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Low Ngai Yuen
Born	1976 or 1977 (age 47–48) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Nationality	Malaysian
Education	Bachelor of Science
Alma mater	Campbell University
Occupation(s)	Film director, producer
Years active	2000 - present
Known for	Kakiseni, 3R (Malaysian TV series), WOMEN:Girls, Global Entrepreneurship Movement (GEM).
Notable work	Your World, My World (2003)
Television	3R (Malaysian TV series)
Title	President of Kakiseni
Spouse	Wayne Wong
Children	4

Low Ngai Yuen (劉藝苑) is a Malaysian film director, producer, actress and TV show host. She is also a women's rights activist and an entrepreneur in the arts industry. She directed the production of short films and documentaries that advocate women's rights. Low is the current President of Kakiseni, an NGO platform for the performing arts in Malaysia.

Life

Low resides in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with her husband Wayne Wong and four children. She is involved in two main causes: women empowerment and the performing arts. Low is also active in youth inclusion and productivity as well as social issues. As a working mother, she believes that balance between family life and career starts each day with her children. She received a Bachelor of Science in biology and chemistry from Campbell University, North Carolina in June 2000. In early 2004, she completed a course on filmmaking at the University of Melbourne, Australia to help improve her skills in filmmaking.

Career

Low currently leads three NGO: Global Entrepreneurship Movement (GEM), Kakiseni and WOMEN:girls. She is also co-founder of four business service companies.

In 2000, Low started hosting a talkshow named 3R, a women's program on TV3. She gives credit to her experience at 3R for understanding the media industry and discovering new opportunities. In addition to her TV activities and hosting events, Low directed the TV programs Satelit and Generasi for Astro Ria, a Malaysian 24-hour TV network; and Growing Pains for RTM2, a free-to-air television channel operated by the Radio Television Malaysia.

In 2002, Low's talkshow 3R won the best infotainment programme award at the Asian Television Awards. Her directorial debut, Your World, My World (2003) won the Best Short Film and The People's Choice awards at the Starlight Cinema Short Film Festival 2003 in Singapore and the Évian Short Film Festival. Your World, My World was selected for screening at the 8th Manchester International Short Film & Video Festival in 2003 and the 7th Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival, an annual festival devoted to cinematic works from East and Southeast Asia, Asian-Canadian and Asian-American filmmakers.

Trio Indonesia, an interactive TV series, was Low's first project as a Director outside of Malaysia. She also wrote and directed a play titled The Girl from Ipoh, a comedy staged in 2005. Low also created and directed 5 Jingga, a series of TV musical drama about youth issues on 8TV that started on 12 August 2008.

In 2008, Low joined the French multinational retailer Carrefour Malaysia and Singapore as its youngest Director of marketing and communications. She worked at this company until January 2012.

In 2011, Low was selected as a Subject Matter Expert for the Malaysian Prime Minister's roundtable on engaging the youth. She then acted as the leader of its performing arts pillar that maps the industry's growth for the Dasar Industri Kreatif Negara.

In 2013, Low won in the media and arts category, the Malaysia's Women Weekly Great Women of Our Time award for her initiative WOMEN:girls, a program she created 2011 to match younger girls with accomplished women as inspiration and role models. Then, she was named Most Successful Woman of 2014 by Jessica Malaysia magazine. From 2015 to 2017, Low was a member of the board of the National Advisory Council on the Integration of Women in Development set up by the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (Malaysia).

Filmography

Low has an extensive career in the film industry with many films in all genres to her credit. For example, her “WOMEN:girls” program launched a storytelling movement, “Ikal Mayang” in 2013 where short films are used to engage conversations within communities. The goal of this movement is to empower women, increase the share of their voices, and tell their stories through filmmaking. In conjunction with International Women's Day, Ikal Mayang created its own film festival that showcases female film directors from Asia. The movement achieved an important milestone when it was officially selected for the 18th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) 2013. Under Low's leadership, Ikal Mayang contributed these short stories that premiered at BIFF 2013: Jerat Suami directed by Dira Abu Zahar, 1-800-BABY directed by Datin Sofia Jane Hisham, Pantang directed by Vanidah Imran, Odah directed by Junaidah M. Nor, Berat Sebelah directed by Melissa Saila, and She directed by Ida Nerina.

