Back from Japan!!! SUMO-Lah hampir ke garisan penamat.

Hi gang apa khabar? Memang sudah lama saya tak menulis didalam blog ini kerana kehidupan yang bergelumang dengan kerja untuk memperbaiki diri dan menjadi yang terbaik mungkin di dalam kerjaya saya.
Minggu lepas saya dikenalkan dengan budaya kerja orang jepun and i am quite awed at how friendly, efficient and how quickly they adapted to working with my crew. The shoot went smooth, with some minor annoyances, but as a whole i think we have an outstanding product in SUMO-Lah. It was really touching to see the two crews exchange goodbyes as we were leaving back to kl and i must say i never tire watching grown men cry as i know that they have been moved by the whole new experience.
Semalam saya baru pulang dari Jepun bersama krew saya dan saya rasa amat teruja berjumpa dengan anak bini saya. I missed them so much. My daughters have grown up so much, the way they talk, their facial expressions and i just can't help but ask myself what part i had in helping them be this way. Don't get me wrong, i am not complaining about being busy but i pray to allah i never lose sight of what is really important to me, my family.
Going to Japan and experiencing the freedom at which the artistes there are able to express their souls through their art really made me think about our country and made me ask myself what i want to achieve in my short time here on this earth. I have never wanted to be too popular and end up having a wedding at klcc, but i have this need to do work which will, even if in a small way, be inspirational to people. I think when you die people very rarely remember how much money you have, but they will remember... if you have done or affected them somehow. I guess i have a need to make a difference, to make an impact, to leave a mark on this earth when i leav,e so that in times to come, some good will come from it. I realise in japan that my fight really means something and my quest is really important to me... and money isn't a great motivator anymore. I guess when you start not to care about the dollars and sense of it all (I can already see investors squinting their eyes as wrinkles slowly form on their foreheads) you are free to explore the depths of your creativity.
However having said that, i am no U-Wei hj Shaari nor am i a Yasmin Ahmad, I am in awe of their creative freedom and the path the have chosen for their life. I am sure they have had to fight for what they have right now, as i have wth my own personal battles and demons. Coming from a poor family, i have been trained by my parents and then brainwashed by the malaysian education system to believe that , having a stable job, security and making as much money i can, should be the main objective in life, being an artiste... being creative... thinking out of the box... having dreams were all a waste of time. Get 20A's in your spm, then get on the Dean's List in ur UNI and be headhunted by the big corporations so finally they can stick u behind a desk and WORK FOR SOMEBODY ELSE. This is in no way wrong if this what u want for yourself, but as Robert Kiyosaki said in his book, Business school is where they breed robots. What happens when the way people do business before, doesn't work anymore now, as in the case of the recording industry. The way they've been doing business haven't changed but other factors like people and technology has, so instead of Harvard business school grads, they need creative people, who think out of the box to come up with some fresh new business ideas and concepts to revive the ailing giant.
I might die never being rich for thinking this way but i think there is a reason why god gave me a brain, and especially for making me see things the way i see them. 'MONEY does not equate TRUE HAPPINESS' and when i truly understand this mantra, i know i will be really free and i will achieve greater enlightenment.
Why i believe my movies work? My desire to make people happy and enhance their paradigm is greater than making money. I want for people to live 'in' today and make themselves want to be better human beings, as i am trying to be. It is not enough for people to just have a laugh at my movies, it is essential that they KEEP THINKING!
I am aware of the power that comes with my fans watching my movies, making it box office successes and showing to the rest of MALAYSIA that i am someone to watch out for. My fans are my true heroes. It is their choice to want something different that has given my film career true life and true meaning. And now It is my responsibility to keep doing better work and to give them things that i have in my head (and not nescessarily what they want).

Two projects : LOS DAN FAUN and SUMO-lah are the first true foray into this... I have not experienced this kind of freedom in making movies ever, working for the studios and i am proud of this two movies and wait to see where i can go from there. HOPEFULLY : THE WORLD.

On another ambitious great Malaysian note : Puteri Gunung Ledang is on again and if any kodoks want to go with me and some of the cast of SUMO-lah please call Anne and if you don't have Anne's number call VISIONWORKS at 0341435097. I believe that Puteri Gunung Ledang the Musical was one of the best things to happen to this country and especially to local theatre for a long time.

So guys apa lagi, i know some people don't believe this, but i truly believe if you choose to be better human beings our world will become a greater to live in. try it. Pick up the next rubbish you see on the street tommorow or give a complement to the security guard at your apartment or give a smile to the bus driver or sapa-sapa saja kan. You've got a brain, i'm sure you can come up with something more creative to do to be better human beings. The small thing make a difference. U make a difference.

Power to the People

Afdlin Shauki