Malaysian filmmaker Amanda Nell Eu has distanced herself from the cut of her feature film Tiger Stripes, which is being released theatrically in Malaysia on October 19 for one week in an Oscars-qualifying run.
The film, which Malaysia has submitted as its entry for the Best International Feature category of the Academy Awards, also won the Critics Weeks Grand Prix when it premiered at Cannes film festival earlier this year.
Eu says she does not stand behind the cut approved for the Malaysian theatrical release, saying “the film that will be shown in local cinemas is not the film that we made.”
Tiger Stripes follows a 12-year-old girl who is the first among her friends to hit puberty, only for her body to start going through a terrifying transformation. Ostracised by her school friends, she learns to embrace her true self and fight for freedom.
Eu is restricted from disclosing the specific scenes that have been cut from the film. However, she describes the excised material as conveying the “joy of being a young girl in Malaysia, who is maybe different from the rest, misunderstood, or has the urge to express herself differently from others.”
The filmmaker also emphasised her connection with Malaysian audiences and the film’s intended purpose: “Tiger Stripes was made with Malaysians in mind as my priority audience; therefore, showing it back home would have been the most meaningful experience for me.”
Eu is the first female Malaysian filmmaker to have a film selected for Cannes film festival. The main characters in the film are hijab-wearing Malay girls, although many of the challenges they encounter – puberty, school bullying and communication issues with parents and teachers – are not culturally specific.
Film censorship in Malaysia is overseen by the Ministry of Home Affairs, which has a mandate to “scrutinise and classify films according to their compliance with political, religious, cultural, and moral values of Malaysian society”. Filmmakers are not able to challenge censorship decisions in court.
Amanda Nell Eu’s statement in full:
Dear all who have been anticipating the release of Tiger Stripes in Malaysia,
As many of you know, Tiger Stripes will have a very limited release in local cinemas on 19th October. It’s actually been so beautiful to see the buzz and excitement around it. I want to thank all of you for this – Tiger Stripes was made with Malaysians in mind as my priority audience; therefore, showing it back home would have been the most meaningful experience for me.
Unfortunately, though, 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.
What has been censored from the film is 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. Our production company, Ghost Grrrl Pictures’ very ethos is to fight for these voices and to celebrate a safe space for freedom of expression. It saddens us that this type of girl has to be censored from public view, and although we respect different opinions and sensitivities in our country, we wish that we had more freedom to discuss things openly and not quickly condemn and punish each other or have to hide away from things that we are afraid of. This is what art does best, and it is why we deeply love it and continue to pursue it in our lives – to discuss, question and express freely.
As an artist living in Malaysia, I am grateful that I can find ways not to have to self-censor my work. I have an incredible team and support network that has allowed me to have full creative control over my voice and the stories I want to tell, and so, coming from this privilege, I have never believed or felt the need to self-censor. My producer, Foo Fei Ling and I started Ghost Grrrl Pictures to have this creative freedom.
We will continue to fight and urge all artists not to self-censor and to try to find other avenues to deal with censorship in our country – it’s a huge struggle, we know, emotionally and financially, and not to mention sometimes our safety is jeopardised because of this. But let’s keep doing it, guys!
Being dictated on what we can or cannot show and limiting artistic voices in Malaysia is detrimental to our society. We have always believed that the power of art is to open healthy discussion, to hear from diverse voices and stories, and to learn more about each other. In our opinion, the safest way to speak out, question and discuss has always been through art, and we believe and respect that the Malaysian audience has the maturity to make decisions based on their own critical choices.
This is really all I have to say regarding the local release of Tiger Stripes. This statement, we know, will financially hurt our company and many parties involved, and we are truly sorry for that, but we also believe in our right to share our opinions involving the freedom of our voice and expression as Malaysians.
In other news, we are very proud to be Malaysia’s official entry for the Academy Awards and happy to see that our Malaysian film has been appreciated worldwide during our festival travels. Ghost Grrrl Pictures and our larger team will try our best to make sure Malaysians will one day get to see the film in full uncensored glory, director’s cut… but legally, of course!!
Love to you, and THANK YOU for all the support so far, Amanda