Malaysian filmmaker Edmund Yeo has written and directed short films that garnered awards in numbers of film festival. His 2008 short film “Chicken Rice Mystery” won 2 awards (BMW Shorties)in 2008. I do admit watching the trailer alone convince me that this guys work is a masterpiece. FLEETING IMAGES recieved an awards at the Grand Prix at Japan’s CON-CAN MOVIE FESTIVAL . LOVE SUICIDES was selected for competition at Paris Cinema Film Festival and Split Film Festival. His recent film KINGYO was selected to Compete at the Venice Film Festival in 2009 and won two at Japan’s Eibunren Awards .
Born in 1984 in Singapore, Young Edmund Yeo moved back to Malaysia with his family 2 years later. After doing a post-greaduate course in film production at the Murdock University, Perch in 2006 Edmund join Greenlight picture to pursue a career in filmmaking.
FlixUnlimited: Directing was probably not your dream job growing up what was it? Or have you always wanted to be a director?
Edmund Yeo: I always wanted to be a director.
FlixUnlimited: What was that moment when you have decided to or what triggers you to “Hey I want to do filmmaking”?
Edmund Yeo: As a child, my parents always brought me to the cinema. So I loved films since then. I think I was watching the 1990 film Tremors in the cinema with them at the age of six when I was getting very scared, so my mom decided to deconstruct everything in front of me by explaining softly that what I saw, the monsters, they weren’t real, just illusion created by the director. So I thought it was cool that a movie director was capable of conjuring something like that, and so I guess that was when I wanted to do filmmaking.
FlixUnlimited: “Chicken Rice Mystery” what was it feels like when you win the awards?
Edmund Yeo: The two awards (jury’s honorable mention and best acting performance for my main actress Kimmy Kiew) that Chicken Rice Mystery won at the BMW Shorties 2008 were the first ever awards I won as a filmmaker, and Chicken Rice Mystery was the first short film I made as a writer and director after I got into the film industry, so it’s definitely memorable. It was a bummer that I wasn’t at the awards ceremony (I had already moved to Tokyo then). But it was a good motivation, to know the possibility that perhaps I can make films that can be appreciated by a wider range of audiences, so since then, I never really stopped working.
FlixUnlimited: You have plenty of Short films, any chance of releasing them as a compilation DVD soon?
Edmund Yeo: Yes, Definitely.
FlixUnlimited: What about full Length films, any chance of leaping into there?
Edmund Yeo: Yes. Basically the short films I made now were more for me to sharpen my skills, test the waters in the international festival circuit, just before I embark upon doing a feature-length film.
FlixUnlimited: What is your Favorite Malaysian Film to date, including Horror?
Edmund Yeo: I’ll be frank with you. Like most Malaysians, I grew up watching foreign films. And Malaysian films, especially the independent ones, only started grabbing my attention the same time they were starting to make some noises at the festival circuit around the mid 2000s, in a movement that is called by some as the ‘Malaysian New Wave’. However, it is known by many that the Malaysian independent filmmakers are a tight-knit community, so once I got into the business as a producer during the post-production of Woo Ming Jin’s film THE ELEPHANT AND THE SEA, I was introduced to many of these filmmakers, James Lee, Tan Chui Mui, Liew Seng Tat, Ho Yuhang, etc.
I guess by knowing them personally, it can be quite hard to be objective about their films. So it’s nearly impossible for me to tell you which Malaysian films are my favourites. And I don’t one any of them to blame me for favouritism either!
FlixUnlimited: What about foreign films?
Edmund Yeo: As for foreign films, that’s a tough one. I love films in general as long as they’re great, so it’s hard for me to really name a few titles. it’s probably easier for me to refer to a particular body of work from a director or something like that.
FlixUnlimited: Any hint of when are you going to make (horror film) one?
Edmund Yeo: Nope, for now I don’t think I’ll make one. I might not have the right sensibilities and skill set as a filmmaker for horror. Aside from that, I’m superstitious and fearful of the paranormal.
FlixUnlimited: You met Tsui Hark at a Dubai Film Festival, what was that feels like being with one of the greatest filmmaker in Asia?
Edmund Yeo: To tell you the truth, it was only a brief meeting. I saw him at the closing ceremony, I approached him and asked to take a photo with him. That was it, after that he was swept off by a wave of other photograph-seekers. It didn’t help that legendary actress Brigitte Lin was with him at the time as well.**
But Tsui Hark’s a great inspiration with the role he had played in Asian cinema history, so meeting him and many other directing greats in person, at recent film festivals that I have attended are quite humbling.
FlixUnlimited: Who are the most influential directors in the past and in the present to you?
Edmund Yeo: As a filmmaker, I think I was quite influenced by Wong Kar Wai, Edward Yang, Andrei Tarkovsky, Johnnie To and Shunji Iwai. but I’m quite fickle, so I would always go into a particular phase where I would go through the films of one particular filmmaker for inspiration. Few years ago, I went into a Stanley Kubrick-phase, few months ago I was in a Tarkovsky-phase, right now I’m in a Bela Tarr-phase. I also like Darren Aronofksy, Christopher Nolan, Paul Thomas Anderson, the Coen Brothers, Steven Spielberg, argh, too many to list. But I’ve often overlooked the influence of anime director Hayao Miyazaki in my own filmmaking, so I’ll make sure I won’t omit him again!
FlixUnlimited: Your recent film Kingyo, a Japanese film with all things Japanese, but it was elegantly created how were you able to capture such a great film since you are foreigner to that country, what were the challenges
Edmund Yeo: It was challenging because I couldn’t, and still can’t, speak Japanese that much. So with an all-Japanese cast and crew, I got to experience their way of working. They are very disciplined, efficient and have a remarkable eye for detail that I wasn’t familiar with, since the Malaysian filmmakers I know usually thrive more in spontaneity. So it was a two-way learning experience for me and my crew. For them, they will have to deal with my constant improvisation, for me, I will have to deal with their meticulousness.
I grew up watching a lot of Japanese films, animation, drama, reading a lot of Japanese literature and manga. So I can’t say that I’m a completely oblivious to their culture. Instead of trying to impose my own Malaysian Chinese culture upon a Japanese film, I told everyone in the team, both the cast and crew, that I only wanted to tell a story which has some universal themes. i wanted to be respectful to the authenticity of their culture, so I kept a very ‘loose’ atmosphere during the shoot, where everyone, including the production assistants, were allowed to point out anything that seemed out of place in the performances, or the line-deliveries. It was invaluable.
FlixUnlimited: Asian films are flooding the Western Market, in your opinion what would be other Malaysian filmmakers do in order stay in competition with other countries?
Edmund Yeo: Malaysian cinema is relatively young in the international stage. While many have been winning awards in film festivals, I think we are still in the midst of finding our own identity. I’m relatively new to the business, so it’s not up to me to tell the veterans what to do. But I’ll say that instead of trying to do what films from other countries would like to do, we just have to be ourselves to maintain our uniqueness.
FlixUnlimited: It looks like you are always busy, How do you divide your time between your own personal time and professional work?
Edmund Yeo: Seriously, I don’t really have that much personal time. Haha.
FlixUnlimited: In 5 Years, where do you see yourself?
Edmund Yeo: Still making films, hopefully.
FlixUnlimited: Last say, Any tip to aspiring directors?
Edmund Yeo This is a cliche, but I can only say, just pick up a camera and shoot anything you see. I don’t wear Adidas shoes, but I can agree that “Impossible is nothing”
FlixUnlimited: On behalf of Flixunlimited, Thank you
Learn more about Edmond Yeo, his films, film review and more by visiting his Blog
