By ANGELIN YEOH
alltherage@thestar.com.my
DID you know that some people have the ability to instantly identify or sing any given musical note without any point of reference? That ability is called “perfect pitch”, and it’s something that film director Quek Shio Chuan does not possess.
“It’s an ability that only one in 1000 people have. Funny thing is, my younger sister and my older brother both have it. My dad said I have to make up for my lack of perfect pitch with something else,” said Quek, 26.
And Quek has definitely made up for it, by honing his ability to turn stories into emotive visual presentations.
Last November, Quek made headlines when his 14-minute film Guang won the grand prize at the BMW Shorties. The victory saw him walking away with a production grant worth RM75,000.
His story about an autistic man was also celebrated by judges at the prestigious Alto Vicentino Film Festival in Santorso, Italy, where Guang was awarded Best Short Film. Quek also made history by being the first Asian to win an award at the festival.
Quek’s work also picked up the Best Film and Audience Choice awards at the 4th Who Likes Short Shorts Film Festival in the United States.
“It feels great to be recognised for my hard work. I also get the assurance that I’m heading in the right direction with my life’s work,” said the broadcasting graduate from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR).
Quek explained that as a film director, he likes to be a part of the team he works with.
“I believe in getting involved in every aspect of production. I don’t like sitting behind a screen monitor and just watching everyone work. It’s boring. I’m very hands-on with my crew.”
Other than short films, Quek has also been involved in a number of notable projects. He directed singer-songwriter Yuna in The Sparkle Project and was also the brains behind Petronas’ recent Ramadan television commercial, Strangers.
His upcoming short film Sid & Barry can be described in one word – different. He was tight-lipped about the details of the film, but judging by his gleeful smile, it was obvious that he can’t wait to see what his audience will think about it.
“It’s a very experimental film and it’s about a journey. I’m not going to reveal too much as I want my audience to be surprised. Just wait for the premiere.”
One thing that Quek can reveal is the inspiration behind Guang.
“The film is loosely based on my older brother who himself is autistic. He was also the one I mentioned earlier who has perfect pitch. I wanted the audience to see what living with autism is really like and hopefully they’ll have more of an awareness about it.”
Chen Chong Wei, who played Guang in the film, learned his part by observing Quek’s brother.
“I arranged for Chen and my brother to act together in a workshop, to help him get into character. Actually, Chen played a much more serious version of my brother (laughs).”
We asked Quek if his brother has seen the film and what he thought of it.
“Yes, and I’ve asked him what he thought about the title character Guang. He said if I were that guy, I would definitely make a musical arrangement more complicated than that!”
Tell us what you think!