Broadcasting students made a documentary of Yasmin Ahmad’s life

The team behind ‘What Yasmin Left Behind’ (from left): Lee, Ong, Natalie Tan, Goh, Chung and Chan

A team of six Broadcasting students from the Faculty of Creative Industries made UTAR proud when their documentary “What Yasmin Left behind” was premiered at the “Yasmin: 10 Years on Film Screenings” from 7 to 8 September 2019 at GMBB, Kuala Lumpur.

The team consisted of Year Three Broadcasting students, namely Goh Eu-Wern, the director; Ong Phei Ying, the producer; Chung Lay Woei, the photography director; Natalie Tan Shern Ying, the scriptwriter; Lee Wen Jun, the editor, and Chan Wei Lun, the gaffer. Their documentary was the only work chosen to be screened together with all six of Yasmin’s films on that day.

Group photo of the team with Orked Ahmad (fourth from left), Yasmin Ahmad’s sister

The documentary, according to the team, commemorates the memories Yasmin left behind from those close to her. “During the filming process of our documentary, we had the opportunity to interview people who were close to Yasmin Ahmad. We would like to thank our Malaysia Media & Culture lecturer Dr Andrew Loo Hong Chuang, video editing lecturer Ms Foo Mei Li and her contact Mr Dominique for giving us this opportunity. They helped connect us to interviewees such as Jovian Lee and Sharifah Amani. And that got the ball rolling for us to meet others who were close to Yasmin. For instance, Datin Orked Ahmad who is Yasmin’s sister and Affandi Jamaludin, the editor of all Yasmin’s films.

Supported by AMENIC film space, the event aimed to celebrate the mesmerising and creative works of the late Yasmin Ahmad. After each screening session, a discussion was held by DeconRecon team to discuss the underlying narratives of Yasmin’s films. The team was managed by Foong Li Mei and Tan Jee Yee, both journalists and UTAR alumni.

From left: Lee, Chan, Ong, Goh (sixth onwards), Natalie Tan and Chung with Sharifah Amani (fourth) and Ng Choo Seong, leads of Yasmin Ahmad’s film ‘Sepet’

“The documentary was chosen for the event because it aligned with our vision— a well-made documentary that honours her memory in a respectful and loving manner. In addition to that, we want to highlight how Yasmin still inspires the youth today, ten years after her passing as well as provide a well-deserved platform for young students to showcase their work,” said Event Organiser of GMBB Ying Xian.

She added, “Our goal at GMBB is to highlight and provide a platform for local talents. With Yasmin being one of Malaysia’s most iconic creative talents (from writing to directing, to singing and even acting), we felt it was only fitting that we organise a tribute in honour of her memory. And the thing is, while we believe that honouring the memory of our past talents is important, we also think it is important to look forward into the future and to see what’s next. This is why we have both her film screenings, a musical honouring the memory of one of her most iconic films directed by a young aspiring theatre director and photography exhibiting the works of two up and coming photography talents in Malaysia, who are seeking to tell Malaysian stories, just as Yasmin did before.”

“I feel honoured to have my documentary screened alongside Yasmin’s wonderful films. I would like to thank our lecturers, interviewees and fellow teammates for being kind and helpful throughout this journey. I hope that when people watch this documentary, they will remember Yasmin Ahmad. Even if they have never met her,” said Goh, the director.

Scriptwriter Natalie Tan said, “We would like to thank UTAR, all the lecturers, Mr Anthony Gandolfo Miranti Jr, Dr Carmen Nge Siew Mun, Dr Loo Hong Chuang, Ms Nurul Ezzati Zaki Aisya binti Mohd Zaki and Ms Foo Mei Lee as well as our friends who supported us during the making of the documentary. We would also like to thank our interviewees for taking the time to be the documentary’s subjects. We are also very grateful to each other. Despite having our own responsibilities, we never failed to help each other out. Last but not least, we would like to thank Yasmin Ahmad from the bottom of our hearts. Without her, none of this would have been possible. All glory should be given to her and the interviewees as those were their stories. We are just blessed to be given the opportunity to capture it in our film.”

Goh answering questions regarding the documentary ‘What Yasmin Left Behind’

DeconRecon team holding a discussion on “Sepet”

Photography exhibition

The poster of the event