The 9th Malaysia International Film Festival (MIFFest) has unveiled its full lineup in Kuala Lumpur, with South Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong set to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. The festival will run from July 18 to 25 and screen 65 films from 35 countries and regions in 27 languages, including two world premieres, one international premiere, three Asian premieres, 12 Southeast Asian premieres and 28 Malaysian premieres.
MIFFest president Joanne Goh praised Lee as a filmmaker whose work “continues to resonate across cultures and generations” through its honesty, compassion and understanding of humanity. In his honor, the festival will screen two of his acclaimed films: “Peppermint Candy,” the reverse-chronological drama about personal and national trauma, and “Oasis,” a romance about love, isolation and human dignity.
Chinese actor-director Wu Jing will receive the Excellent Achievement in Film Award. The festival will mark the recognition with a screening of “Blades of the Guardians: Wind Rises in the Desert,” directed by Yuen Woo-Ping.
The festival will open with the world premiere of Malaysian feature “BAGA: Tomorrow Belongs To No One,” directed by Ariff Zulkarnain. Set in a conservative fishing village in Kuala Terengganu, the film follows a boatman struggling with addiction and a batik artisan whose lives become linked after an unplanned pregnancy. The closing film is “Yellow Letters,” directed by İlker Çatak, which won the Golden Bear at the 76th Berlin Film Festival. It centers on a Turkish artist couple whose lives unravel after their new production comes under state scrutiny.
The International Competition lineup features 10 films, all from directors with three or fewer narrative features. Titles include Malaysia’s “The Waves Will Carry Us” by Lau Kek-Huat, Singapore’s “Ah Girl,” Egypt-French-German co-production “Aisha Can’t Fly Away,” Cambodia’s “Becoming Human,” the Czech Republic’s “Broken Voices,” Taiwan’s “Girl,” the U.S.-Canadian survival drama “Lucky Lu,” Sri Lanka’s “Riverstone,” Switzerland-Belgium-France’s “Silent Rebellion” and Chile-Argentina-Italy’s “The Red Hangar.”
The jury will be led by Indian filmmaker Anurag Kashyap and include Taiwanese director Midi Z, Thai actor-producer Ananda Everingham, Hong Kong production designer Man Lim-chung and Malaysian actress Sharifah Amani.
New program sections debut this year, including Korean Cinema: A Culture in Motion and Russian Film Week. Returning sections include ASEAN On Screen, Hong Kong Cinema in Flux and New Rhythms of Indian Cinema. The festival will also bring back its Open Air Cinema at MyTown Shopping Centre’s Sunken Garden, along with the second season of its K-Style microdrama series, “Impian Di Seoul.”
