A CULTURAL HISTORY OF MALAY FILMS

The history of the Malay industry is a history of film art the dissemination of Malay Culture, especially a close link and certain similarities of Malay/Indian culture.
In its early years, the making of Malay film is more business oriented, rather than a cultural inclinations, thus the Indian takes a pioneer status in creating a Malay film industry, but it’s growth and development in later years, make it a multiracial endeavor, the Chinese provided the money as producers, distributors and exhibitors, the Indians provide the know how as directors and technicians, and the Malays provide rich talent as actors. Thus till the present day, history pushes Malay filmmaker to produce films where culture and commercial elements had to be blended. Malay activists stressed strongly film are not simply commercial enterprise. They are culture. In the case of Malay film, transition of culture from Indian to Malay is natural, but much more difficult, with Chinese culture.
This heavy culture leaning saw and caused the production of the first Malay film "LAILA MAJNUN" (1933), a middle Eastern love story, with Islamic overtones, and naturally well accepted by the Malay movie going public, a platonic love story, pure in its presentation of thing, cultural and religion.
"LAILA MAJNUN" produced by Bombay Chemical co, supplying projector earborns for theatres in Malaya, realized the potential profec of making Malay films, based on their observation of the tumultuous number of Malaysian as cinema fans, taking note of the easy availability of Hollywood, Indian and Chinese films, where as films in the Malay language is non existent.
The success of "LAILA MAJNUN" through only screened in independent Theaters, prompted SHAW BROTHER to bring in film production equipments, and Chinese director to Singapore, to make Malay Films (1937), and between 1938 to the outbreak of World War II (1942), Shaw Brother produced 8 Malay films, "MUTIARA", "BERMADU", "HANCHOR HATT", "TOPENG SHAITAN", "IBU TIRI", "TERANG BULAN DI MALAYA", "TIGA KEKASIH", and "MATA HANTU", at the box office they never met roaring success, the Malay patrons seem to reject the idea content of the film adapted directly from Chinese films, presents things not in tandem with Malay art and culture.
The Japanese occupation (1942) scuttled the budding film industry, through their film department EIGA HAKIYU SHA, there is the invisibility of encouragement to produce Malay films, but also Hollywood films are banned from screening at the cinemas, the theaters were forced to screen Japanese films with blatant propaganda contents to promote "South East Asia Coprosperity Sphere", as in films "SINGAPORE SOKOGEKI", "SHINA NO YORU" and "MARAI NO TORA".
Documentary films were in plenty, newsreel featuring the victorious Japanese against the allied armies, and clipping of films encouraging the adaptation and the adaptation of Japanese culture, such as Bushido and others.
To counter the deep seated Japanese propagation of their culture, a Malay film was produced by a local Indian businessman after the war, CHISTY who floated a company, Malaya Art Production and produced its only Malay film "SERUAN MERDEKA" or "FREEDOM CALL", a dramatic story of an underground movement to fight faeism, the first film of Sino Malay characteristic, a Malay and a Chinese youth lead the underground movement. A Sino Malay content in Malay films are rare indeed, the Malay demands that Malay films should have total Malay contents, but in later years with the growing call of racial unity, to fight for "MERDEKA", a number films of these nature came into production, among others "SELAMAT TINGGAL KEKASIHKU" (1955), directed by L. Krishnan, "GERIMIS" (1968) by the evergreen P. Ramlee, claimed by Malaysia and Singapore as their very own, and the award winning "TSU FEH-SOFIA" directed by Rahim Razali, and the widening of these multicultural visions will see more films dealing with multicultural characters, but with Malay culture as the basic point, the latest film being "MOON SECRET AFFAIR" by the noted woman director SHUHAIMI BABA.
Through a well made film directed by B.S. Rajhans, who directed the first Malay film "LAILA MAJNUN", and considered as the doyen among Indian film directors directing Malay films, the monopoly history of cinema trade of that period were controlled and manipulated by the entertainment giants, Shaw Brothers and Cathay Organization, who practiced a close door policy of screening of films, not made by their own studios, caused "SERUAN MERDEKA", to be screened sparsely, thus not many people knew of its existence.
Films directed by Rajhans are well received by the Malays, the idea content does not offense the Malays, who are defiant in defending their culture, and give a new perception to Shaw Brothers, that Malay films should be directed by Indian film directors, whose cultures have became part and parcel of Malay culture especially in films of that period mostly dealing with domestic life. Mothers and wives being "the goddess" of the family which run parallel with Malay family life.
