KOTA KINABALU: Years of hard work and perseverance is finally paying off for Jack Wong, who has fulfilled his dream of becoming an international film director.
Wong, from Kota Kinabalu, is making his international directorial debut via his movie, 'C144 Human X Nature' together with Aaron Lim, the producer and founder of Redboy Pictures Sdn Bhd.
Wong, who has more than seven years of cinematic industry experience under his belt, said it has not been an easy journey.
"Finally, after years of hard work, my dream has become a reality. I hope fellow Malaysians will support the local movie industry as this production was not an easy feat.
"This marks the beginning of my film directorial journey. I hope to make Sabah proud of its homegrown talent making a name internationally, placing Sabah as a household name internationally."
The movie will be screened on Feb 17 in 27 cinemas nationwide, including three in Sabah - GSC 1Borneo and Cityplex Citymall in Kota Kinabalu and Eastern Cineplex Eastern Plaza in Tawau.
It is also slated to be screened at the Laemmie NoHo 7 Theatre at Lankershim Boulevard in Hollywood on April 1 before being introduced in 12 different countries including Japan, South Korea, China, Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia and several European countries.
To date, it has garnered four international awards - best writer award in Alternative Film Festival 2020 (Canada); best feature film in the Eastern Europe Film Festival 2020; best film in Nature/ Environment and Wildlife at the World Film Carnival 2021 (Singapore); and best cinematography in Cinematic European Film Festival 2021.
The movie tells the adventure of two camping enthusiasts who accidentally discover the wreckage of a C-47B transport aircraft in a jungle, suspected to have been used by the US military to deliver food to their comrades during World War 2.
They later bring in a group of people and encounter mysterious events surrounding the wreckage and begin to witness the indigenous tribes' superstitions come to life.
Wong, who started as a wedding cinematographer in 2010 in Kota Kinabalu, caught the attention of global and local viewers in Aug 2012, when he, together with a group of youths, created a YouTube video named "Orang Sabah Style parody".
The video, which became an instant online hit, has so far garnered nine million views.