References

1. Kam, Patsy (2008-05-08). "A mother knows best". The Star. Archived from the original on 2014-10-27. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
2. ^ "Embracing Women". The Star. 3 July 2015.
3. ^ "Initiative today aimed at bringing Malaysians together". The Star. 3 July 2015.
4. Tam, Michelle (2013-04-18). "All for art and art for all". The Star. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
5. Hooi, Lim Wing (2014-05-03). "Bringing the arts to the fore". The Star. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
6. "Presenter Intervie - Malaysia's Kakiseni, A platform for the performing arts". The Japan Foundation – Performing Arts Network Japan. May 15, 2014.
7. "Mothers Who Inspire: Low Ngai Yuen, President of Kakiseni". Article. Malaysia Tatler Society. 5 May 2014.
8. "For Every Busy Life - Low Ngai Yuen". World News Network. 26 February 2016.
9. "Make time for your kids=". The Star. 14 February 2005.
10. ^ "Low's riding high". The Star. 17 November 2006. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
11. "Entrepreneur of the Week: Low Ngai Yuen". Emmagem. 14 August 2013. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
12. "TV host makes the news". The Star. 25 March 2007.
13. "馬來西亞數十萬名學生同步閱讀". Lihpao Daily. 21 October 2011. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
14. "TV host makes the news". The Star. 25 March 2007.
15. "Popular TV hosts from 3R appointed National Goodwill Ambassadors for UNICEF Malaysia". UNICEF. May 15, 2014. Archived from the original on August 5, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
16. "3R is a Winner in the Asian Television Awards 2002". 3R (Respect, Relax, Respond). March 24, 2009. Archived from the original on October 5, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
17. "Malaysian bags major film awards". The Star. 26 June 2003.
18. "Director's Profile". Biography. RedFilms. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2017-07-14.
19. "2003 OFFICIAL SELECTION". Reel Asian International Film Festival. 2003. Archived from the original on 2017-10-28. Retrieved 2017-07-14.
20. "France's Carrefour abandons Malaysia". August 25, 2010.
21. "Retailers go all out to make campaign a success". The Star. 11 January 2010.
22. "RSOG Seminar "Preserving Malaysian Heritage through Creative Industry" with Mrs. Low Ngai Yuen". Seminar Summary. Razak School of Government. 27 January 2015.
23. "1M Roundtable going live". The Star. 12 June 2011.
24. "Being the Light". Star2. 5 March 2017.
25. "Women:Girls - Empowering Women and Girls to Achieve Their Full Potential". Interview. BFM 89.9. 3 April 2013.
26. "Disabled children to stamp their abilities with "Colours of My World"". UNICEF. 8 May 2013. Archived from the original on 30 June 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
27. "Tales by women and men at Ikal Mayang 2015 (Video)". The Sun (Malaysia). 6 March 2015.
28. "Ikal Mayang: Top Stories and Behind The Scenes". Elle (Malaysia). 2014.
29. "Know Your Power". Press Reader. 17 March 2017.
30. "Breaking barriers to inspire others". Star2.com. March 17, 2017.
31. "Ikal Mayang Festival 2014 Films". Press Reader. 6 March 2014.
32. "Playing the good wife". The Sun (Malaysia). 15 October 2013.
33. "Local film project premieres at Busan International Film Festival". The Star. 10 October 2013.

External links

• Kakiseni website
• WOMEN:Girls website
• Low Ngai Yuen at IMDb

• Living people
• Malaysian people of Cantonese descent
• People from Kuala Lumpur
• Malaysian activists
• Malaysian women's rights activists
• Malaysian film directors
• Malaysian women film directors
• Malaysian film producers
• Campbell University alumni