By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Nov 14: Brunei’s documentary ‘Wujud’ took home the top honour at the inaugural AIFFA 2025 Borneo Documentary Awards, winning the Best Borneo Feature Documentary Award at a ceremony held at the Borneo Cultures Museum today.
Produced by New Wave Films of Brunei and directed by Syafi Halim, the film offers an intimate exploration of Bruneian society through the lens of faith, monarchy and cultural identity, capturing rare personal narratives from a conservative and private community.
In other categories, ‘The Rhythm of Our Ancestors: Hivan Kayau’, a documentary exploring the endangered culture of the Kayan ethnic group, won the Best East Malaysian Short Documentary Award. It was produced by Lasan Co. and directed by Genevieves Sulan.
Additionally, ‘Songs of The Highlands’, produced by Outcast and directed by award-winning Kelabit filmmaker Sarah Lois, was honoured with the Special Merit Award.
Deputy Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Datuk Snowdan Lawan presented the prizes to the winners during the ceremony.
Organised in conjunction with the 7th ASEAN International Film Festival and Awards (AIFFA), the event received 34 submissions from across Borneo, showcasing films that explored themes ranging from culture and identity to heritage, language and technology.
In a statement issued after the event, Borneo Documentary Awards chairperson Rashid Salleh said the awards were introduced to celebrate regional filmmaking talent and to promote Borneo’s diverse stories on the global stage.
“The awards aim to celebrate the talent of Borneo filmmakers, encourage the creation of impactful documentaries about the region, and ultimately promote Borneo’s stories, people and culture through documentary cinema,” he said.
All submissions were required to be filmed and produced in Borneo, centred on Bornean subject matter, and completed between 2024 and 2025.
The panel of judges for the awards comprised respected filmmakers and industry experts Lina Teoh, Amelia Hapsari, Prisca Wong, Nadira Ilana and Candida Jau Emang.
Also present were Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts (MTCP) permanent secretary Datu Sherrina Hussaini; AIFFA 2025 festival director Livan Tajang; and AIFFA 2025 executive director Jaffri Amin Osman. – DayakDaily
