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ShoutOUT!--'The Henderson Project' by Dream Academy

January 25, 2015, 1:03 am
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Singapore's newest platform for play and party, The Henderson Project, is curated by the team at Dream Academy® with artists who want to come out and play with a radical call to party.

There will be two events in February:

1. Film screening 
Our Hobby is Depeche Mode



An unusual, inspiring and poignant documentary about the fans of Depeche Mode. Whether or not you know the band or their music, come and be inspired too, by this first-ever Singapore screening of “Our Hobby Is Depeche Mode”.


Made by Turner prize winner Jeremy Deller and film maker Nick Abrahams, ”Our Hobby is Depeche Mode” shows us how music shapes our identity. Catch a rapturous insight into fan culture like no other, as the band and their devoted fans serve as subject and style reference for the night.

Date: 6 Feb 2015 (Friday)
Time: 3 screenings (7pm, 9pm & 11pm)
Venue: 203 Henderson Road,
              #02-01 (Lift Lobby A)
              Singapore 159546
Post party from 12am, with DJs Aldrin & KFC on decks, live visuals by M/SF/T of Non/Aligned. *Free for anyone above 18 subject to capacity (priority given to ticket holders).

Ticketing info:
$15 for each screening. Limited capacity, so get your tickets now!
To buy tickets call the ticketing hotline: 97267866 or 62780377 or email t@thehendersonproject.com.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/events/780390852044053/



2. Night of Art, Poetry, Rhymes and Beats, Brass and Hip hop

Catch homegrown stars Michaela Therese, Benjamin Kheng and ShiGGa Shay, as well as headlining act, Lazy Habits, followed by an after party with Matteblacc on the decks. 

Lazy Habits is an eclectic seven-piece group from Hackney, East London. We promise you will be blown away by their unique blend of slick lyrics with '50s big band, New Orleans jazz and proto-funk; serving up a hip-hop sound that is anything but derivative. It’s their first and one night only show in Singapore. Don’t miss it!

The Revolution Will Not be Televised
Date: 13 Feb 2015 (Friday)
Time: 8pm
Venue: 203 Henderson Road,
              #02-01 (Lift Lobby A)
              Singapore 159546

Ticketing info:
$20 for subscribers to Dream Academy’s mailing list
$25 in advance
$30 at the door

Get your tickets now via the ticketing hotline: 97267866 or 62780377 (during office hours) or email t@thehendersonproject.com.
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Review: "The Obs: A Singapore Story"

February 6, 2015, 11:50 pm
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Known for their constant innovation and brooding, introspective sound, The Observatory is one of Singapore's longest-surviving and critically acclaimed bands, and the subject of the experimental music documentary The Obs: A Singapore Story (2014).  

Artist Debbie Ding, interviewed in the film, describes The Observatory as "an alternative archive". For more than a decade, the film shows in its chronological journey through their discography, the band has shouldered this responsibility, consciously or otherwise, with their continued "spirit of inquiry and experimentation". 

Originally conceptualised as The Obs: A Documentation, the crowdfunded film eventually became The Obs: A Singapore Story, "refocusing from the band to the land through the eyes of its members", according to the filmmakers. Candid interviews with each of the band's past and present members including Leslie Low, Vivian Wang, Dharma, Victor Low and Evan Tan reveal how the city's changing physical landscape—the lonely elderly in Tanglin Halt, witnessing the "neighbourhoods that you grew up in getting paved over and buildings brought up for the interest of industry" (Mark Dolmont)—influenced the music's increasingly darker emotional soundscapes, alongside deeply relatable personal experiences ranging from a regimented childhood, the desire to migrate and the eventual decision to stay, to the challenges of touring after starting a family. 

When interspersed with painstakingly assembled, intimate archival footage of rehearsals in crowded living rooms, recording sessions in dimly-lit studios and early performances in local venues, the passage of time becomes apparent not just in the maturing faces and varying hairstyles but in the smallest incidental details: a blocky computer from the 90s, a smartphone resting on a console more recently. 


With the past and the present supplemented by insights from collaborators and contemporaries like X' Ho providing historical background, Bani Haykal recalling the band's inspirational musical prowess, and acclaimed improvisational musician and author David Toop considering Singapore's unique cultural context, The Obs: A Singapore Story is valuable as a primer on post-90s Singapore music history, recalling the organic liveliness of a scene encouraged by the BigO zine, a state wary of youthful energy expressed in long hair and slamdancing, and more recent developments such as the emergence of performance venues, The Observatory's first official gig at The Substation in 2003 and a now seemingly distant time in which regional record labels entered the scene and stores like HMV and Tower Records were still active and viable selling points for music.

