05.2014 / 19:30
Smiling Retirement Life | Chan Teng Teng
Reminisce | Kenny Leong
My Grand Parents And I | Kenny Leong
Connecting Flight | Jay Lei
2049 | Perry Fok
 
09.05.2014 / 21:30
Too High To Love? | Cyan Cheong
5 Club | Jericho Lau
Forget me Not | Chan Pui I
Crossroad Keo Lou
I Repeated | Lam Kin Kuan
 
10.05.2014
16:30
Farming on the Wasteland | Tracy Choi
The Line | Choi Tak Meng
Light Pollution | Chris Siu
Hill of Ilha Verde | Cheung King Wai
 
21:30
Sirena | Nuno Viegas 
Taboo | Hide Cheong
50%~60% | Sam Kin Hang
Two Funerals and a Movie|  Ho Fei
 
Small Auditorium
MOP50
Macao Cultural Centre and Kong Seng Ticketing

 

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