Final SUARA Community Filmmaking Workshop of 2014 held in Sabah

Credit: SUARA / BEFF

Since its inception in 2011, the Borneo Eco Film Festival (BEFF) has run a training programme for aspiring community filmmakers called SUARA ("voice" in Bahasa Malaysia). In 2014, four workshops were held throughout the year, culminating in a five-day intensive workshop from 29 October to 2 November at the Sabah Forestry Department's district office at Lok Kawi.

There were over 40 participants from 24 villages and towns across Sabah, who learned practical skills in storytelling, pre-production, filming, and post-production. By the end of the workshop, each of the seven groups conceptualised and produced their own short film (including on topics such as Indigenous Rungus beadwork and the journey of a young urban Indigenous man from the forests of northern Sabah). Two of the films have been selected for public screening at the upcoming Centenary celebrations of the Sabah Forestry Department in the week of 9 November 2014. Congratulations to all of the participants and thanks to the many sponsors, supporters, and volunteers. For more information, check out local media coverage in Sabahkini and the Daily Express.

Community Filmmaking Workshops Held Alongside Borneo Eco Film Festival

From 25-29 September, Holly Jonas (Natural Justice) joined the SUARA community film-making programme in Sabah, Malaysia, which was held alongside the third annual Borneo Eco Film Festival. SUARA (which means 'voice' in Bahasa Malaysia) is all about celebrating the natural and cultural heritage of Borneo through the voices and perspectives of people from the island. The flagship programme was SUARA KOMUNITI, a year-long capacity building programme that includes village-level workshops with professional film-makers and culminates in the September training with participants from Indigenous and local communities from across Sabah. This year, four of the films made by groups in the intermediate/advanced stream were screened in public during the closing night of the Film Festival and will soon be available on the Festival website.

It also featured SUARA PUBLIKA, a special series of workshops and talks by artists, grassroots organisations, and leading scientists, which this year included topics as diverse as heritage preservation, Indigenous Dusun folklore, hornbill conservation, wetland and mangrove restoration, e-waste, community livelihoods, and marine protected areas.

Please consider supporting the Borneo Eco Film Festival; it is a non-profit event that is truly making a difference in nurturing and amplifying the voices of the Indigenous stewards of Borneo's biological and cultural diversity.