No Nose
Year: 2025
Overview
An international documentary about the critically endangered snub-nosed langur species in Vietnam, combined with string puppet performance by Malaysian artists. When the team chose Vietnam as their filming location, I was proud to support them with permits, production logistics, and local coordination to ensure smooth and successful filming.
Why This Project?
The Tonkin snub-nosed monkey (TSNM) is one of the rarest primates on Earth. It is critically endangered and nearly impossible to film in the wild.
Its unique face and elusive nature make it the perfect candidate for a visually striking puppet that can bring its
story to life in classrooms, villages, and public spaces.
In doing so, we create a new form of conservation storytelling—one that’s tactile, mobile, and is able to build empathy where traditional media cannot reach.
The Audience
Local: Working with local NGOs and partners, we will have in-person puppet performance for a local village or school in the surrounding areas where this monkey lives.
The film script will be written and narrated in Vietnamese to reach a wider Vietnamese audience and will be published on social media.
Global: The film script translated and narrated in English for a global audience.
The film will be released online alongside multiple shorter social
media cut-downs to maximise reach.
The film will be submitted to international film festivals for
physical screenings around the world.
After the project: The puppet and the performance will live on long after the project is completed.
Future projects can revolve around bringing this puppet and performance to more rural villages and schools.
Impact Goal
Raise awareness of the TSNM in rural communities, especially among children.
Teach rural communities and school children about the science behind the TSNM’s unique look and the threats they currently face.
Build empathy and pride in protecting local wildlife through storytelling and direct interaction.
Encourage long-term conservation support from schools, NGOs, and the public.
Spark national and global interest in one of the world’s rarest primates through creative media.
Team Members
Bright Ong
Myles Storey
Lam Ha
Tu Anh
Bright Ong, Puppetry Creative, Malaysia
Bright is a multidisciplinary performance-maker, director, and puppetry creative.
His portfolio of work spans across different fields within the performing arts, and has spanned globally for over a decade with theatre credits in My Neighbour Totoro (UK 2023), Idiots Assemble: Spitting Image the Musical (UK 2023), Beruk Kentoi: Echoes of Perlis (Malaysia 2023), Urinetown The Musical (Singapore 2019) to name a few.
In his capacities as a performance-maker and director, Bright has spearheaded numerous projects across a spectrum of genres; from reimagining the performance delivery of traditional Asian and classical Western music, to the combination of movement work and puppetry. Best known for his work with diverse puppetry styles, Bright has worked with esteemed companies and organizations around the world.
Bright’s current mission is to celebrate Southeast Asian creations, and is looking to develop impactful and affective work for the region in the years to come.
Myles Storey, Director, Malaysia
Myles Storey is a award-winning wildlife and documentary filmmaker from Sabah, Malaysia. He has a background in Zoology and Wildlife Filmmaking and has worked on productions with the BBC Natural History Unit, World Animal Protection, Wildscreen and On The Edge Org.
His work has won a Royal Television Society cinematography award and was shortlisted for the 2024 Sony Future Filmmaker Awards in LA. His recent work has been shared by Leonardo DiCaprio and Benedict Wong to create awareness about conservation issues.
Coming from Borneo, he has always had a strong interest in stories about the rainforest and has seen the rapid degradation of one of the most biodiverse places on earth which has shaped the focus of his work. He specialises in documentaries, short films and digital content to target audiences who wouldn’t normally consume natural history content and create measurable impact.
Lam Ha, Producer, Vietnam
Tu Anh, Cinematographer, Vietnam
Nguyen Dang Tu Anh is a documentary filmmaker specializing in wildlife and local cultures in Vietnam. He has created personal projects that tell the stories of individuals working in wildlife conservation across the country.
With over three years of experience in producing awareness-raising media for environmental protection projects, he has collaborated with forest protection departments in national parks to promote sustainable livelihoods that do not rely on forest resources.
Organizations such as WWF-Vietnam, ICRAF, CEGORN, Samsung, Coca-Cola, and The Ocean CleanUp have entrusted Tu Anh to tell their stories of environmental efforts in Vietnam. He has recently had the opportunity to work with National Geographic and BBC Studio on programmes such as Planet Earth III.
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