Minal Aidin Comedy Film Minta Maaf Minta Rizki, Baim Wong Shares His Challenges

JAKARTA - Actor and director Baim Wong is back showing his fangs in the local film industry. Through the Tiger Wong Entertainment production house, Baim is currently preparing the latest feature film project titled Minal Aidin Mohon Maaf Minta Rizki. Interestingly, this is the first time Baim has tried the director's chair for the comedy genre.

Baim Wong admitted that he was very satisfied with the preparations that had been running, especially after seeing the chemistry of the actors during the reading process. He believes this film will give a new and fresh color to Indonesian audiences.

"I'm satisfied. From the beginning I've seen the cast is incredibly strong. After seeing the reading process, the result really made me more convinced that this film will be something special," said Baim Wong in his statement quoted by VOI, Thursday, July 9.

Even though it is packaged with a light comedy, Baim insists that every work must have a moral message. If before he played a lot in the realm of horror and family drama, this time Baim wants to touch the side of social reality that is more daring.

"Every film I always have a message I want to convey. If I used to talk a lot about family because I wanted people to feel the importance of family and time together. Now there is one discussion that I think is quite risky, but it must be raised because it is real in society," explained Baim.

In this project, Baim Wong decided not to write the script himself. He entrusted the development of the story to a talented young writer, Cassandra Mawardi. Baim even willingly canceled another film project to raise the script written by Cassandra which has been around since 2024.

"I immediately said, 'This is great. Why hasn't a movie been made yet?'. At first I was preparing another project, but in the end I canceled it because I felt this story was much more interesting. My contribution to the script is probably only about 10 percent. The rest is really Cassandra Mawardi's work," he said.

On the other hand, Cassandra Mawardi told her unique experience when she was first contacted by Baim Wong. She admitted that she had thought that the short message from the actor was a scam.

"I didn't expect that the script I had been working on since 2024 would finally be produced. So far it has only been a file on the computer. It turns out that Mas Baim was the first person to read it in full and immediately liked it," said Cassandra.

This film is also full of cross-generational stars. The main character named Rizki is played by Prilly Latuconsina. A series of big names such as Sarah Sechan, Lukman Sardi, Davina Karamoy, Ririn Dwi Ariyanti, to comedian Aming also strengthen the cast. In fact, viral figures such as Pak Muh and Fadil Jaidi are also confirmed to take part.

Baim emphasized that the selection of players was carried out strictly based on character suitability, not just looking at the number of followers on social media.

"What I'm looking for is not just a big name, but a player who can bring his character to life. The results of the reading of the players are very credible and in line with the character we are looking for," he said.

Not to forget, Baim also invited his two sons, Kiano Tiger Wong and Kenzo Eldrago Wong, to appear in this film. For him, this is an opportunity to see how far his two children's acting talent is from an early age.

The filming process for the film Minal Aidin Mohon Maaf Minta Rizki is scheduled to last for a month. The shooting locations will be carried out in several strategic points, ranging from the Muara Angke area in Jakarta, to the beauty of Bulukumba and Makassar in South Sulawesi.

Baim admitted that directing a comedy film has a much more difficult challenge than other genres. The key is to keep the humor delivered natural and not contrived.

"If you are too attached to the script, sometimes the result is not funny. Comedy has to feel natural. Dialogue, expression, to the chemistry between the players must really be alive. That's the biggest challenge in this film," concluded Baim Wong.