THE forest is their home, and two Orang Asli women are presenting shorts at the FreedomFilmFest2020 (FFF), themed Bangsa: Manusia (Race: Human), that tell of their community concerns in a quest for equal rights.
Sherry Tan and Rosdila Ngah Roslan, who filmed Selai Kayu Yek (Roots Of My Land) and Klinik Ku Hutan (The Forest, My Clinic), are among 16 young Orang Asli women who took part in a three-year collaboration with FFF encompassing film bootcamps, human right and gender workshops and story labs since 2018.
For Tan, 21, the biggest lesson she has learnt from this experience was to finish any task begun.
"And, as an Orang Asli, there are many unique skills we can highlight. Wherever we are, and however advanced a people we become, we must not forget our roots, which is central to our identity. This is also for future generations.
"Don't think that because we are women, we can't make it," she says.
However, there was a bitter lesson the Jakun young woman learnt during this filming process.
"Someone leaked our video without our consent and they made a caption that implied we were selling our own people, and stopping those who want to progress.
"Because of that, many misunderstood what and why we were doing with this film. There were among us in the film group who lost some hope because of that.
"Why it is hard to get the support from the masyarakat? It hurt even more when the criticism came from our own people.
"But we learnt to persevere, to support each other in our belief that this film is important for our people as a whole," she says.
Tan adds that she was keen to take part as a young Orang Asli woman in order to be able to highlight the issues important to her people through this film which would also have good media reach.
"I feel that if not now, and if not me, who else and when else to bring up these important issues?"
Her film is about how the forest is important to the Orang Asli, and to safeguard the habitat and its natural resources because it offers natural ingredients for traditional medicine, as well as provides a livelihood for the indigenous people.
"Our culture and ways that come with the forest must be safeguarded.
"I hope they understand this message. Everyone will be happier with this relationship because we can avoid disasters like wildlife losing their homes, and climactic disasters.
"We hope this film will help people understand better and respect the culture of Orang Asli regarding the environment and the dos and don'ts associated with the forest that is our habitat.
"I hope they learn to take caution when dealing with our forests because it is a vital part of our lives," says Tan.
For Rosdila, this project was a way to protect and defend her Orang Asli identity.
"I would be very sad if this identity is eventually lost. This film is a way to maintain the identity, reel by reel, says the 22-year-old Temiar who is afire to make more films about the Orang Asli.
She says she found the filming process and inclement weather tough.
"On one shoot, there was a terrible thunderstorm and I wondered if the elements were angry with my action.
"We as Orang Asli are more in tune with the natural elements and we have many no-no's that we must follow in the forest as we carried out our filming."
Rosdila's sense of her Orang Asli identity was reinforced with this project. "With this film, I decided that I must continue on collecting and disseminating the information about our Orang Asli heritage for the next generation, so that our uniqueness is not lost."
Selai Kayu Yek, which was filmed in Pos Ber, Kelantan and Klinik Ku Hutan, shot on location in Kg Lapan, Perak, will be screened as part of the FreedomFilmFest2020.
Malaysia's leading human rights documentary film festival opens today and runs till Dec 13 as a virtual event for the first time.
This year's festival will premiere eight brand new films from Malaysia and one from Singapore, which tackle issues of identity and representation, alongside a selection of socially conscious films from Singapore.
The public can also look forward to FFF's exciting and dynamic post-screening discussions for an opportunity to interact with filmmakers and film protagonists.
The festival will run online via the streaming platform CloudTheatre (www.cloudtheatres.com).
Full details including film listings, schedules and tickets are available online now at www.freedomfilm.my.