Not too long ago, Astro, in collaboration with Suruhanjaya Komunikasi and Multimedia Malaysia (SKMM) and MSC Malaysia Creative Multimedia Content (CMC) Initiative launched the Nextgen Contentpreneur Awards (NCA) whereby tertiary student submitted their entries based on five Entry Categories including; The Short Content (Television and Mobile) Category, The Documentary Category, The Music Video Category, The Animation Category, The Graphics/Web Design Category.

Below, Felica Soon Conducts a brief interview with Reuben Kang, a talented and dedicated youth from Limkokwing University of Creative Technology (LUCT) whose innovativeness won him Extraordinary Short Content (Television and Mobile) award for his entry “The Lock”.

CP: Can you tell us about your background?

RK: I am from Subang Jaya. My interest in film started from childhood after watching Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan movies. That is where my interest in film generally started from and I always wanted to be like them.

CP: What course are you doing in LUCT at the moment?

RK: Currently, I am in final year doing a Diploma in Multimedia Advertising & Broadcasting whereby I major in Broadcasting.

CP: Tell us, how did you get involved in the Astro Contentpreneur?

RK: Well, initially the main intention for starting this short film was because we (LUCT Multimedia Advertising & Broadcasting student) were in our final year and we wanted to do something big so we put a lot effort making an appropriate film. Ironically, our lecturers like the film so he decided to send it in for the competition and I only discovered his action after i received a call that I was one of the nominees.

CP: What is Extraordinary Short Content (Television and Mobile) all about?

RK: It is a format which is rather difficulty as you try to tell a story in 10 minutes so it almost impossible for you to establish a lot of things and that itself is a challenge where you have to try to capture the audience’s attention through a limited time frame.

CP: What language is this film in?

RK: The film is in Bahasa Indonesia, Bahasa Malaysia, Mandarin (China), British English and Manglish.

CP: Why was the film in multi language?

RK: I have always been inspired by the movie ‘Bebel’ where language is not a barrier. I believe that film has an international language where despite whatever language it is in, people will still understand along with the help of subtitles.

CP: What was the first thing that went through your mind when you were announced as one of the nominees?

RK: When i received the call, it was hard for me to believe that is was true initially that I was one of the nominees, I was not expecting to win however the nomination showed me and appreciation for putting lot of effort into making the film. This shows that in anything you do, if you put a lot of time and effort into it and you really believe in yourself then you can probably make it happen.

CP: Overall, was is a tough competition?

RK: From the snippet of the other films that i saw during the award night, they all look very impressive and that kind of intimidated me.

CP: What do you hope to gain from this experience of winning the Extraordinary Short Content (Television and Mobile) award for your entry “The Lock”?

RK: Actually before starting my course in LUCT, i was working freelance in the film industry and that was my goal as i always wanted to be a film maker. In LUCT, my lectures gave me the opportunity to learn and work with professional. That is definitely an experience where i can be confident to take on a responsibility to do something even bigger.

CP: What are you future career plans?

RK: Previously, i did theatre with the Oral’s Age (Youth Theater Company). We performed at the Penang Actor’s Studio, Bangsar Actor’s Studio and KL PAC so I have not only been directing theatre,I have also been acting in it as well. Beside that, I have been doing a couple of short films and documentaries for CSI in Astro. Therefore, I am still very involved in the film industry which is something that i would continue to do so as i have a lot of time and effort into it.

* The Lock tells a story about how a British man’s car was stolen by a Malay thief after seeking for help at a Chinese Locksmith. The plot thickens when the British Man’s ignorant assistant left her car key accidentally inside her own vehicle and seeks help from the British man who in turn recommends her to the same Chinese Locksmith.