A scene from 'Coast Guard Malaysia: Ops Helang' that showcases the maritime agents. Photos: Handout
One of the things that the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) hopes to achieve with the film Coast Guard Malaysia: Ops Helang is to create awareness of the duties performed by this agency.
MMEA director-general Maritime Admiral Datuk Zubil Mat Som said: “The film is one of the ways to introduce MMEA to members of the general public.
“I believe this is the most effective and fastest way as a film can reach people of all ages, whether in school or in the workforce, etc.
“I hope with the start of school holidays this week, parents will take their children to watch this movie and the children themselves will become interested in learning more about MMEA. And maybe even want to become a member of MMEA in the future.
“There are many divisions within the Coast Guard Malaysia that one can enter.”
Zubil said this during a sit-down with the press, two weeks after Coast Guard Malaysia opened at cinemas nationwide.
He also stated his disappointment that the film had only collected RM5mil so far, despite the good reviews from both critics and audiences who have watched the show.
Not because he’s gunning for a profit, but the box office collection to him equals to not enough people watching the film.
“The higher the box office earning means more people watching the film, and more people knowing about us.
“That’s why we put the name ‘Coast Guard’ in the film title, so people can make that connection and learn what MMEA’s role is,” he explained.
Also present at the event was producer Arie Zaharie who reiterated the main purpose of the film.
“People know about our Armed Forces units, but not about Malaysia’s Coast Guard, whose duty is to guard, protect and save the Malaysian maritime zone. Their duty is similar to what the police do on land,” Arie said.
Directed by the late Haniff Pitt, Coast Guard Malaysia: Ops Helang boasts several action-packed scenes such as the MMEA agents taking down criminals during an operation, and another of them handling the pirates who crash a private engagement party on an island that puts all the civilians present at risk.
The film stars Saharul Ridzwan, Julia Farhana Marin and Sabri Yunus.
What sets this film apart from most present-day action films is the fact that the explosions showcased in it are real.
“We wanted to do it for real. We were going to add CGI if the explosions didn’t work out on set. But during the shoot all went smoothly, so we just went with that. Our pyro team managed to pull it off,” Arie explained.
Hafiz tries to save his partner after encountering pirates.
He added that the MMEA backed the production 100%, and the film wouldn’t be possible without them.
“They loaned us a ship, boats, and even the staff of maritime were part of the cast. The pirates that you see in the film are actually Maritime staff.
“We didn’t want to take outsiders because we were using actual guns in the film. Although they were not loaded, we wanted people who knew about handling guns to hold them,” the producer said.
According to Arie, more than 100 of the MMEA staff participated in the film, some of whom got speaking parts, including Admiral Maritime (Ret.) Datuk Seri Zulkifili Abu Bakar, one of the people responsible for backing the film.
The MMEA also invited the cast members to go through bootcamp for more than a month at the agency’s training centre in Kuantan, Pahang.
“The film is listed as one of the top three films in the current Malaysia movie chart. More importantly, I feel satisfied that members of the MMEA themselves were satisfied with the final product,” he added.
If this was an introduction to MMEA, would there be more films centring on the agency in the future?
Zubil said: “At the moment, there is no sequel. But if there was a sequel, there are many operations handled by MMEA that we can include in the next movie that the public do not know about.
“That’s why I hope that many more Malaysians will go and watch this movie.
“While the events in the movie are fictionalised, the execution and the operation shown in the film are all based on how we maintain law and order on the high seas.”
Zubil further hoped, through the movie, that viewers will come to understand that the responsibility of taking care of Malaysia falls not only with the authorities but with every citizen.
“You are our eyes and ears. If you see something, report it to us; if you hear something, report it to us.
“Through this movie, we want to create awareness that we are all responsible for the safety of our country,” Zubil said.
Coast Guard Malaysia: Ops Helang is now showing at cinemas nationwide.
