TENG Poh Si doesn’t shy away from tackling controversial issues head-on. Take, for instance, her winning proposal for the Freedom Film Festival (FFF) 2008 that delves into the lives and plight of Muslim transsexual sex workers.

You cannot help but admire the young woman (she is only 24) for having the guts to deal with not just one but two subjects – sex and religion – that are often shoved back into the closet by the powers-that-be for being “too sensitive”.

“I don’t think it is sensitive,” she announces right up front when we met recently. “If the status quo sees it that way then maybe it is time to reflect and question that status quo.”

Indeed, that is her wish when her film, entitled Pecah Lobang makes its debut on Saturday. She hopes it will “inspire a discussion”, she says. “Instead of condemning (the transsexuals), let’s talk!”

(The film’s title translates roughly as “broken hole”; Teng explains that whenever she pointed the camera at her subjects at first, they’d say, “Cannot, nanti pecah lobang!” or “I will be exposed”.)

Teng’s US education is partly, if not entirely, responsible for her outspoken feistiness.

“Over in the US, it is more like, ‘This is a really good issue’, rather than ‘This is a sensitive issue’. I have had so many great teachers there, and felt that I could write anything that I wanted.”

Born and raised in Penang, Teng’s pen name, “Poh Si Teng”, was coined in the United States where it is a norm to put the surname last.

The recent journalism graduate from San Francisco State University already has an impressive resume that includes work for employers like the Miami Herald newspaper and the Associated Press news service, where she honed her skill as a video journalist.

If you’d seen the list of topics Teng’s worked on, you would not be surprised by the subject matter she chose for her first Malaysian film project. From covering stories on drug dealers in the crime-ridden streets of Miami (“I love stories to do with gangs!” she declares enthusiastically) to a 60-second peek into the life of a male escort (during which he consented to be video-taped in the buff!), Teng has always been attracted to intriguing, often underground, issues.

Before elaborating on her Malaysian film, Teng wants to make an important point about the difference between a transsexual and a transvestite: “A transvestite is someone who dresses up as the opposite sex. A transsexual is someone who wants to be the opposite sex.”

She continues, “Syariah law prohibits a man from dressing as a woman, although, oddly enough, there is no such restriction the other way around. There are severe penalties if a man were to do so.

“Such stigmatisation makes it really hard for Muslim transsexuals to integrate into society – so much so that they have no choice but to resort to sex work to make a living.”

Teng reveals that she wrote the proposal for the Freedom Film Fest (see Festival of freedom opposite for how the competition works) when she was still in the United States.

“I have always loved exploring stories about sexual diversity and the freedom of choice. Malaysia is at an interesting stage where the society is somewhat more open and we want the ‘pink dollar’, but at the same time we are also very conservative. There are very strong conflicting feelings and attitudes.”

She hit the ground running when she returned to Malaysia two months ago.

“I had only six weeks to complete the film. And it took me about one and a half weeks to find someone who was willing to be featured in the film.”
 

One of the most daunting challenges of making this film – shot entirely in KL’s Jalan Chow Kit area – was to get the transsexuals to open up to her, but, says Teng, “I knew that if I proved to them that I was sincere and non-judgmental, I would gain their confidence”.

»As a journalist, I can only try to get all sides of the story and, hopefully, presenting them will spark a debate« TENG POH SI

That, in fact, proved far easier than getting the relevant authorities to give their two sen worth. She tried Jawi (Jabatan Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan), for instance: “I wrote numerous letters to them but they did not respond. I ended up having to ‘ambush’ them at an event!”

The whole experience has been enlightening, she says.

“It is very sad to see the amount of hardship that they (the transsexuals) have to endure, but in spite of it all, they are some of the most beautiful and compassionate people I have ever met.

“During my first few days with them, they would give me a 10 sen coin every time we met up, saying that they want to pass ong (luck) to me!”
Teng feels that FFF 2008 is a good platform for the issue as her goal is to speak the truth without fear.

“It doesn’t matter if you agree or disagree; I leave that to the audience to decide. As a journalist, I can only try to get all sides of the story and, hopefully, presenting them will spark a debate.”

Many years ago, Teng found her calling after witnessing an incident that happened right in front of her apartment building in Bandar Sunway, Selangor, when she was studying at a local college.

“There was a squatter area and one evening it was demolished. I thought it was such a terrible thing to happen without warning or thought to the residents and had expected it to be reported in the news the next day. But there was no mention of it.

“That is when I felt the need to tell stories. Seeing what people have and what they don’t have, the disparity in society, and the belief that things can be better, well, that is what inspires me. ”

Source: Malaysia Star, Malaysia