Finas chief unfazed by box-office dip
ALTHOUGH the National Film Development Corporation (Finas) agrees with certain cinemagoers’ views that attendance for local movies took a dip this year, its chairman, Datuk Mohd Khusairi Abdul Talib, assures fans of Malaysian cinema that the industry is not heading for a slump anytime soon.
“It is true that the ticket collection for local titles between January and early this month is less than the same period last year.
“While the box office raked in RM78 million last year, we have got RM50.9 million this time, which is the same as in 2015,” he said at a press conference to announce Persatuan Karyawan Malaysia’s involvement in Finas’s Padu Citra scheme at Kompleks Studio Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur recently.
He said despite the dip, he was not pessimistic as Skop Productions’ Abang Long Fadil 2 had emerged the latest top grossing local movie, collecting RM18.15 million at the box office.
The movie has since dethroned Astro Shaw’s Polis Evo, which earned RM17.47 million in 2015.
Khusairi said eight films had earned more than RM1 million this year.
They are Tombiruo (RM7.97 million), J Revolusi (RM7.14 million), Before We Forget (RM3 million), Bisik Pada Langit (RM2.45 million), Pinjamkan Hatiku (RM1.08 million), You Mean The World To Me (RM1.29 million) and Love From Kampung (RM1.05 million).
“From our observation, action films by Skop and Astro often come out tops. But, so do nonBahasa Melayu titles.”
He said the film industry had done rather well over the last four years, as most of the Top 10 highest grossing movies to date were screened during this period.
The Journey (2014) by Film Engine was the third bestseller with RM17.17 million, followed by Skop’s Munafik (2016) with RM17.04 million, Astro’s Ola Bola (2016) with RM16.67 million and Animonsta’s Boboiboy (2016) with RM15.77 million.
“Genres that have proven to be crowdpullers are action and adventure, especially those featuring popular actors and directors, animated films and multiracial titles that promote unity,” Khusairi said.
“In the third category, however, we have Adiwiraku, which did exceptionally well at the Malaysian Film Festival, but, sadly, it did not do well at the box office.”
It has often been difficult for films based on real events, such as Adiwiraku, to shine at the box office, but Khusairi was pleased to note that Ola Bola and You Mean The World To Me bucked that trend.
“Non-fiction stories need directors who can communicate effectively with the audience.
“The subject matter and muhibbah elements mean a lot too.
“Ola Bola was a celebration of Malaysians in sports, as well as a tribute to our past football heroes.
“You Mean The World To Me featured a poignant lesson in filial piety, which also created history as our first Hokkien film,” Khusairi said.
When asked about Finas’ predictions for next year, Khusairi said the industry might do better with upcoming actionpacked movies, Polis Evo 2 and Abang Long Fadil 3, which would see the use of special effects that were on a par with Hollywood standards.
“They have been touted as bigger and better sequels with double the action of their predecessors, which means they are likely to be major hits with fans, too.
“Not all sequels do well, but if they are packed with explosive plots, state-of-the-art special effects and character development, they will certainly make a mark and leave an impact on cinemagoers.” By Dennis Chua