Filed under: Kampung Baru Alaf Baru (AKA: New Age New Village), The Malaysian Insider, broadcast, directing, documentary, film, journalism, writing | Tags: malaysia, zan azlee, fat bidin, documentary, 1malaysia, film, ntv7, malay, video journalism, journalism, kuala lumpur, kampung baru
In spite of all the work that I’ve been swamped with this whole year… I managed to make another feature film! Damn I’m good! It’s called KAMPUNG BARU ALAF BARU (English Title: NEW AGE NEW VILLAGE)! It’s DA BOM!! Watch it on ntv7 this National Day (31st August 2010, 10:30am)!
Kampung Baru Alaf Baru
By Zan Azlee
AUG 27 — Kampung Baru has always interested me. For the unacquainted, it’s a Malay village situated in the heart of the city of Kuala Lumpur. So there are traditional wooden Malay houses with chickens running around, and in the background are concrete and steel skyscrapers. I like the juxtaposition of urban modern and rural traditional that Kampung Baru has. And so what do I decide to do? Yes, folks, I decide to grab my video camera, drive down to Kampung Baru and shoot myself a documentary film solo-journalism style! [Click to read the rest of the article]
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, broadcast, directing, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, new media | Tags: deleted file, file recovery
I curse the computer! I curse the hard disk! I lost the the entire Final Cut Pro project file of my film, ‘THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY‘! I curse Final Cut Pro! I curse my film! I have no other copies! I curse the copies! Who has a copy of my film? Give one back to me please! A file recovery software is now scanning my hard disk! I curse file recovery softwares! Oh no wait… let’s see if it can do the job first! If not, then I’ll curse it! If you’ve been following FATBIDIN.TV and are still waiting for the next episode… sorry! I curse FATBIDIN.TV! Does this mean I will have to re-edit my entire film? I curse re-editing! I curse the curses that I’m using to curse with!
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, I'm Muslim Too!, broadcast, directing, documentary, film, lecture | Tags: documentary, economic, fat bidin, film, forum, heading to the border, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, islamic, solo journalism, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, video journalism, web video, world, zan azlee
Come one! Come all! I have been invited to speak at the 6th World Islamic Economic Forum 2010 under the Marketplace of Creative Arts! I’ll be talking and screening clips from my films ‘I’M MUSLIM TOO!‘ and ‘THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY‘. Come and you might even get the chance to touch me!
Date & Time: 18th May (12:30pm), 19th May 2010 (2pm)
Venue: Conference Hall 2, Level 3, KL Convention Centre
(Click on the images below for more details)
Marketplace Schedule
Marketplace Speakers
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, I'm Muslim Too!, The Malaysian Insider, directing, documentary, film, film festival, lecture, writing | Tags: zan azlee, documentary, The Malaysian Insider, I'm Muslim Too!, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, film, heading to the border, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, berkeley, jajang noer
(Left-Right) Zan Azlee, Dr Marshall Clark, Elyna Shukri, Jajang C. Noer and Dr Sarah Maxim, director of Centre of Southeast Asia Sudies
So I’m still in California for the Islam Today Arts & Culture Festival at UC Berkeley and I recently was part of a panel discussion which consisted of the late Yasmin Ahmad’s producer, Elyna Shukri, veteran Indonesian actress, Jajang C. Noer, and moderated by Dr Marshall Clark from Deakin University in Australia.
It was a great discussion of course! So great that I had to write about it in my latest column at The Malaysian Insider!
Malaysia and Indonesia — how we make films
By Zan Azlee
APRIL 23 — I’m still suffering from the cold winds of the San Francisco Bay area. Most recently, after the screening of my films and lecture at University of California, Berkeley, I was part of a panel discussion entitled ‘Making movies in Indonesia and Malaysia”.
Aside from me, the other panellists included the late Yasmin Ahmad’s producer, Elyna Shukri, and veteran Indonesian actress, Jajang C. Noer. It was moderated by Dr Marshall Clark from Deakin University in Australia.
