KUALA LUMPUR: Director Syafiq Yusof's star-studded action film KL Special Force is riding high, taking RM12.1 million at the box office since it opened a month ago.
The film's producer who is also Syafiq's father Datuk Yusof Haslam is delighted with its achievement, citing it as proof that Malaysians were still ardent fans of serious police dramas.
"I'm glad KL Special Force is still going strong in all 120 cinemas. It's great news that viewers still love serious action films and have not ditched them for comedies," he said in an interview today.
Yusof, a member of the National Film Development Corporation's (Finas) Compulsory Screening Scheme Committee, also said KL Special Force was initially screened in 80 cinemas nationwide, but the number of cinemas was increased to 120 by popular demand.
He said that this decision was made following a recent meeting between the Malaysian Association of Film Exhibitors (Pemamer), Finas and the Malaysian Film Producers' Association (PFM).
"We meet from time to time to decide how many cinemas will screen a specific film. If box office collections are below 15 per cent, it won't be shown any more. This applies to both local and international films," he said, adding that viewers solely determined the market for a certain film.
Yusof also advised film companies to have good relations with cinema operators, for the well-being of the film industry.
“We in the committee always make sure local films get more viewers, but at the end of the day, that decision depends on viewers and cinema operators."