KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s first-ever crowdfunded film, Pendatang, has garnered an impressive 270,000 views since its release on YouTube for free on Thursday (December 21).
According to Kuman Pictures, the movie’s production house, the film achieved 250,000 views within the first 55 hours of being available on the video-sharing site.
Amir Muhammad, the founder of Kuman Pictures and a prominent filmmaker and author, acknowledged the enthusiastic response from viewers and netizens who shared both praise and criticisms following the release.
“Beyond the view count, it is heartening to read the 1,000+ comments. Some are troll-ish, but most come from people genuinely engaged with it, and they are not praising every aspect either. Terharu! (I’m touched),” he shared on Facebook.
Penned by Lim Boon Siang and directed by Ng Ken Kin, Pendatang is a Malaysian thriller portraying the triumph of humanity over racial extremism in a dystopian future.
The one-hour and 38-minute film features an ensemble cast including Fred Chan, Mayjune Tan, Shareen Yeo, Kyzer Tou, Qaidah Marha, Nick Davis, Kent Tan, Grace Ng, Julie Chew, Dave Tan, Devakar Rajah, Jasmin Lyn, Jonathan Cheong, Afry Wijoyo, Chuan Boon Loh, David Cheah, Loh Shu Jin, and Azman Hassan.
Kick-started in July 2022, Pendatang stands as Malaysia’s maiden fully crowdfunded movie, aiming to present a unique perspective on the potential impact and danger of racial politics on the lives of ordinary individuals.
The movie had also been reportedly produced with a shoestring budget of RM300,000, mostly from funds raised by the public.
The decision to release the movie on YouTube also serves the purpose of bypassing the scrutiny and potential edits imposed by the Malaysian Film Censorship Board, thereby safeguarding the film’s fundamental content and the values it seeks to convey.
Released on December 21 and available for free on YouTube without advertising income, the dystopian thriller unfolds in a Malaysia where different races are forbidden to mix, enforced by draconian laws.
The narrative kicks off when a Chinese family discovers a small Malay girl in their new “allocated” house, prompting a moral dilemma: dispose of her thereby putting her in mortal danger, or risk their safety and lives by attempting to smuggle her back to the “Malay area”.
In the movie’s comment section, YouTube user @kumarannadaraja7460 praised the overall production and script.
“Seriously, I am touched watching this movie. Greatly narrated story, superb cinematography, perfect acting, truly inspiring and giving us Malaysians a wake up call if we care less about unity and racism issues,” the user said.
“This is what is going to happen if we tend to ignore the racism issue in Malaysia. It must be stopped no matter what, and bravo to the Kuman team for taking the effort by picturising the future of Malaysia ‘if’ racism takes place. Highly salute to all who have associated with the production of this feature film.”
Another user, @alfredaldrin1459 echoed this sentiment.
“We need more movies like this to show to the people in Malaysia, just how fragile and vital it is for us all to live in harmony with one another,” the user said.
“We must not allow politics and extremism be it using religion, race, social class nor economy to break us apart and create the animosity that seems to grow and fester each passing day.”
Another user @boonkeechew4828, had a different take on Pendatang.
“I think the best parts about the movie is not the storyline itself, but the background and world settings shown in the movie, which reflects many aspects in Malaysian society and also some accurate assumptions made.” – December 24, 2023