First of all, I was a little intimidated being in the presence of such experienced industry professionals. Elyna had produced some of Malaysia’s most thought-provoking films in recent history, while Jajang has starred in more films than the years I have been alive! [Click to read the rest of the article]
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, broadcast, directing, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, internet, journalism, new media, video blog | Tags: documentary, Fat Bidin Presents..., fat bidin tv, fatbidin.tv, film, heading to the border, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, insurgency, islam, malay, malaysia, media, muslim, pattani, terrorism, thailand, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, video journalism, web video, zan azlee
I know I’ve neglected FATBIDIN.TV for some time. I’ve received so many messages from all of you asking me for new episodes (kinda touching that there are followers!). You gotta understand… a guy has got to eat! But fret no more! A new episode is up!
FAT BIDIN PRESENTS…
THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY
Part 13 of 15
Did you know that in some places, the Malaysian media is the more trusted one?
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, I'm Muslim Too!, The Malaysian Insider, directing, documentary, film, film festival, lecture | Tags: zan azlee, documentary, The Malaysian Insider, I'm Muslim Too!, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, film, heading to the border, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, berkeley
Rainbow greetings from San Francisco! I’m attending the Islam Today Arts & Culture Festival at UC Berkeley. My films have screened and I also gave a lecture there. Everything’s good and thank god for good lobster!
Outside the screening venue in Berkeley. Notice the huge crowd gathering around me trying to catch my films!
I gave a lecture to a group of students at the University of California, Berkeley. It was fun and we had a laugh!
These are the professors... Prof. Jeffrey Hadler and Dr. Sarah Maxim.
Lobster babyyyy!!
And.. here’s this week’s column for The Malaysian Insider.
How much did that film cost?
By Zan Azlee
APRIL 16 — Here I am at the San Francisco Bay Area, with the freezing cold wind blowing in my face, giving me extremely chapped lips.
I came here to attend the Islam Today Arts & Culture Festival, organised by University of California, Berkeley’s Centre of Southeast Asia Studies.
They were screening two films of mine, and had invited me to give a lecture and be part of a panel discussion. [Click to read the rest of the article]
Now I’m off to The Castro!
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, I'm Muslim Too!, broadcast, directing, documentary, film, film festival, journalism, lecture | Tags: malaysia, zan azlee, fat bidin, documentary, islam, I'm Muslim Too!, pattani, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, film, heading to the border, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, insurgency, video journalism, san francisco, berkeley, university of california
Looks like FAT BIDIN is gonna rock the San Francisco Bay area!
Two of my films (I’m Muslim Too! and The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency) will be screening at the University of California, Berkeley’s Islam Today Arts & Culture Festival. So I’ll be heading to San Francisco this Friday and will be there for a couple of weeks. I’m pretty excited since I’m also scheduled to give some talks over there.
So if you’re in the vicinity next week (12th to 22nd April 2010) and would like to get a good look at my beautiful face, come on over! Check out the website and schedule here.
Oh… other Malaysian films that will be screening there aside from mine include Yasmin Ahmad’s (Gubra and Muallaf) as well as Amir Muhammad’s (Village People Radio Show and Malaysian Gods).
Filed under: broadcast, directing, documentary, film, film festival, internet, journalism, lecture, metropolis, new media, video blog | Tags: documentary, dutch, holland, islam, malaysia, metropolis, muslim, netherlands, polgamy, vpro, zan azlee
Yo yo! What can I say? I’m going to sound like a broken record but… I’ve been so BUSY!! Been lecturing at the university (one of the heaviest semesters I’ve ever had!)… and trying to complete a historical documentary for ASTRO… before going to San Francisco for the University of California, Berkeley’s Islam Today Film Festival at the end of this week! Damn!!!!
But still I managed to complete a report for Dutch TV station VPRO’s Metropolis TV. It’s about polygamy in Malaysia… I shot a polygamous Muslim family… four wives and 17 kids! It went on air in Holland last Saturday… but you can watch it online by clicking here.
Filed under: The Malaysian Insider, broadcast, directing, documentary, film, internet, journalism, writing | Tags: documentary, fat bidin, film, solo journalism, The Malaysian Insider, zan azlee
Work is tough! Especially when you have so much of it! I’ve been busy directing a historical documentary. Should be out on TV soon. Will let you all know once the time comes!
In the meantime… check out my latest column at The Malaysian Insider!
Solo journalism vs one-man band
By Zan Azlee
MARCH 19 — I’m an advocate of solo journalism, as you will know if you’ve been following my writings here on The Malaysian Insider. That’s how I shoot a lot of my work. Basically, I am the producer, director, videographer, editor and even host/presenter. I used to describe my method simply as being a one-man band or crew. But then I read a commentary by veteran broadcaster Michael Rosenblum.
