For good luck: Chan (centre), Prof Sze Wei (in black-collared shirt) and Mark (in black) with others during a lensing ceremony to pray for a smooth-sailing shoot ahead of the filming of the movie The Story of TARCians. — LOW LAY PHON/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: A movie depicting how three Malaysians from Perak obtained a tertiary education and the history of a notable local higher education institution is being produced by Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR UMT).
The movie, called The Story of TARCians, weaves fiction and history together as it follows the tale of three Perakians journeying into the then Tunku Abdul Rahman College (TARC).
At the same time, the 90-minute film, directed by award-winning director Mark Lee See Teck, will document the history of the college and how it developed as one of the first institutions of higher learning in the country.
It will explore the beginning of the establishment of the institution by going in-depth into the emotions, as well as the challenges and obstacles faced by its founders and stakeholders, who were involved from the early stages onwards.Tan Sri Chan Kong Choy, chairman of both the board of governors of TAR UMT and the TAR UMT Alumni Council, said a lot of old TARCians, especially graduates from the 1970s and 1980s, had come back to share their stories for the movie.
“You will hear a lot of stories from them, especially those from the 1970s,” he said after the lensing ceremony for the movie held in Pudu yesterday.
As an institute that is 55 years old, TARC has a lot of stories to share, he added.
“Not only in the development of education but also the participation of TARCians in nation-building, racial harmony on campus, and all the hard work by Malaysians from all walks of life,” said Chan.
TAR UMT president Prof Dr Lee Sze Wei said pre-production for the movie, which began filming yesterday, began last July.
He said they hope to finish filing by the middle of the year, with the movie set to premier at the end of this year.
“There will be some fictional aspects, but historical facts will be fully maintained,” he said, adding that they hope to make the movie “very entertaining”.
“It’s entertaining plus historical aspects combined,” said Prof Sze Wei, who is also the executive producer of the movie.
