The Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing (CMHW) and Golden Screen Cinemas (GSC) “My Mind On Film” (MMOF) Youth Mental Health Film Festival held its 2021-2022 Screening and Awards Ceremony at GSC Tropicana Gardens Mall, recently. The film festival opened opportunities for young talents to showcase their ideas, talents, and craft in telling important stories that put the spotlight on mental health.
Special guests at the Screening and Awards Ceremony included Koh Mei Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Golden Screen Cinemas and Dr Gerard J. Louis, Chief Executive Officer of HELP Education Services (HES) and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Mental Health) at HELP University.
My Mind On Film was started by the Centre of Mental Health and Wellbeing (CMHW) on World Mental Health Day in October 2020, with GSC collaborating for this second season to engage more filmmakers and take their work to the big screen. Season 2’s festival was themed “Heart and Mind”, encouraging high-schoolers and young adults, both locally and internationally, to submit films supporting MMOF’s objectives of inspiring the sharing of ideas, recognising that mental health is universal and includes the positive, and breaking down stigma. The submitted films demonstrated remarkable talent through a breadth of genres, styles, and messages.
The Grand Prize (Malaysian Young Adult Category), Ahmad Shah walked away with a cash prize of RM 10,000 and RM 30, 000 funding to produce a mental health PSA short film to be screened at GSC theatres, with full production support from the exhibitor. The winners will also be given exciting opportunities such as industry placements, HELP University study awards, and more.
The Season 2 My Mind On Film Festival winners are as follows:
- International Young Adult Category – Céline Ufenast [@Scroll_Alice]
- Malaysian High School Category – Sameer Monn [Blue.]
- Malaysian Young Adult Category – Ahmad Shah [Halfway Down]
- Outstanding Mental Health Awareness Message Award – Adlin Norafiqah Mohamed [Dear Kakak]
“My Mind on Film is an extension of what GSC has embarked on with the “Hello, We Can!” campaign last year, where we galvanised Malaysians to spread positivity and kindness through social media. It is also key in supporting Malaysian arts and film; integral in finding the gems amongst youth filmmakers, giving them the opportunity to showcase their ideas, talents, and craft, raising awareness and putting the spotlight on important stories around mental health,” said Koh Mei Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Golden Screen Cinemas.
The screening and awards ceremony preceded a filmmaking workshop organised for MMOF participants. Esteemed experts from the Malaysian filmmaking industry offered a wide range of presentations sharing their experiences. Namely, Tunku Mona Riza, International Award-winning Film Director and Executive Producer of Current Pictures; Anna Har, Executive Director of Freedom Film Network and GSC Movies Chief Operating Officer, Tung Yow Kong. This was followed by an interactive panel discussion featuring local directors Feisal Azizuddin, Adam Zainal, and Kroll Azry covering topics such as – cinematography and filmography.
My Mind On Film (MMOF) festival is Malaysia’s first Youth Mental Health Short Film Festival. This project is central to the Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing’s commitment to engage with young people, hear their voices and work together for progress. It combines the emphasis on inspiration, expression, understanding and stigma reduction with a focus on the local Malaysian context.
