French children films specialist Les Films du Preau has acquired all rights to Yasmin Ahmad's Mukhsin, making it the first Malaysian film ever to be sold to France.

The deal was concluded by the film's producer-distributor Grand Brilliance and Delphis Films from Canada.

Korea 's Kim Media has also taken on TV rights to the film about the friendship and love of two young children. The film is currently playing at Pusan in the special programme 'Three Colours of New Malaysian Cinema'.

It premiered at Berlin this year and received two awards from the Generation K-Plus competition, including the grand prix of the Deutsches Kinderhilsfwerk and a special mention for the Crystal Bear.

'Malaysian films are generally made for local consumption and seldom marketed and seen abroad, at best in Singapore and Brunei. Their market recognition and confidence level are not the same compared to Asian films from China, Korea and even Iran,' explains Fadzil Manap of the significance of these two deals to Malaysia.

Fadzil is senior manager for film distribution and international sales at Grand Brilliance, the film-making arm of Malaysian broadcaster TV3. 'We're willing to invest in quality productions with good scripts to make them more acceptable in the international arena,' he adds.

Meanwhile, the company has embarked on two new productions following the box office success of Cinta which won best film at this year's Malaysian Film Festival and is also playing in the same Malaysian programme in Pusan.

As a follow-up to Cinta, Sepi is an omnibus film of contemporary love stories set in Kuala Lumpur. It is currently in post-production.

Love is an adaptation of Cinta but the setting is moved to Indonesia. Indonesian startup 13 Entertainment is producing with Grand Brilliance as a foreign investor. Shooting is due to start on October 15 with an Indonesian cast.

Both new productions are directed by the original's director Kabir Bhatia and scheduled for release next Valentine's Day to capitalise on the love theme.

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