A provocative documentary of a small town girl's fight against the construction of a 'mega-incinerator in the village of Broga will be screened at the Freedom Film Fest 2005.

The documentary, entitled ' Clean Shit ', will be among 19 short films and documentaries by local and international independent film producers to be screened at the festival, which is in its second year running.

Also being screened is a film entitled ' 18?' by Danny Lim, a reference to the 18 'big fish' purportedly involved in large scale corruption, and controversial documentary ' Singapore Rebel ' by Martyn See, which chronicles the tribulations of the republic's opposition activist Dr Chee Soon Juan.

Director of ' Clean Shit ' Ong Ju Lin, along with four friends, embarked on their four-month project in February this year with no prior knowledge about the effects of incinerators. Neither did they have any experience in film-making.

In making the documentary, Ong said she and her friends were overwhelmed by the strength of Alice Lee's character and the enormity of the issue .

Lee is among the key individuals in an ad hoc group formed by residents in Broga, which has been fighting for more than three years to stop the government from building the mega-incinerator - the world's largest - in their town which is also near a major water catchment area.

"We felt there was a story to tell (about Alice). The video was impactful and people were fired up," said Ong when asked about the initial response to the film.

'Visuals more persuasive'

Ong ( photo, centre ) explained that a video documentary was extremely visual and conveyed a stronger message than the print medium.

"We are not just preaching facts (about the dangers of the incinerator), but by following the life of Alice, empathising comes from the heart when watching the movie," she added.

Organised by Pusat Komunikasi Masyarakat, or Komas, the screening of the 19 films for four days will begin tomorrow.

The screenings will be divided along various themes which include children's rights, HIV/Aids, social commentaries and freedom of expression.

Freedom Film Fest's coordinator Lor Yew Mien, said the event was dedicated to human rights awareness and freedom of speech.

"The festival also aims to promote local film makers to the public and to encourage new film makers, community groups and NGO's to use video as a (communication) tool," she added.

The festival culminates in an award ceremony on Sunday to celebrate and honour the efforts of budding film makers.

Further details and a schedule of the screenings are available here .