But above all, the film documents the patience and passion of a group of individuals whose desire to pursue creative work has sustained them through years of an evolving sociopolitical climate, shifting national priorities and sea changes within the music industry as a whole. 

Thoughtfully and patiently created by director Yeo Siew Hua and co-producers Adeline Setiawan and Dan Koh,  The Obs: A Singapore Story is an insightful, if slightly meandering, watch which will definitely satisfy the band's fans, but which remains also accessible enough to resonate with anyone concerned with what it means to make art, and to daily live the urban experience, in modern Singapore with deliberate sensitivity and thoughtfulness.


Review by Aditi Shiva | Images c/o filmmakers 




Catch The Obs: A Singapore Story this weekend:

Sat, 7 Feb, 10pm
Sun, 8 Feb, 7.30pm
$12; pay at the door
6001 Beach Road 
#05-00 Golden Mile Tower
Singapore 199589


Follow the film's Facebook page for further updates.

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Singapore and its 'Superbrands'

February 11, 2015, 3:49 am
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This is the suburban mall experience in Singapore. Walk into Jurong Point or Junction 8, you are likely to face this. The gleam of shoes from Charles and Keith, the whiff of coffee from Toast Box, the mist of purified air from OSIM and the familiar and sometimes ‘too-familiar’ spread of local food from either Food Junction, Banquet or Kopitiam. How about a local film at the adjoining Cineplex to complete the entire experience?

One company that’s been making its presence felt in the space of ‘Superbrands from Singapore’, like the ones seen in all the suburban malls, is mm2 Entertainment. Name any recent local commercial blockbuster and chances are they have been involved as either producer or distributor. These include movies like the ‘Ah Boys to Men’ series, the ‘Lion Men’ series, ‘The Girl in Pinafore’, ‘2359’, ‘Ghost Child’. This year, their name appears in several talked-about projects like ‘7 Letters’ and ‘1965’. Over the last few years since their establishment in late 2008, they have made huge footprints in the commercial film space. In the last three years, they were involved in at least a quarter of all commercial movies that had a theatrical screening locally. Last year, in 2014, out of about seven commercially released local films, they produced four of them, including the 2 ‘Lion Men’ installments, ‘Re:Solve’ and ‘Wayang Boy’.

The feather on the cap must be the fact that mm2, under the name of mm2 Asia, got listed as a public company with the Singapore Exchange (SGX) last year on 9 December 2014, being the first local film producer to do so. The only other film producer that is already listed on SGX is Spackman, which is a Korean film company. (Interestingly, Hong Kong”s Media Asia Entertainment Group (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_Asia_Entertainment_Group) was previously listed on SGX but was delisted in 2007). In a year when Ali Baba put sexy back into getting a public listing, mm2’s listing signaled the start of a new tempo in the business of filmmaking here, some may liken to an injection of steroids.

A question begs, is the emergence of a ‘Superbrand’ in filmmaking like mm2 akin to a coming-of-age of our little film industry in Singapore? 

Just not too long ago in the 2000s, our film industry went through a teething phase of resurgence with sporadic film festival triumphs, sparks of inspiration here and there and a basketful of short films.  Production houses were springing up and some people who worked regular office jobs harboured thoughts of heeding their filmmaking calls and quitting stable careers like engineering or law to get into the action. But alas, the industry then was still trying to find a stable footing and there were hits and misses and in some years, fruitless attempts in film financing.

A convergence of events has changed the game a little. ‘Ah Boys to Men’ phenomenal success is making companies and entrepreneurs with deep pockets open up to a new avenue of investments, which are movies. ‘Ilo Ilo’’s acclaim has potentially opened the door for local filmmakers to foreign financing. We wonder if regional or international stars have become more receptive to appearing in a Singapore movie than before, if Hong Kong comedy veteran Sandra Ng’s appearance in ‘A Fantastic Ghost Wedding’, by a relatively unknown director Meng Ong, is something to go by.

