Everyone deserves a second chance

FILM REVIEW | In 2021, Freedom Film Network (FFN) saw its office in Petaling Jaya, along with the home of cartoonist Amin Landak, raided by cops over a nearly four-minute documentary, ‘Chilli Powder and Thinner’.

Detailing the heartbreaking tale of alleged torture and abuse suffered by three boys told from the perspective of one victim, it was a short but impactful animated piece on police brutality. So much so that it solicited a reaction from the authorities, that’s for sure.

The short film was a collaboration between human rights group Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) and FFN, and was directed by Suaram programme director Mohammad Alshatri Abdullah.

This year, Alshatri returned to the silver screens of the Freedom Film Festival - which took place earlier this month - with a new documentary called ‘Peluang Kedua’ (Second Chance), which follows the tale of death row prisoner P Pannir Selvam seeking to...