And This Year’s Winner of BMW Shorties Is… ‘Fish’ by Gan Yu Long!

After over a month of deliberation, The BMW Shorties 2015 finally announced its winners during its awards night, held at the Slate @ The Row.

Its ten initial finalists were revealed during the BMW Shorties Festival two weeks ago, but had to be reduced to nine after Aliff Ihsan Rahman‘s Dermaga was disqualified — it was previously submitted to the Malaysian Digital Film Award 2015 and therefore violated competition rules and regulations.

This year’s judges are Red Films executive producer Lina Tan, APPARAT film producer Nandita Solomon, Reservoir Production executive producer Ismail Kamarul, Directors Think Tank film director Rajay Singh, and veteran film editor Affandi Jamaluddin.

Managing Director of BMW Group Malaysia, Alan Harris noted that with this year’s theme being “Change”, judges have discovered that their Top 10 not only displayed great aesthetics, but also imparted social commentary on Malaysian society through art.

Hosted by Zul Aziz and Nadia Nash — stars of last year’s winning short film, Rozita binti Roslan — this year’s awards were given out by the judging panel.

BMW Shorties 2015’s Grand Prize winner, Fish by Gan Yu Long, takes home RM75, 000 in production grants, which will be used in making Gan’s next professional short film with guidance and mentorship from the panel of judges.

Fish explores the psyche of the Malaysian-Chinese family — depicted in the film are perceptions within its culture, such as an emphasis on hard work and conformity in order to succeed in life — and bagged the most awards on the night, taking home Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Design, and Best Production Design.

In appreciation to screenplay writers, Red Films once again awarded the Script Development Grant to each nominee of the Best Screenplay Award. As a result, nominees will receive cash and script consultancy support from industry experts to develop a professional screenplay for their next project. The short films from these screenplays will be showcased on Red Films new online channel, FEEFO.TV!

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List of Winners and Nominations

Grand Prize Winner

Fish by Gan Yu Long

People’s Choice Award

Cycle of Violence by Caston J

Best Director

The Cycle of Violence by Caston J
The Return by Keshvan A/L Sugumaran
Fish by Gan Yu Long
Gigi by Audrie Yeo

Best Actor

Rajendran in The Return by Keshvan A/L Sugumaran
Gadrick Chin in Tuck by Gordon Ling Fu Chur
Sam Chong in Salary by Cheng Thim Kian
Shobaan Pillay in Diari Kuala Lumpur by Shobaan Pillay A/L Nagarajan

Best Actress

Paige Chan in The Cycle of Violence by Caston J
Tutik Indayani in Return by Sean Kook Way Siong
Louisa Chong in Gigi by Audrie Yeo
Punitah Shanmugam in Diari Kuala Lumpur by Shobaan Pillay A/L Nagarajan
Mandy Chong in Highway by Aw See Wee

Best Cinematography

Ganes Wong in Hello Angel by Mallory Lee Pei Feng
Sean Kook Way Siong in Return by Sean Kook Way Siong
Eldvick Tou in Zuan by Vance Choong Yew Hui
Huang Po Hsiung in Fish by Gan Yu Long

Best Editing

Gordon Ling Fu Chur in Tuck by Gordon Ling Fu Chur
Soo Mun Thye in Fish by Gan Yu Long
Keshvan A/L Sugumaran in The Return by Keshvan A/L Sugumaran
Khaidzir Al Junid in Gigi by Audrie Yeo

Best Screenplay

Audrie Yeo & Fatimah Ruzaimi in Gigi by Audrie Yeo
Gan Yu Long in Fish by Gan Yu Long
Gordon Ling Fu Chur in Tuck by Gordon Ling Fu Chur
Aw See Wee in Highway by Aw See Wee

Best Sound Design

Sha Zovve & Satish Raj in The Cookbook by Indiran Shanmugam
Jaster Fong & Aki Huang in Return by Sean Kook Way Siong
Tan Tong Lin, Tan Yong Fu, Pau Tun Kai in The Warning by Tan Yong Lin
Ng Qin Ying in Fish by Gan Yu Long
Irwan Syah in Gigi by Audrie Yeo

Best Production Design

Low Phoi Chuin in Fish by Gan Yu Long
Zachary Tan in Zuan by Vance Choong Yew Hui
Tee Kai Yang in Hello Angel by Mallory Lee Pei Feng
Louise Yong in Return by Sean Kook Way Siong
Tan Yong Lin, Tan Yong Fu & Pau Tun Kai in The Warning by Tan Yong Lin

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Congratulations to all winners! To watch the BMW Shorties Grand Prize Winner and Finalists short films, log onto their website. Meanwhile, do keep an eye out for our interview piece with Gan Yu Long.