Michael Rosenblum is another person who is a strong advocate of solo journalism and I share many of his views on why solo journalism is the way to go. But recently, he wrote something on his website that got me thinking. He differentiated solo journalism and one man bands when it comes to news production. It caught my interest and got me thinking.
In fact, this column is also inspired by a conversation I had with one of the head editors at The Malaysian Insider recently regarding solo journalism. I was for it, and he was against it! His argument was that a solo journalist wouldn’t be efficient enough as compared to a small crew. [Click to read the rest of the article]
Filed under: The Malaysian Insider, directing, documentary, film, internet, journalism, new media, writing | Tags: documentary, fat bidin, film, The Malaysian Insider, zan azlee
Fellow peeps! Forgive me if the updates have been irregular. I’ve been so busy with the start of the new semester at the university and also with the tons of work I have making videos and whatnot! Apologies to those who have missed me so much! Hahaha!
Here is my latest column at The Malaysian Insider:
How to market your work online
By Zan Azlee
MARCH 12 — I have two blogs. I have two Facebook pages and one Facebook group. I have a Twitter page. I have a YouTube channel. I have a Flickr account. As you can see, I love the Internet. What do I use if for? The main purpose? It’s to promote the work that I do, and to promote myself. Basically, marketing.
As you probably know, I make films, news videos, write and speak. I don’t work for any particular media company. I’m basically self-employed, running my own little company called Fat Bidin Media. I need to constantly look for clients, and one of the main ways for me to do that is to use the Internet. [click to read the rest of the article]
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, broadcast, directing, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, journalism, video blog | Tags: allah, christian, documentary, Fat Bidin Presents..., fat bidin tv, fatbidin.tv, father lawrence, film, heading to the border, herald, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, insurgency, islam, malay, malaysia, muslim, pattani, prince songkhla university, solo journalism, terrorism, thailand, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, video journalism, web video, zan azlee
The Chinese New Year celebrations are over! I lost money at the gambling table! Dammit! But there’s still good news! New episode on FATBIDIN.TV!
FAT BIDIN PRESENTS…
THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY
Part 12 of 15
I lecture at the Prince Songkhla University in Pattani, Thailand, about Malaysian press freedom. Then I get lectured to about the Thai Malay exodus. Heavy stuff man!
Filed under: The Malaysian Insider, directing, documentary, film, internet, journalism, writing | Tags: documentary, film, islam, malay, malaysia, muslim, The Malaysian Insider, video journalism, zan azlee
Another week… another column at The Malaysian Insider.
I’m a Muslim filmmaker and I make Islamic films
By Zan Azlee
FEB 19 — I’m a Muslim and I make films. I guess that constitute me as a Muslim filmmaker. It doesn’t even matter if my films are about Islam or not. Well, my films are mainly about myself anyway (and from all the complaints I get from readers, so is this column, apparently!) and indirectly, my films become about Islam too.
[Click to read the rest of the article]
Filed under: The Malaysian Insider, directing, documentary, film, internet, journalism, writing | Tags: documentary, ethics, interview, media, solo journalism, The Malaysian Insider, video journalism, zan azlee
Responsible filmmaking
FEB 6 — When you make films that deal with real events and people, there are always sensitivities that are of concern. The responsibility that comes with being a non-fiction filmmaker is tremendous. So tremendous that I almost quit years ago when I was criticised for not being a responsible filmmaker.
I made a documentary film about people who travel in public busses entitled ‘The Black, White & Grey’. It was a documentary centred around the chats I conducted with random people in a bus. One of the passenger I spoke to was a teacher who spoke to me about his private life (ie: sex life). Then he tried to hit on me!
[Click here to read the rest of the article]
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, directing, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, internet, journalism, new media, video blog | Tags: allah, christian, documentary, Fat Bidin Presents..., fat bidin tv, fatbidin.tv, father lawrence, film, heading to the border, herald, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, insurgency, islam, malay, malaysia, muslim, pattani, solo journalism, terrorism, thailand, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, video journalism, web video, zan azlee
Yes! New episodes on FATBIDIN.TV! Also… WE THE PEOPLE… returns with a banging new episode after a long break!
