Shot almost entirely in the Bario highlands near the state’s northern city of Miri, the movie, directed and written by Sarawak’s Josh Nawan, won the First-Time Filmmaker Showcase award in London in September.

“I started writing the script in 2010, but it took years of refining before we were ready to begin filming,” Josh told a press conference after a media screening of the movie here yesterday.

He said the film, named after the Kelabit word for “rainbow”, revolves around a long-held secret guarded by a tightly knit local community, which is unexpectedly revealed by an outsider visiting the highlands as a tourist.

Josh said his younger years living in a Kayan longhouse community had inspired him to write the script. It took him and his team 40 days to shoot the film.

“Tegkang” is Josh’s first movie as a full-fledged director. Previously, he worked on two movies and a television series as an assistant director.

According to Josh, one of the biggest challenges he faced in completing his debut movie was working with a cast of first-time actors.

“We held casting workshops to help them ease into their roles. Often, the best performances come from playing a version of yourself, and we were fortunate to find talents who fit their characters naturally,” he said.

The lead roles in the movie are played by three-time Malaysian Film Festival award-winner Shafie Naswip and local rising star Michelle Lungan, who debuted in the TV film “Hidden Movie”.

Meanwhile, “Tegkang” executive producer Lyn Nashin is not ruling out a sequel, given the subtle hints throughout the film that might only become clear upon second viewing.

“If people enjoy it and want more, we would love to continue the story,” she concluded.