1) Bront Palarae, actor
“You should not get too happy with your highs and you should not get too down with your lows. The feelings of rejection and dejection are part and parcel of the job. When I first joined the entertainment industry, everyone kept telling me that it is a dog-eat dog world, and that I should not trust anyone; that genuine friendships do not exist here and people are eager to backstab you. Well, I have made some great friends in the entertainment industry. Nothing works without trust."
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2)Julian Jayaseela, author cum film producer
“My family was so poor that we could not afford a television. So my eight siblings and I spent most of our time reading. We got excited about books. On hindsight, I must be thankful that there was no television in my house. Perhaps I would not have become an ardent reader.”
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3) Syamsul Yusof, film director
"When I started my career, I had actors who disrespected me on the set. I had critics who doubted me. But if you want to be successful in your field, you have to develop a thick skin, and learn to ignore your critics.If you are in the film business, you will always have to face the critics. Even great films like Avatar have critics. You cannot impress everyone.”
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4)U- Wei, film director
"I cannot give up because filmmaking is the only thing I know how to do. But there are times I’ve asked myself: ‘Why am I doing this? Am I a machoistic?’ Before I became a filmmaker, I only thought women bleed. Now I know I am wrong. Filmmakers bleed, too."
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5) Eka Kurniawan, author
“Consciously or unconsciously, a writer always has messages in the stories. But the writer must understand that readers may interpret these message differently [from the original intent]. The readers may not see things the same way [as the writer]. The writer has no control over how his readers would interpret his stories. But I strong believes a story should not become a sermon.Once a story becomes a sermon, the story is no longer interesting."
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7) Wan Hanafi Su, actor
“Most producers are only interested in making commercial movies because they want to make profits. Money should not be their only aim to make movies. Don’t they want to make a film where people will remember them many years later?”
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8)Iedil Putra, actor
"Sometimes the industry can kill your spirit, and there are times I feel jaded being a Malaysian actor. It is difficult to get good scripts and good roles. Sometimes, you have to accept roles that you are not happy with because you have to put food on the table. In some productions, I am given a script just a day before the shoot. Sometimes, the script gets written on the set just hours before shooting begins. How do you expect an actor to get into his character just hours before the shoot? But I am passionate about what I do, and you don’t give up on what you are passionate about. You just stick with it.”
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9) Fahmi Mustaffa, author
“We live in an absurd world, where we are [always] looking for answers. We are always curious to know if there is a higher power up there, watching [us]. I find most of us worship religion, and not God. Personally, I believe nothing should come between you and God, not even religion.”
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10) Norhayati Kaprawi, documentary maker cum activist.
“The interpretation of Islam should not be monopolised by the conservatives only. Islam is close to my heart. I do not believe Islam is oppressive. I do not believe Islam is violent. That is what I want to show in my documentaries.”
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11) Shaheizy Sam actor
“I never thought I would last [this] long in the movie industry. Producers are always looking out for tall, fair and handsome actors. I do not fulfil those requirements. But thanks to [shorter actors like] Al Pacino and Tom Cruise, I learned that height has nothing to do with acting ability. They are successful actors. I need to be like them and be extremely good in what I am doing.”
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12) Saharil Hasrin Sanin author
“I am jealous of authors who can sit and write for hours, transferring their thoughts on to the computer.I can’t do what they do. I go to the gym quite frequently and let me tell you, for me, working out the muscles is less tiring than working out the mind. ”
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13) Harith Iskander, comedian.
“It was in 2010 when my father passed away in February and three weeks later, my mother passed away in March. My father was 76 and my mother was 82. They had lived their lives to the fullest. When they died, the reason for me to live disappeared. Thank God, my wife entered the picture in the same year and [gave] me a reason to carry on with my life.”
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14) Mahadi J. Murat, film director
"Filmmakers must not be restricted to just making certain types of films. They have a responsibility to provide alternative movies from [the] mainstream. There is a [substantial percentage] of audiences who are looking for different genres, and filmmakers must fulfil this need. How many times have we met movie fans who said that they do not watch Malay movies because they do not like the [content]? We need to change that. We can only do that if we tackle different themes. Besides, the audience’s mood is difficult to predict. Look at The Journey (2014), which is about an apek tua (old Chinese man) who is busy preparing for his daughter’s wedding. Where’s the commercial appeal of this storyline?But interestingly enough, [it] became a box-office hit and touched many hearts. "
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15) Syafiq Yusof, film maker
“We are always under the impression that if you do good things, then good things will come your way. But sometimes, life does not work that way. Maybe, there is no fairness in the world. You can go [mad] thinking about [that]. Maybe the good things ... will be given to you when you are in heaven.”
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16) Nadiya Nissa, actress
“Some production managers will call you and just ask you if you are free on certain dates to act in their projects. Then, they will ask you about your [fees]. But they will not tell you about the script and your role. The script will be given to you just three days before the shoot. In some cases, you only get the script on the set. These people just want you to come on the set, and [say] the dialogue. They do not care if you fit in the role or not. They do not care if you can give a good performance or not.It just goes to show the industry does not respect actors. This can be very demoralising. You begin to question why should you put your heart and soul in your role, when such attitudes exist. All I can do for now is to develop a thick skin, ignore such attitudes and only hope the industry will change for the better."
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17) Zikri Rahman, activist
“We all have a certain negative mindset about migrant workers. We tend to associate them with crimes. We always hear complaints from Malaysians that they are smelly. [But] most of us do not understand the conditions they are living in. Sometimes, 20 migrant workers are living in one apartment ... [where] they have to share three bathrooms.Sometimes, two of the bathrooms are not in working condition [and they end up having] to share one bathroom. [How can we expect them to maintain hygiene] living in such pathetic conditions?Almost every day, we hear stories about migrants dying in construction sites. They [are dying] while helping us build our city.”
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