Malaysian Oscar Entry ‘Tiger Stripes’ Director, Amanda Nell Eu, Makes Statement On Censorship Ahead Of Local Release
20.10.2023 - 02:11
/ deadline.com
Malaysian filmmaker Amanda Nell Eu has distanced herself from the cut of her feature film Tiger Stripes, which is being released theatrically in Malaysia on October 19 for one week in an Oscars-qualifying run.
The film, which Malaysia has submitted as its entry for the Best International Feature category of the Academy Awards, also won the Critics Weeks Grand Prix when it premiered at Cannes film festival earlier this year.
Eu says she does not stand behind the cut approved for the Malaysian theatrical release, saying “the film that will be shown in local cinemas is not the film that we made.”
Tiger Stripes follows a 12-year-old girl who is the first among her friends to hit puberty, only for her body to start going through a terrifying transformation. Ostracised by her school friends, she learns to embrace her true self and fight for freedom.
Eu is restricted from disclosing the specific scenes that have been cut from the film. However, she describes the excised material as conveying the “joy of being a young girl in Malaysia, who is maybe different from the rest, misunderstood, or has the urge to express herself differently from others.”
The filmmaker also emphasised her connection with Malaysian audiences and the film’s intended purpose: “Tiger Stripes was made with Malaysians in mind as my priority audience; therefore, showing it back home would have been the most meaningful experience for me.”
Eu is the first female Malaysian filmmaker to have a film selected for Cannes film festival. The main characters in the film are hijab-wearing Malay girls, although many of the challenges they encounter – puberty, school bullying and communication issues with parents and teachers – are not culturally specific.
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