Trends in Film Education: Malaysian Film Industry Poised to Grow

Finas Director-General Mohd Mahyidin Mustakim said, "At a time when Malaysian cinema stands poised to influence the global film arena, filmmakers need to embrace the importance of marketing their movies," said recently at a meeting held at the National Film Development Corporation (Finas) in Ulu Kelang, Selangor.

It was a meeting that focused on the benefits of sales, marketing strategies, local film/TV show acquisitions for the international film markets. It appears as if they have realized that if Malaysian filmmakers have the right formula to market their films abroad, there’s a lot of money to be made. Many local filmmakers want to make money via films for the overseas market But up until now there has been a gap between how films are marketed locally and how they are marketed abroad.

Now there is a growing interest in film distribution abroad, and that means it is critical that they get exposure to marketing practices that will help these films cross over. It would seem that many could learn by taking some of the courses offered by schools like the Entertainment Career connection: http://www.film-connection.com/, for example, or Los Angeles music recording schools and even New York Radio schools, where mentors help students learn the real trade in a real classroom. Anyone interested in a career in film would benefit.

For those taking part in international film markets, it will make penetrating the international arena easier. Just as an example, with the cooperation of Finas, Malaysian producers have been part in three major international film markets including Hong Kong FilmArt in Wanchai, Hong Kong; and MIPTV and MIPCOM, in Cannes, France.

The statistics on transactions made by local producers at previous international film markets was RM1.57million, not as much as those in Hollywood or even Bollywood, but the important thing is that Malaysian film products are slowly getting the recognition. Many documentaries, animated series and TV shows are the hot-sellers among TV producers from Europe and the Middle East.

Foreign film producers typically like action-packed movies and thrillers.and due to the economy they have been cutting costs and not as active in acquiring programs from other countries. However, much is to be learned including trends, technology to the market ecology.

Finas will be taking part in the American Film Market (AFM) at Santa Monica in United States from on November 5 through 12.

Almumni Get a Mentor to Find a Job

A July 1 2008 article in the Wall Street Journal by Joann Lublin talks about how in today’s tough job market applicants can get ahead by going back to their alumni’s outplacement department to get a coach.

"Not-so-recent college graduates are demanding more career assistance from their former schools as they face tougher employment markets,” the article states, which gives merit to the premise behind why the Entertainment Career Connection schools like the Recording Connection, RadioConnection and the Film Connection with mentors work! And with today’s online social media marketing finally becoming rooted in society, the trend will soon become the norm.

Many schools and universities nationwide are in the process of ramping up their online offerings to alumni to include services such as resume and cover letter writing and editing, guidance for assembling potential employer lists, salary negotiation counseling, alumni yellow pages, re-entry seminars, self assessment workshops, support groups, online links to job resources, and even practice workshops for interviews. Blogs and social media networks are also becoming popular as a means of swapping job leads.

In fact, many universities and colleges are creating job-search programs. According to some statistics we researched online, nearly 20 percent of these institutions are now offering these services for alumni, up from just 5 percent five years ago, with business schools taking the lead.

The word “mentor” was seeded by one of the characters in Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey. When Odysseus, King of Ithaca named Odysseus went to fight in the Trojan War, he entrusted the care of his son Telemachus and his kingdom to Mentor.

Today, the term mentor is defined by Webster’s dictionary as "a trusted counselor or guide" and schools like the Entertainment Career Connection are also in the process of setting up new social media networks for their students and graduates as well. Once such program is known to our students only, is the http://www.mediawarrior.com/ where students can hook up for resources, meet other mentors and students, and network.