Friday September 14, 2012
Painting the town Red
By FIONA HO
entertainment@thestar.com.my
Renowned production house Red Communications celebrates its 12th year anniversary.
RED Communications, the local production house behind some of television’s biggest hits including 3R, Gol & Gincu and Blogger Boy, is celebrating its 12th anniversary this year.
Its founder and managing director Lina Tan calls the achievement a milestone.
“We started from scratch. So, having been here for 12 years means that people actually do like, and are watching, our shows,” she says with a laugh in an interview recently.
The company, also noted for its popular film titles like Visits: A Hungry Ghost Anthology, Gol & Gincu The Movie, Pisau Cukur and Songlap (which are produced through its subsidiary company, Red Films), also produces content for regional markets and international channels like Disney Channel and the History and Biography channels.
A hit: (From left) Nast-T, Julie Woon and Qi star in the TV series Blogger Boy, which was directed by Lina Tan of Red Communications. Much of the production house’s contents are devoted specifically to women, children and youth audiences, Tan points out.
“I like to inject elements of human interest and moral values in my projects. It’s about working issues of relevance into pop culture,” she says.
She cites Reza, the HIV-positive protagonist in the series Gol & Gincu, which was played by Pierre Andre, as an example. “I think a character like Reza is pretty unheard of on local TV, especially when we’re dealing with someone who is a seemingly healthy, young man.”
Tan is all for strong, feminist characters. They are a reflection of her values as an advocate of human and women rights, she says.
Her upcoming film project, Istanbul Aku Datang, features current “It” girl Lisa Surihani in the shoes of a strong, but feminine character.
“It’s about a girl who journeys to Istanbul to look for her boyfriend but in turn, discovers herself along the way and emerges a more mature and independent person,” Tan shares.
“I like strong female characters who don’t rely on a man and are able to solve their problems on their own. Too few local productions have that.”
The company’s upcoming projects include the palpable Kami Hysteria, which follows a five-piece girl group that makes a deal with the “devil”. The project stars up-and-coming local actress Diana Danielle. In commemoration of its 12th year anniversary, Red Communications has been holding a slew of film screenings that are open to the public at no charge.
“We want to share our 12 years of experience with the Malaysian public as well as give them a chance to view all of our films that we have produced over the years,” says Tan.
You can still join in the celebration and catch Goodbye Boys and Apa Dosaku at the Outdoor Theatre in Publika, Mont Kiara in Kuala Lumpur, on Sept 17 and Sept 24, respectively.
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