About

Founded in June 2018 by Amir Muhammad, Kuman Pictures produces low-budget thrillers and horror films. We want to work with strong, innovative directors and we give them creative freedom as long as they can work with the budget! We deliberately choose horror and thriller as we believe there are some interesting ways in which different types of stories can be told in these popular formats.

MANIFESTO

1. Kuman Pictures is a Malaysian film company with a focus on low-budget horror and thriller movies.

2. The name “Kuman” is an homage to (Roger) Corman, who produced over 400 films and is sometimes referred to as the king of B-movies. His best works have a verve and vitality that also captured the spirit of their time. We won’t be able to do everything Roger Corman did, but we salute his approach and good cheer. We are not however affiliated with him and have never schmoozed with him.

3. “Kuman” (germ in Malay) is also a reminder to only make ‘small’ movies, with an average budget of RM500k. You are also free to associate the name with things going ‘viral’ and such; we won't stop you.

4. Why horror and thrillers? Because we like them.

5. At the risk of sounding presumptuous, we are trying to do a Blumhouse. The local movie that is closest to what we want to achieve might be Villa Nabila (2015).

6. A major difference with other film companies: Aside from their pay, each actor & crew member will also get royalties from the movie’s income, on an annual basis. This is similar to author royalties in the publishing industry.

7. Kuman Pictures is owned by the same bloke as Fixi, but it was not set up to film Fixi novels. Fixi novels would require bigger budgets. We seek scripts written for a specific budget.

8. Our movies are for Malaysian cinemas and other platforms. We would like to also screen at genre-based or region-focused film festivals that would accept us; but festivals will only happen after we have a local release date.

9. If any of our films flop, we won’t whine and rant and blame the audience -- because we accept that, in this life, shit happens.

10. We support other local movies! Because if Malaysian companies don’t support each other, who will? For example, we will sponsor modest outings to watch movies made by other people. This is called #tosam (which is short for what is in Malay ‘tonton sama-sama’ or in Malaysian English ‘watch together-gether’). The first such tosam will be held Wednesday 26 Sep for LANGSUIR in PJ. If you’d like to join, send an email to kumanpictures@gmail.com with the title I AM, THEREFORE I TOSAM.

TeAm

Managing Director

Amir Muhammad is one of the pioneers of Malaysian New Wave Cinema. He had previously directed documentaries (LIPS TO LIPS, THE BIG DURIAN, VOYAGE TO TERENGGANU, THE LAST COMMUNIST, VILLAGE PEOPLE RADIO SHOW, MALAYSIAN GODS and more) that were screened in various film festivals and co-directed a cinema feature SUSUK (2008). He is also the producer of acclaimed films, including LOVE CONQUERS ALL (dir. Tan Chui Mui), FLOWER IN THE POCKET (dir. Liew Seng Tat), GEDEBE (dir. Nam Ron) and THIS LONGING (dir. Azharr Rudin). He has been active as a writer, book publisher, and the managing director of Buku Fixi, which has published over 200 books in Malay and English.

Producer

Elise Shick first joined film industry as a researcher and interviewer of Unpacking Malaysian Cinema at BFM89.9. She extended her skills to directing, scriptwriting, acting, editing and cinematography in independent filmmaking scene. She also worked as casting manager and production manager at commercial film sets. Other than being a full-time film producer, she also programs films and writes about films.

Marketing Executive

Ang Wei Xin began her career in the film industry with Kuman in 2021, taking on roles such as assistant producer, continuity supervisor, second assistant director, and casting assistant in feature films. She also handles marketing deliverables for Kuman's films. Currently, Wei Xin is broadening her expertise in the production of commercials and documentaries, continually advancing her skills and knowledge in the industry.