07/10/2024 - Toplined by China’s Fan Bingbing, the drama is the director’s third feature and revolves around a community of farmers living on the Malaysian-Thai border

The third feature by Malaysia’s Chong Keat Aun, a drama titled Mother Bhumi, is now in production. The news was first reported by Variety.

The Kedah-born writer-director’s debut feature, The Story of Southern Islet, screened at Locarno and Rotterdam, and won the Best New Director, FIPRESCI and NETPAC Awards at the 2020 Golden Horse Awards. His sophomore feature, a period drama titled Snow in Midsummer, was showcased in Venice’s Giornate degli Autori last year (watch the interview) and received nine Golden Horse nominations.

Aun’s new project revolves around a community of farmers living on the Malaysian-Thai border. In detail, it follows Hong Im, a farmer who recently lost her husband under mysterious circumstances. Hong Im uses black magic to address the villagers’ everyday issues until she encounters a ghost that reveals a secret about her husband’s death.

Chinese star Fan Bingbing (who recently appeared in Green Night, The King’s Daughter and The 355) plays the leading role, Hong Im. The cast also includes Taiwan’s Bai Run-yin (Old Fox) and Hong Kong’s Natalie Hsu (Suk Mung), who portray Hong Im’s son and daughter, respectively.

Mother Bhumi is being co-produced by Kew Soon Wong for Malaysia’s Janji Pictures with Stefano Centini for Volos Films Italia, the Italian branch of Taiwanese-based Volos Films.

“We are excited to once again bridge Europe and Asia through the work of an up-and-coming auteur whose cinematic talent has already been recognised on the festival circuit on both continents. Besides, partnering with such a great actress is a chance for us to bring more awareness of Asian storytelling to a wider audience,” Centini told Cineuropa. Fan Bingbing has undergone several months of preparation to learn local dialects and has immersed herself in the environment. Furthermore, she will have an "unprecedented look" in the movie.

“Mother Bhumi will look back at some of the themes in Chong’s previous work, such as the deep connection with black magic and rural beliefs in the Asian countryside, and will explore a unique female character at the crossroads between religion, superstition and Asian mythology. We are working at full speed to wrap the shoot in November and are hoping to present the film in the second half of 2025,” Centini concluded.