Now with mm2 Asia’s newly-listed status, it is likely to be a winner in the game of numbers. Being a publicly-listed company, there will be more opportunities from financiers, it will pull in the heavyweights in both cast and crew, get the endorsements from the authorities like MDA and find collaboration partners of bigger stature more easily. With such a recipe for commercial expansion, mm2 stands a tall neck up from the next biggest player.  And it comes with some real perks for the local industry here as well.

Very few other movie companies can lock down co-production deals with Hong Kong, Taiwanese or Chinese companies. mm2 has done so with productions like the China co-production ‘为你转身’ and Taiwanese co-producion ‘做你爱做的事’. ‘ATM’ a Hong Kong co-production with mm2 will complete the Chinese-language regional loop. Not to mention, they got Fox International as a collaborating producer. A local film practitioner, from technical crew to a line producer, will get the near ‘international experience’ he or she’s wanted. A collaboration like this can also be the matchmaking point for many other career developments for the local film professional.

Last but not least, someday Singapore will need to make that multi-million dollar epic and it needs substantial financing muscle to realize that dream. A look across the industry, no company comes close to mm2’s capital-raising engine. It is indeed Singapore’s superbrand for filmmaking.

Like all other ‘Made-In-Singapore’ products, is growing a ‘Superbrand’ the way to go in terms of helping the industry mature? Yes and no. There is no denying the ‘big brother’ effects of a ‘Superbrand’ on the industry, in particular, being the door-opener for the rest and taking all the greenfield risks. But at the same time, smaller players may find it hard to make their voices heard under the drone of the existing ‘big brother’.

It could be fair to say that we want some kind of pluralism in our film community and industry, in which there is a mixed basket of films speaking out to different wavelengths, perspectives, humour and moods. For a long period of time, since Eric Khoo’s spate of HDB-based ghetto-porn films like 12 Storeys and Mee Pok Man, there seemed to be a long overhang of seemingly depressing independent films. It took an brave eagle like Royston Tan to give HDB a musical spin like in 881. Jack Neo’s brand of ‘heartland with a dash of toilet’ humour has also spawned several works by other directors with the same borrowed formula and humour, sometimes indistinguishable from the originator. Thankfully, the plethora of support for filmmakers from different sources is currently varied enough to ensure even films that will be potentially banned will be made.

As mm2 expands further, how much will this pluralism be disturbed? Will Singaporeans be so conditioned by safe commercial films that they lose the patience to appreciate films in less familiar forms? Will filmmakers, lured by commercial gains and the promise of commercial opportunities, decide to ‘dumb-down’ their films to appeal to the lowest denominator among the film-watching crowd? In a small market like Singapore, where natural monopolies form in certain industries (and politics), this could be a very real issue. We all know too what having only one company to run all of Singapore’s terrestrial television channels has done to the quality of locally-made television programs.

At the end of the day, it is a free market for all to play in and there is no reason to clip the wings of frontrunners like mm2.  Film giants in China like Huayi Brothers, possibly a role model for mm2, have played a part in pushing the envelope of Chinese movies and the industry. It too, was China’s first ‘movie stock’ and being listed was a springboard to its phenomenal rise as a regional movie powerhouse. A better question is what we could do to ignite the growth of other players, filmmakers and talents. The possibilities are endless. But a good starting point could where we began this little debate - the suburban mall experience. To all movie exhibitors, give some airtime to lesser-known filmmakers or films that are a bit more out of the ordinary. Same goes for the obligatory 'Yong Tau Foo' stall in all the food courts, stop sourcing your items from the same wholesaler.  
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ShoutOUT!: The 6th Singapore Short Film Awards is back at the Projector

February 18, 2015, 12:46 am
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The Singapore Short Film Awards is back here again, celebrating the most edgy independent films made in the last year.  The awards showcases the depth and breadth of the local short film scene, recognising excellence in homegrown filmmaking talent through categories such as Best Director, Best Fiction Film, and Best Performance. Submissions to the awards will be screened throughout the week, with the nominees screened on Thursday and Friday. From intimate documentaries to quirky animations to moving dramas, there’s something for everyone! The Projector will proudly host this event this year from 2nd to 8th March 2015.

145 short films will be screened over the course of this week. For more details on all 145 films, as well as the screening schedule - please visit http://www.substation.org/event/6ssfa
The 6th Singapore Short Film Awards
Presented by The Substation, Moving Images
Monday 2 to Sunday 8 March 2015
Weekdays from 7pm
Weekends from 10am
Venue: The Projector
Admission: Entry by donation
Supported by Infinite Frameworks, Samuel Seow Legal Corporation, and Camera Rental Centre

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Here are this year's 27 nominees:

Best Fiction:

Bon Voyage

Last Trip Home



Chamber of Ox

CHAMBER OF OX: EXCAVATION from Mads K. Baekkevold on Vimeo.

