Tuesday, 17 June 2008

Local film studio has high hopes in the can

The Phnom Penh Post

Written by Chamroeun Chrann
Tuesday, 17 June 2008

Despite cinema closures and the faltering of the Cambodian movie industry, the head of one local production company said he wanted his firm to set a standard for higher quality film productions that would generate greater popular interest in the movies.

"I am proud that KMF is gradually making progress, and I hope that it will contribute to the development of Khmer film," said Millan Lov, director of Khmer Mekong Film (KMF), soliciting the support of both movie fans and the authorities in reaching his goal.

In an initial move to raise the profile of KMF as a major production company, KMF was building a six-storey headquarters in Phnom Penh's Daun Penh district, a project due for completion early next year.

The top three floors would serve as film studios, the second and third floors as a hotel, and the ground floor as parking, he said.

KMF’s most recent production has been a 13-episode television series on national and social issues. It is being broadcast on CTN, and the producers hope the series will help contribute to a revival of the Cambodian movie industry.

The first of the 30-minute episodes, which began airing June 1, opened the door on domestic violence. Other installments will cover issues such as HIV/AIDS, the Khmer Rouge trials, human trafficking, the challenges facing the disabled, and the activities in Cambodia of the United Nations Development Program.

The series has received funding from the UNDP, the German aid agency GTZ, the Ministry of Women's Affairs, the British embassy, the Asian Development Bank, the Asia Foundation and the American NGO Family Health International.

KMF was formed in 2006 by executives of a company funded by the British government that produced "A Taste of Life," a 100-episode hospital drama with an HIV/AIDS awareness theme. "A Taste of Life" began screening in 2003 and became one of the most-watched television shows in Cambodia.

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