FAT BIDIN PRESENTS…
THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY
Part 11 of 15
What are the Malay kids learning in Thai schools?? And what’s this about teachers being shot??
WE THE PEOPLE… … Chats with Father Lawrence Andrew, Editor of the Herald (about that whole ‘Allah’ debacle!)
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, P1 W1MAX, directing, fatbidin.tv, film, internet, journalism, new media, video blog | Tags: malaysia, zan azlee, documentary, islam, pattani, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, thailand, terrorism, muslim, film, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, web video, fat bidin tv, fatbidin.tv, Fat Bidin Presents..., feminism, insurgency, malay, media, bomb, hotel, CS hotel
I know! The updates on FATBIDIN.TV have been sporadic. You try to be me then if you think its so easy! Anyway… new episodes!
FAT BIDIN PRESENTS…
THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY
Part 9 of 15
Hotels that get bombed!
THE P1 NET SHOW
Episode 7 – Christmas Media Night
These Internet guys know how to party!
Filed under: The Malaysian Insider, broadcast, directing, film, internet, journalism, new media, writing | Tags: the biggest loser asia, The Malaysian Insider, video journalism, zan azlee
Okay… since working on The Biggest Loser Asia… I’ve decided to explore tapeless video recording for my future projects. Hence, the topic for my latest article in The Malaysian Insider.
Shooting videos in tapeless format
DEC 22 — When making documentaries and various videos, I like to believe that I’m always keeping abreast with the latest technology. I started in a time when digital video (DV) was hot on everyone’s lips. It was amazing how cheap camcorders can record amazing quality on RM10 one-hour tapes. It totally democratised media and also the way people made videos. [Click to read the rest of the article]
By the way… The Biggest Loser Asia wraps today!! Damn… it’s like waking up to the same day for the last 2 months in A’Farmosa! Talk about Groundhogs Day! Can’t wait to fly out to Saigon for some Vietnamese beef noodles this weekend with the wifey!
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, directing, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, internet, new media, video blog | Tags: malaysia, zan azlee, documentary, islam, pattani, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, thailand, terrorism, muslim, film, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, krue se mosque, web video, fat bidin tv, fatbidin.tv, Fat Bidin Presents..., feminism, insurgency, malay, media, muallafs
Even more new episodes on FATBIDIN.TV!
FAT BIDIN PRESENTS…
THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY
Part 8 of 15
Muallafs in Thailand!
And stupid me forgot to post Part 7 of 15 here!
Part 7 of 15
Good little girl who memorizes all her essential prayers!
Go and watch lah! Please?!?
Filed under: I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, P1 W1MAX, directing, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, internet, journalism, new media, video blog | Tags: documentary, Fat Bidin Presents..., fat bidin tv, fatbidin.tv, feminism, film, I'M MUSLIM TOO! Heading to the border, insurgency, islam, krue se mosque, malay, malaysia, media, muslim, pattani, terrorism, thailand, The Life & Times of an Islamic Insurgency, web video, zan azlee
New episodes on FATBIDIN.TV!
FAT BIDIN PRESENTS…
THE LIFE & TIMES OF AN ISLAMIC INSURGENCY
Part 6 of 15
There’s an abandoned village (many actually!) where all the villagers have left and gone to Malaysia
THE P1 NET SHOW
Episode 6 – Unboxing of the P1 DV230 (Part 1 & 2)
Know what a P1 DV230 is? It’s all explained in the unboxing.
Filed under: The Malaysian Insider, broadcast, documentary, fatbidin.tv, film, internet, journalism, new media | Tags: solo journalism, The Malaysian Insider, video journalism, zan azlee
Below is an excerpt of my latest column in The Malaysian Insider. I’ve been practicing and advocating it for years! So listen to me people!
Let’s all go solo-journalism!
DEC 1 — I first heard or read about solo-journalism about four years ago. It was the buzz word at that time, especially in the television news industry in the United Kingdom.
Some of the first few practitioners included Sean Langan, Sean McAllister, David Dunkley Gyimah and Kevin Sites. Their work would air on the BBC, Channel Four and even at film festivals. Some were even nominated for BAFTAs and Emmies.
I was so enthralled I gave it a try. Now almost all of my documentaries and news are in the solo-journalism style. [Click to read the full article]