The success and the imprint left by B.S. Rajhans, caused the influx of Indian film directors, in the period between 1947 to 1962, Shaw Brothers employed no less than 9 Indian film directors, among them B.S. Rajhans, S. Ramanathan, L. Krishnan, K.M. Bashker, B.N. Rao, V. Grimaji, K.R.S. Shastry, and Phani Majumdar, Diresh Gosh and Kidar Sharma.
Through they directed no less 70 films certainly they no attempt to "Indianise" Malays films, even if most the films are freely "adapted" from English, Chinese, Indian, especially Tamil films, the opposite is a truism, the "Malaynised" of these foreign films, in terms of to "change" foreign cultures and ways of life into indigenous cultures easily accepted by Malay patronage, but the existence of certain "adapted" Malay films, were a translation or carbon copies of these foreign films, intact in its "spirit and culture" some of which very sensitive in nature, causing grave concern and offense to the Malays.
The fifties were a nationalistic era, the freedom generation, the puritan cultural generation, and with their vocal demand that Malay film should be directed by Malays, spearheading this is the Singapore Malay Journalist Association who sees the enroachment of foreign culture and misrepresentation of native culture via "adapted" films by Indian director.
Taking into account that true representation of local culture is an integral and necessary by the local film industry, this Shaw Brothers heed the demand, and appointed a former Assistant Director, Haji Mahdi a full pledged director, with his maiden effort "PERMATA DIPERLIMBAHAN" (1952), it was badly made, and its "business taking", dismal. This served as a pretext that Malay cannot master a western technological art, but the demand for Malays to direct Malay films were never put to rest, as a matter of fact the demand became more vocal, with growing support from cultural bodies. The call of history cannot be ignored or buried it is momentous period, and grow in momentum, the demand almost took a political shape, due to its nationalistic nature.
P. Ramlee was asked to direct "PENARIK BECHA" (1955) and S. Roomai Noor to direct "ADAM" (1956). Ramlee’s first directorial assignment was a historical success, beating the collection of all past Malay films, with the exception of "BAWANG PUTEH BAWANG MERAH" (1959).
The failure of Haji Mahadi as a film director created doubts of the credibility of more Malays to direct Malay film the growing nationalistic resolute demand cannot be ignored, Shaw choose a cultural ploy by bringing in Manila film makers whose Tagalog language has a close linkage with Malay language, but poles apart culturally.
Malay film Production brought in same top and award winning names Filipino film directors to direct the their "BAHASA MELAYU" films among them Eddy Infante (1954), Ramon Estella (1957), who directed 11 Malay films, T.C. Santo, Rolf Boyes, B. Avellana (1958) who directed the first Malay war film "Sergeant Hassan". These directors were Hollywood oriented; thus their screenplays tend to be remake Hollywood films replete with western cultures. They too were swept away by the current demand of national culture.
The Nationally revered P. Ramlee is the saviour of Malay film directors confidence grew among the Chinese producers that Malay culturally motivated films should be directed by Malays.
With the advent of new Malay film directors, there is a tendency to go back to their root cultures, that is their films used folk tales and history as their screenplay. Jamil Sulung with "BATU BELAH BATU BERTANGKUP" (1959) and "LANCHANG KUNING" (1961).
The fifties is regarded the "golden age" of Malay films, new Malay director discovered, the return to Malay spirit with the filming of folklore and legends, and the huge crowd patronizing Malay films, and Culture has become or profitable commodity.
With the advent of television in the late sixties, and with agitation by the left wing unions SATU (SINGAPORE AMALGAMATED TRADE UNION), who controlled the work force of both studios, culminating is a strike at Malay film Production in 1957, and the declining box office revenues, forced Shaw Brothers close their studios in the late sixties, and Cathay Keris folowed two years later, and also spelled the domise of the studio system, and Malay film productions ceased in Singapore, and move to Kuala Lumpur in line with the spirit of Merdeka with the opening of Merdeka Studios in 1960, with their first film "TUN TEJAH" and to close in 1980, and was brought over by FINAS. The National Film Development Board set up in 1981, to develop the growth of the film industry. FINAS strong position has created a number of landmarks in the advancement of Malay films.
In 1975, Deddy M. Borhan produced a color film "KELUARGA SI COMAT", and it’s success led to other Malays to produce Malay films, and thus begins the Era of the Bumiputra.
Malaysian as present produced 10 to 15 films yearly, have their own film festival and will continue to grow with the leadership of FINAS, and the film associations.

taken from ; http://www.geocities.com/seapavaa/whatsnew/malay.html