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UNCERTAIN GROUND
HD video, 12 mins
2014
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Continuing an ongoing interest in the lives of those on the fringes of contemporary consumer society, ‘Uncertain Ground’ is an idiosyncratic and intuitive portrait of a floating village in East Malaysia that technically doesn’t exist.
Despite having been a settlement of some sort for longer than the capital city Kota Kinabalu 0.5 km across the bay, and having an estimated population of 10,000, the village is not recognised by the government, does not have a name and does not appear on any maps. Neither does it have sanitation, plumbing, healthcare or postal services. Its inhabitants are considered illegal immigrants, despite being principally made up of Borneo’s various indigenous and nomadic tribespeople.
Based on a premise that life and communities flourish where capitalism breaks down, the film attempts to occupy that territory by intimate exploration of material and sonic aspects of life for those in the village.
It was premiered at Berwick Film and Media Festival 2014. The film is available to watch here
