Malaysia's film industry recorded a 107.7% surge in viewership to 14.83 million in 2025 compared with 7.14 million the previous year, says Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching.
She said local film box office collections also hit a record high of RM247.95 million in 2025, up from RM166.57 million in 2024.
"The success of films such as Blood Brothers: Bara Naga (RM73.64 million), Papa Zola The Movie (RM63.88 million) and Ejen Ali The Movie 2 (RM58.40 million), which each grossed tens of millions of ringgit in 2025, proves that Malaysian films can produce quality, entertaining works that appeal to audiences from all walks of life," she said.
Teo said this when speaking at the launch ceremony and Top 5 announcement of the 35th Malaysia Film Festival (FFM35) at the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas) headquarters on Oct 10.
Also present were Communications Ministry Secretary-General Datuk Abdul Halim Hamzah, Deputy Secretary-General (Strategic Communication and Creative Industry) Datuk Bahria Mohd Tamil, Finas Chairman Datuk Dr Hans Isaac and Finas Chief Executive Officer Datuk Azmir Saifuddin Mutalib.
Teo said as Malaysian cinema continues to show encouraging growth, support through the RM1 million Creative Content Fund will be maintained for the FFM35 Best Film winner.
"I hope this support helps recipients develop their next project and bring Malaysian stories to a wider audience," she said.
Meanwhile, she noted that audience support remained strong, with local films recording 6.10 million viewers up to July 2026, while six local titles exceeded RM10 million in box office collections.
She encouraged other state governments and territories to follow the Federal Government's initiative under Budget 2027 on entertainment duty exemptions for local film screenings and theatre tickets.
"As Deputy Minister of Communications, I hope other states and territories will consider exempting entertainment duty on local film and theatre tickets so that we can collectively support the local creative industry," she said.
Teo said the FFM35 theme, Spectrum Of Cinema, accurately reflects today's Malaysian films, which encompass stories from diverse communities, languages and life experiences.
"Some films make us laugh, some make us think, and others help us understand the lives of others. Diversity is our strength, and we do not need to rely on just one form of storytelling to represent Malaysia," she added.
The FFM35 Awards Night is scheduled to take place on Nov 21 at Istana Budaya. – Bernama
