Malaysian filmmaker Gogularaajan with his collaborator Eve Baswell; their short film ‘Walay Balay’ screened at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight to a full house. (Delphine Pincet pic)
PETALING JAYA: For Malaysian filmmaker Gogularaajan Rajendran, a simple story is all it takes to create a powerful film.
Case in point: his black-and-white short “Walay Balay”, co-written and co-directed by Filipino director Eve Baswel, recently screened at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight – an independent-film selection that runs alongside the prestigious festival in France.
Speaking with FMT Lifestyle from Cannes, the 31-year-old filmmaker shared that this experience was “really surreal”.
“This is the place every filmmaker would have dreamt of!” he exclaimed. “Until the movie screened, reality did not fully sink in.”
The Directors’ Fortnight kicked off on May 15 and runs until today, with “Walay Balay” (“Strange Home”) having screened on May 15 and 18.
In the film, Filipino actresses Ruby Ruiz and Shaina Magdayao portray a mother and daughter searching for a new home after being displaced by the tumultuous siege of Marawi City in the Philippines, which saw the government clashing with militants for months in 2017.
The short film revolves around a mother and daughter who are searching for home. (Cannes Directors’ Fortnight pic)
Conflict arises when the daughter chooses to remain in their temporary abode, while her mother longs to return home.
“The concept of home is something I’m always exploring in my own work. As a Malaysian Indian, I’ve always felt detached, not completely belonging to one place. So, I’m also searching for a sense of belonging through my art,” Gogularaajan explained.
“Walay Balay” was joined by three other Filipino titles, namely “Cold Cut” by Don Josephus Rafael Eblahan, “Nightbirds” by Maria Estela Paiso, and “Silig” by Arvin Belarmino.
These four short films were the result of the Cannes Directors’ Factory, a programme dedicated to nurturing emerging talents on the global stage.
Since its inception in 2013, the Directors’ Factory has featured filmmakers from various countries. This year, the Philippines was selected for the first time, with four Filipino filmmakers paired with four others from Southeast Asia.
Gogularaajan with fellow filmmakers who were part of the Cannes Directors’ Factory programme. (Kyle Nieva pic)
On his collaboration with Baswel, the KL-born filmmaker shared: “She’s a talented up-and-coming director. I realised there were many similarities between her previous films and mine – things I resonate with.
“Our whole collaboration was about getting to know each other. When two people have conversations, something is born out of it,” said Gogularaajan, whose past works include his debut feature “Kaali” (2022), and the pandemic-era short “Virus Mairus” (2020).
Aside from attending the screening of “Walay Balay” and mingling with international stars and other filmmakers, Gogularaajan has been keeping busy in Cannes by attending co-production meetings and pitching his feature films that are in development.
“As a filmmaker, this is definitely a great honour,” he said. “For 10 whole days, the city breathes cinema and, as people get together, impossible collaborations might happen. It’s beautiful.”
Follow Gogularaajan Rajendran on Instagram.
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