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Film professionals have put out a call for companies to sponsor an educational CSR initiative to support the Mekong region’s next generation of screenwriters to help promote and preserve the region’s unique culture through local films.

 

The Write and Eat initiative is being undertaken with the support of the cinema department of the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and is a collaborative effort by 802 Films’ Sok Visal, Xaisongkham Induangchanthy in Laos, Espin Hoan in Vietnam, and Singaporean Andy Ho. It aims to provide a year-long series of workshops and networking sessions designed to improve the standards of regional and local script writing.

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Celebrated Singaporean screenwriter Ng Swee San, who is also a Master of Arts Level Creative Writing teacher at Lasalle College of the Arts in Singapore and former President of the Screenwriters Association (Singapore), will be one of the official course tutors.

 

“Cambodia, and indeed the Mekong countries, have unique taste and perspective when it comes to movies,” said Visal, founder of 802 Films. “This year-long series of workshops is all about supporting the region’s next generation of filmmakers and screenwriters with a series of workshops and networking opportunities.”

 

The course takes in a series of workshops that include visual storytelling, character development, writing dialogue, creating story structure, and other elements essential to scriptwriting. The administrators of the Write and Eat initiative are looking to enroll 15 budding screenwriters aged 22 to 35 from Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.

 

“We are looking for those from this region who are passionate about the craft of filmmaking and who want to help develop the industry in this region,” added Visal. “Of course, as a main player we are expecting Cambodia’s strong cultural voice and creativity to play a major role in this initiative.”

 

As one of the founders of Write and Eat, Visal is committed to advancing Cambodia’s film industry. He is an art and creative director, music producer and founder of KlapYaHandz record label. He is also a film producer, whose name has appeared on the credits of five feature films during the past 10 years. Visal also organizes major entertainment events and supports multiple international productions.

 

Anyone wanting to support the Write and Eat team’s cultural CSR initiative can email info@writeandeat.com.