Local film company SunStrong Entertainment recently concluded its Scam Prevention Short Film Contest in Beijing, China with an awards ceremony. The contest was created in response to the growing need to raise awareness about scam prevention.
Co-organized by China’s Horizon Corporate Volunteer Consultancy (HCVC), the international contest commenced in November of the previous year and received a total of 59 entries, with 29 entries for the Open Category and 29 for the Student Category. From each category, ten entries were shortlisted.
Following the award ceremony, a total of US$128,000 (RM590,656) was awarded to winning entries, which included a number of Malaysian-made works.
The contest’s theme, “Contribute Your Talent To Prevent Scam,“ fostered friendly engagement between the people of Malaysia and China in the arts, united by a common cause. The ceremony also featured performances of Malay traditional dances and Chinese fan dances, further highlighting the cultural exchange.
SunStrong Entertainment founder Jment Lim, who is also one of the judges, says, “These works not only show the creativity and talent of the contestants but also the significance of this contest as we get to see that society at large is concerned about the prevalence of scams, as well as everyone’s enthusiasm and devotion for the public interest.”
He remarked that the contest’s effort to fight scams does not end with it the winning entries will be made available on major social media platforms and the company’s website, hoping that these works will continue to play a role in preventing scams.
“We may not completely stop scams from happening, but we can make an effort to prevent as much tragedies as possible,” he says.
Wang Zhongping, the founder and CEO of HCVC, commended SunStrong Entertainment for their innovative initiative, acknowledging its benefits to society.
He says, “I would like to thank Jment Lim for his strong support and everyone else who have dedicated themselves throughout this contest to allow the process to run smoothly. If it were up to me, all shortlisted works deserve to receive an award.”
For the Student Category, the first prize of US$5,000 (RM23,073) went to A Forever Promise (China) which centers around a young graduate who ended up as a job scam victim, while the second prize, Got Trapped (Malaysia), and third prize, Sink (Malaysia) were awarded US$3,000 (RM13,844) and US$1,500 (RM6,922), respectively.
As for the Open Category, Help (China) which tells the story of a phone scam victim, bagged the first prize of US$50,000 (RM230,725). Coming in second is Bad Days (Malaysia) which won US$20,000 (RM92,290) while Scripted (Malaysia) came in third to win US$10,000 (RM46,145). Thanking the judges for the recognition, the Malaysian winners say that this inspires them to put out greater work in the future.
It was a moment of pride when Malaysian submissions won every Excellence Award for this category. All seven of them – Putih Hati, Love Chess, I’m Here For You, Susan, Money Tree, Bungkam, and Desire were awarded US$5,000 (RM23,073) each.
The winners of the Open Category will be able to submit their film proposals to SunStrong Entertainment for consideration. A chance to receive a grant of up to $1 million (RM4.61 million) to produce a feature film.
Award-winning Malaysian filmmaker Chong Keat Aun and Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Ruby Yang served on the contest’s jury panel.
The short films are available for viewing at https://sseshortfilmcontest.com/Gallery
