A Reflection on the Filmmaker-in-Residence (FIR) Program
Fikri Jermadi
My remit as the inaugural filmmaker-in-residence
was to act as a point of reference for the filmmaking
queries of both SASS staff and students interested in
the craft. Though once in a while questions would be
raised by staff, the majority of interaction I’ve had by
far were with students.
Through small and bigger productions, I managed to
harness a hunger for storytelling which already exists
among students to produce a number of official and
unofficial, less formal video productions.
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During my time, the key achievement was the Monash
Anthology, a collection of four short films made
primarily by students with the inclusion of one skilled
industry professional on board. I called upon Maz
Irwan Azani (lighting director for ICE and BROKEN
SOURCE), Hema Balasundaram (CHECKMATE) and
Veknesuaran Thiagarajan (TALKING IN BED). The
idea is to not only maintain a certain level of technical
quality in what essentially amounted to student films,
but also to make sure that the students were mentored
on set by people who know what they are doing.
The overall picture I have is that the FIR program
has been a resounding success. Bradley Liew
(BROKEN SOURCE) leads the way as a well-regarded
independent filmmaker now based in the Philippines,
with his directorial debut in “Singing in Graveyards”
winning international acclaim on the festival circuit.
Eng Sze Jia, director of CHECKMATE, has also been
involved with the visual effects industry via the Oscar-
winning companies of Rhythm & Hues and Industrial
Light and Magic. She is credited in major international
productions such as “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”,
“Interstellar”, “Avengers: Infinity Wars Part 1”, and
“Life of Pi” amongst many others. Diaz Hernawan, a
key component of these SASS films, has transitioned
into making YouTube videos on a professional level
in Indonesia. He has been credited for establishing
much of MalesBanget.com’s presence on the platform
(currently with over 600,000 subscribers). This, along
with the critical acclaim accorded to the likes of Sheril
A Bustaman (COME HELL OR HIGH WATER) leaves
with me no doubt in my mind in the seeds of future
success sown in initiatives like the FIR program.