Festival Filem Malaysia: ANAK HALAL leads the noms

Why are most mainstream film awards crap? I don't know; don't ask me.

The Festival Filem Malaysia (Malaysian film awards) continues to be a baffling, mind-boggling affair year after year. They once snubbed one of the most important Malaysian filmmakers, Yasmin Ahmad, with the excuse that her films continue to show nothing new or different. Like many other awards events, the decisions can sometimes be rather weird. For example, for this year's awards, probably the worst film released this year, the laughable horror film Congkak, picked up four nominations, including, gulp, Best Director. That itself, is a horror story. It also got one for Best Sound, when the direction for the sound seemed to be to make everything as loud as possible.

But among the jury this year is independent filmmaker Amir Muhammad, whose mainstream film, Susuk, co-directed with Naeim Ghalili, picked up 8 nominations, including Best Cinematography (by Devan R.) and Best Score (by Hardesh Singh). Osman Ali's crime drama, Anak Halal, leads the pack with 12 nominations. Mamat Khalid's noir comedy horror, Kala Malam Bulan Mengambang, and Wayang by Hatta Azad Khan, are tied at second with 11 nominations each.

In the digital film category, there are no international-award winners this year. For example, Woo Ming Jin's The Elephant And The Sea is conspicuously missing,and so is Liew Seng Tat's Flower In The Pocket. Instead, we have the horrid TV movie Wirasiswi. A consolation here would be 22-year-old Mark Tan's commendable debut, Jarum Halus.

The strangest of all? A Best Art Direction nomination for Johnny Bikin Filem, a film that was to have been released in March but has disappeared once again into oblivion.

Full list of nominations after the break:

Nominations for Best Film and Best Original Song will be announced on the night of the awards ceremony.

Best Director
Hatta Azad Khan (Wayang)
Shuhaimi Baba (1957 Hati Malaya)
Ahmad Idham (Congkak)
Mamat Khalid (Kala Malam Bulan Mengambang)
Osman Ali (Anak Halal)

Best Actor (Male)
Afdlin Shauki (Sepi)
Adlin Aman Ramlie (Susuk)
Rosyam Nor (KMBM)
Eman Manan (Wayang)
Farid Kamil (Anak Halal)

Best Actor (Female)
Maya Karin (Anak Halal)
Erra Fazira (Anak)
Fazura (Kayangan)
Nasha Aziz (Otai)
Vanidah Imran (Akhirat)

Best Screenplay
Wayang (Hatta Azad Khan)
KMBM (Mamat Khalid)
Sepi (Ara & Mira Mustaffa)
Anak Halal (Osman Ali)
Cuci (Hans Isaac)

Best Original Story
Wayang (Hatta Azad Khan)
KMBM (Mamat Khalid)
Sepi (Ara & Mira Mustaffa)
Anak Halal (Osman Ali)
Pensil (M.Subash)

Best Cinematography
Evolusi KL Drift (Raja Mukhriz Raja Ahmad Kamarudin)
Sepi (Mohd Nor Kassim)
Susuk (Daven Raghaven)
Kayangan (Raja Mukhriz)
Anak Halal (Khalid Zakaria)

Best Editing
1957 Hati Malaya (Nik Haslinda Nik Hussain / Kamarudin Abu)
Wayang (Hafiz Kamaruzaman)
Congkak (Ahmad Mustadha)
KMBM (Raja Affandi Raja Jamaludin)
Sepi (Johan Bahar)

Best Original Score
Wayang (Hafiz Askiak)
KMBM (Ahmad Badaruddin)
Susuk (Hardesh Singh)
Anak Halal (Nurzaidi Abdul Rahman)
1957 Hati Malaya (Sharon Paul)

Best Animated Film
Family Portrait
Upin & Ipin
World War
Nene Breshke
Apocalypse

Best Documentary
Making The Cut
The Woodsmiths
The Perak Man
Kami Yang Disyaki
Restoring Merdeka

Best Short Film
Hasrat (Martias Entertainment)
Tiffin (Chor Ai Lene)
Eyefinger (Marge Bong)
Burp (ASWARA)
Kopitiam Kurang Manis (UiTM)

Best Digital Film
Yantra
Malaysia's Sweet Heart
Wirasiswi
Ganavin/Vanthaanda Herd
Jarum Halus

Best Supporting Actor (Male)
Zul Huzaimy (Wayang)
Farid Kamil (KMBM)
Adlin Aman Ramlie (1957 Hati Malaya)
Eizlan Yusof (Impak Maksima)
Fauzi Nawawi (Anak Halal)

Best Supporting Actor (Female)
Nabila Huda (Akhirat)
Nanu Baharuddin (1957 Hati Malaya)
Azizah Mahzan (Anak)
Ruminah Sidek (Pensil)
Dynaz Mokhtar (Kayangan)

Best Art Direction
1957 Hati Malaya (Aida Fitri Buyong / Kamarul Nizam Abd Rahman)
KMBM (Nazrul Ashraff)
Susuk (Kek Ting Lam)
Johnny Bikin Filem (Dr. Anuar Nor Arai)
Anak Halal (Irwanmazwan Ibrahim)

Best Sound
Congkak (Brian Ng)
KMBM (Azman Abu Hassan)
Susuk (Add Audio)
Evolusi KL Drift (Daud Sulaiman)
Anak Halal (Azman Abu Hassan)

Best Child Actor
Erynne Erynna (Congkak)
Amrul Hisham (Anak)
Mohd Asrah Akis (Wayang)
Mohd Asrah Afif (Wayang)
Erin Malek (Congkak)

Most Promising Director
Hans Isaac (Cuci)
M.Subash (Pensil)
Mohd Latif Zami (Dunia Baru The Movie)
Syamsul Yusof (Evolusi KL Drift)
Barney Lee (Anak)

Most Promising Actor (Male)
M.Subash (Pensil)
Moh. Kamarulzaman Taib (1957 Hati Malaya)
Wan Kenari Ibrahim (Wayang)
Zaefaul Nadzarine Nordin (1957 Hati Malaya)
Syamsul Yusof (Evolusi KL Drift)

Most Promising Actor (Female)
Julia Ziegler (Kayangan)
Lisa Surihani (I'm Not Single)
Mas Muharni (Wayang)
Avaa Vanja (KMBM)
Diana Rafar (Susuk)

Best Costume Design
1957 Hati Malaya (Dee Hasnan/Ezrah Rahim)
Johnny Bikin Filem (Ayu Haswida)
Susuk (Mohd Zaini Abdul Rahman)
Anak Halal (Mohamad Zaini Abdul Rahman)
KMBM (Nasirah Ramlan)

Best Poster
Cuci
Susuk
Anak Halal
Evolusi KL Drift
Pensil