Censorship: 'Tiger Stripes' shown in M'sia not the film we made, says director

Award-winning film ‘Tiger Stripes’, which began screening at local cinemas yesterday, had been heavily censored by the country’s Film Censorship Board (LPF), according to its director.

Amanda Nell Eu in a statement this morning expressed her disappointment over the scene cuts, saying it has come to the extent the film was not the same product that won the Grand Prize of Cannes Critics Week in May.

“... I have to say that I do not stand behind the cut that will be shown in local cinemas.

“Living as an artist and a filmmaker in Malaysia, we are all used to having our work and voice censored.

“While I am not here to attack the censorship board, I am here to state that the film that will be shown in local cinemas is not the film that we made, and it is not the film that won the Grand Prize of Critics Week in Cannes,” Nell Eu said in the statement posted on her Facebook page.

The film director did not specify the scenes that had purportedly been cut by the authority.

According to her, LPF had censored “the very joy of being a young girl in Malaysia”.

“A young girl who is maybe different from the rest, misunderstood, or has the urge to express herself differently from others - a young girl who is innocent and curious about the world around her and fights for her existence in this world.”

Malaysiakini has reached out to LPF and Communications and Multimedia Minister Fahmi Fadzil for comments on the matter.

Historical win

‘Tiger Stripes’ centres on 12-year-old Zaffan (played by Zafreen Zairizal) as she struggles to understand her body experiencing puberty.

Provoked by her community, she soon discovers that embracing her true self is the only answer to her freedom.

The film is a co-production among eight countries, namely, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, France, Germany, Netherlands, Indonesia, and Qatar.

‘Tiger Stripes’ is Nell Eu’s first feature film and she made history as the first Malaysian and Southeast Asian director to win the €10,000 (RM49,622) Grand Prize award at Cannes Critics Week, a parallel section of the prestigious festival.

Earlier this month, Fahmi announced that the film has officially been chosen to represent Malaysia in the 96th Academy Awards (Oscars) in the Best International Feature Film category.

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