KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 — The latest decision to consider only Bahasa Malaysia films for the main national award at the 28th Malaysian Film Festival (FFM28) signals a return to square one, filmmakers said yesterday.

This is because it promotes discrimination like before, they added.

Yesterday, the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas) chairman Datuk Mohd Khusairi Abdul Talib said that this year's main national award at FFM28 will be for movies in Bahasa Malaysia, with those in other languages placed under a "Best Malaysian Film” category.

The announcement appears to reverse the decision made by the Communications and Multimedia Ministry last Wednesday, in which it opened up the FFM's main award of Best Picture to all films regardless of language. Previously, it was restricted to films with 70 per cent Bahasa Malaysia content.

"Best film means best films lah. That's it. You can segregate the category however you want, but end of the day, the category of the award speaks for itself. Compare it yourself. Best Malaysian Film and Best Film in National Language," award-winning cinematographer Mohd Noor Kassim told Malay Mail Online when contacted.

Mohd Noor, known for his no-holds-barred criticism of the previous decision, decried the move, again emphasising that films should only be judged by merit and not language.

"It's difficult when some are motivated by selfish interests," he added.

Film-maker Hafiz Ibrahim who quit from the Film Directors Association of Malaysia (FDAM) after it voiced support for the Best Picture being restricted to only Malay movies, also echoed Mohd Noor's sentiment.

"Best Picture is of course better than any other picture! This is just rebranding a flip flop move which still ends up discriminatory.

"If such is the call from the ministry and development agencies pertaining to the film industry, that is inconsistent with whatever decisions they are making, then I have no faith in them," Hafiz said.

He added that the main category announced today will only create a false sense of entitlement among some film-makers and they will not be motivated to go the extra mile or participate in healthy competition.

"This is not beneficial to the film industry because what you want to create is an equal sense of competition. No one judges a film based on language. There's no measurement to that. It's about film crafting.

"Already our films are below par and this is like dicing up something that's already bad.

"Films like Jagat, films which try to push barriers like Ola Bola… we know it is not at a level where we should say this is the best there is as there are higher levels but the boundaries pushed by these films should get the proper acknowledgement on a level playing field," he added.

Film director Jeffrey Chiang, the creator of local award-winning animation film Seefood, expressed his frustration over the latest development, adding that the public fight put up by several film-makers against discrimination and baseless segregation is now useless.

"When I read it just now, I was like, well this is basically back to square one. The fight opposing this in the last two weeks proved to be of no use.

"The crowning achievement should be about the film itself and not the language it is in," he added.

Chiang said that the annual FFM is also funded by the Communications and Multimedia Ministry, adding that the authority should reconsider funding a "racially-divisive" event.

"It should reflect on taxpayers’ concerns. FFM28 is just racially-divisive and the monies from taxpayers of all races are used for it," he added.

Following yesterday’s announcement, it appears that the Best Film in National Language is superseded by the Best National Film award, while the all-language Best Picture is now the Best Malaysian Film award.

In the same announcement, Mohd Khusairi said Finas will adhere to its earlier decision to abolish the non-Bahasa Malaysia category for Best Screenplay and Best Director and have all films compete for these awards regardless of language. He also said all other categories will still be contested without regards to language.

Last Thursday, Finas as the festival organiser said that it was abolishing all three non-Bahasa Malaysia categories at the 28th FFM, with films previously in these categories automatically placed in the main award categories of Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Director.

The non-Bahasa Malaysia category for Best Picture was introduced in 2011, while the non-Bahasa Malaysia categories for Best Screenplay and Best Director were introduced this year.

This was in response to the controversy created when critically acclaimed films like Ola Bola and Jagat were initially disqualified from contesting the main Best Picture award.

Last week, the Film Directors' Association of Malaysia (FDAM) objected to the recognition of works not in Bahasa Malaysia for national-level awards, with its vice president Syed Zulkifli Syed Masir previously telling Malay Mail Online that the association wanted the newly-created Best Film in National Language to be elevated to be the most prestigious award of FFM.

Although initially disassociating itself from FFM over the perceived recognition of non-BM works for national level awards, Syed Zulkifli told Malay Mail Online on Tuesday that FDAM has reinstated its official support for FFM after hearing the communications and multimedia minister's explanation that the festival still upholds Bahasa Malaysia's Constitution position as the national language.