Pendatang is a 2023 Malaysian dystopian drama thriller film directed by Ng Ken Kin and written by Lim Boon Siang. Produced by Kuman Pictures in association with Tapir Films, Pendatang follows a Cantonese–speaking Chinese family forced to relocate to a rural kampong home, shortly after Malaysia[a] implemented the fictional Segregation Act, where racial segregation between the ethnic groups of the country became strictly enforced.[1][2][3][4]

Pendatang
Directed byNg Ken Kin
Screenplay byLim Boon Siang
Produced by
Starring
  • Fredy Chan
  • Mayjune Tan
  • Shareen Yeo
  • Kyzer Tou
  • Qaidah Marha
CinematographyTeck Zee Tan
Edited byYap Mun Ee Chloe
Music byWey Yinn Teo
Production
company
Kuman Pictures
Release date
  • December 21, 2023 (2023-12-21) (Youtube)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryMalaysia
LanguagesCantonese, Malay, Tamil

Pendatang is a fully crowdfunded movie.[5] Ng Ken Kin, the director, stated that he did not feel the movie would have been approved for local cinematic release by the Film Censorship Board.[5][6] Hence, the film is available on YouTube for free.[7] The film does not make any advertising revenue and is non-profit driven.[7] The film premiered on YouTube on December 21, 2023.[8]

Development

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Pendatang is a fully crowdfunded movie.[5] In 2022, Kuman Pictures raised a total of RM335,981 through the crowdfunding campaign on the platform, Indiegogo.[9] The production team chose to be fully crowd funded to ensure the film would be faithful to the script without limitations that traditional government and commercially-led productions and funding options may have imposed.[5][7]

Release

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Pendatang premiered for free on YouTube on the 21st of December 2023.[5]

Critical reception

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The film received generally positive reviews from The Rakyat Post[10] and the South China Morning Post.[8]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ In the film, the states of Sarawak and Sabah had seceded from Malaysia.

References

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  1. ^ "Pendatang". Kuman Pictures. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  2. ^ Azmi, Hadi (26 December 2023). "Away from censors, Malaysia's first crowdfunded film scores success on YouTube". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  3. ^ Yap, Wan Xiang. ""It's A Story About Unity" — Crowdfunded Film 'Pendatang' Draws Rave Reviews From M'sians". Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  4. ^ Anis, Nik Mazwin Binti Nik. "'Pendatang' film racks up views, wows audiences". The Star. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Crowdfunded movie 'Pendatang' premiers, garners 100,000 views in 17 hours". The Star. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  6. ^ FMT Reporters (2023-12-16). "Crowdfunded movie 'Pendatang' to premiere on YouTube, avoids censorship". Free Malaysia Today. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  7. ^ a b c "Why". Pendatang Movie. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  8. ^ a b Ferrarese, Marcho (14 December 2023). "Why Malaysian film Pendatang, a dystopian thriller playing on country's ethnic tensions, aims to dodge censors with YouTube release". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  9. ^ Kulasagaran, Priya (2022-10-04). "Kuman Pictures surpasses RM300,000 crowdfunding goal to make upcoming film 'Pendatang'". Malay Mail. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  10. ^ Nazari, Hamzah (22 December 2023). "Pendatang Is A Great Addition To Malaysia's Film Library [Review]". The Rakyat Post. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
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