KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 26 — The Kuala Lumpur International Film Academy Awards (KLIFAA) 2024 has already received 3,135 entries from 98 countries.

Among the countries involved are Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, India, Bangladesh, Iran, France, United Kingdom and Mexico according to Harian Metro.

Announced in January, KLIFAA aims to spark the passion of emerging filmmakers from Malaysia and abroad and bring together industry players worldwide.

The festival will be held in Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre from August 7 to 11, with workshops and talks to take place across the city.

At the festival’s opening ceremony yesterday (February 25), KLIFAA chairman Tan Sri Tengku Azlan Ibni Sultan Abu Bakar said he and his team were proud of the response from local and international filmmakers.

“The 3,135 entries received from 98 countries gives us a good spirit to continue this effort and give space to artists who are either veterans or newcomers for their future involvement in the film industry,” he said.

“The organisation of KLIFAA 2024 is one way to further improve the standard of the world’s film industry and, Insya Allah, if what we are working on happens, it will open the eyes of the whole world that Malaysia is a hub of the film world.”

In line with this year’s festival theme ‘Inspiring Brilliance, Igniting Passion’, the chairman hopes the festival would be able to connect cultures and inspire creativity on a global scale.

He also honoured the late artist Tan Sri P. Ramlee as a ‘stepping stone’ in his speech and praised his talent for being an actor, singer and director, saying that such skilled artists are rare today.

One of the award categories in KLIFAA, named after P. Ramlee, will give lifetime achievement awards to outstanding practitioners in the field of film, TV drama, music, journalism, film organisation, writing and media.

KLIFAA 2024 will accept submissions from filmmakers around the world in feature films, TV dramas, documentaries, short films and animation.

Submissions for the in-competition and non-competition categories open from March 1 and close on May 31.

For more information, visit here.