Stranger by Night


Best Director:
Alvin Lee for Bon Voyage
Grace Chew Hui Min for Destiny
Han Fengyu for Last Trip Home
Clare Chong for Stranger By Night
Tan Wei Keong for Pifuskin

Best Documentary:
The Longest Distance Relationship
Destiny
Chinese Housemaker
Family Recipe
Jia (English trans: Home)

Best Animation:
Afterline
Nascent
Cap’n Shmelly
Pifuskin

Best Performance:
Juliette Yu-Ming / Dancer in Rite of Passage
Lim Poh Huat, Yulia Valerio, Russell Tan, and Ram Rengachari / Stranger By Night
S. Sithira Thevi / Grandma in At Your Doorstep
Zhang Zheng Yang / Son in Last Trip Home
Teo Jun Jie and Lau Xiang Ying / Passenger

Best Script:
Chen Yingxuan / Move Out Notice
Clare Chong / Stranger by Night
Kenny Gee / The Body
Shane Lim and Angelica Ho / November
Tan Seong / The Elephant Cannot Fly

Best Editing:
Mads K Baekkevold / Chamber of Ox
Lau Xiang Ying / The Longest Distance Relationship
Shelley Chan / Glitch
Ng Xi Jie and Julie Zhu / The Swan of Tuonela

Best Sound:
Juliette Yu-Ming and Alexandre Brasil / Rite of Passage
Teo Wei Yong / Cap’n Shmelly
Avery Shen of Home Studio and Jesmen Tan / Bon Voyage
Ben Huff and Veronica Mullins / Nascent
Nick Talbot, Russell Adam Morton, and Mads K. Baekkevold / Chamber of Ox

Best Art Direction:
Michelle Cheong and Wendy Chee / At Your Doorstep
Keith Chong / Anchovies
Jerrold Chong and Ilana Kirschbaum / Nascent
Yi-Jun Ian / Graduation

Best Experimental Film:
Pifuskin
Rite of Passage
You’re Dead To Me
The Swan of Tuonela

Best Cinematography:
Lim Beng Huat / Anchovies
Michael Zaw / At Your Doorstep
Jolinna Ang Sok Kun / Farewell Summer
Tang Hui Huan / Destiny
Seongbin Baek / And The Wind Falls

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Venue address:
The Projector, 5th Floor
#05-00, Golden Mile Tower
6001 Beach Road, Singapore 199589

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For enquiries, please email:

Vincent Quek
Programming Manager, Moving Images
The Substation
vincent@substation.org

For more info: http://www.substation.org/event/6ssfa
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Review: 'Ah Boys to Men 3: Frogmen'

February 19, 2015, 10:52 pm
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The biggest surprise about ‘Ah Boys to Men 3: Frogmen’ is that is can stand on its own as a movie. This is in spite of the use of the same motley bunch of characters, and the same premise of a grueling course as some kind of rites of passage that the boys must go through and most of all, the use of the less familiar navy as a setting. The film is really ‘Ah Boys to Men’ in an alternate universe. Characters from the army universe get transplanted into the navy universe but with a few additional characters from both heaven and hell.

The movie begins with reprising the structure of ‘Ah Boys to Men 1’ – the ‘what if’ security disaster that necessitates the need for the armed forces. This time, instead of ‘war’ in Singapore, it takes a leaf from the recent string of hostage crises and creates a hostage situation on a vessel out at sea. The Singapore Navy is deployed to rescue the hostages, offering the familiar showcase of its weaponry and fighting tactics. Interestingly the captors here speak with an American accent with a tinge of Bobbi Tonelli. We are not sure what is meant to be taken away from this. As expected, the actions ends with a sort-of cliffhanger, like in the first edition, except that the narrator’s voice (Aloysius Jin) mentions that it is not a game. The film then uses a lame approach of rehashing the old scenes from ‘Ah Boys to Men 1’ and giving them a navy twist. The effect of this is somewhat uninspiring at first but actually worthy of a few giggles. The most classic scene is Ken’s welcoming home party. Which mimicks the one in the first edition. This is Jack Neo’s subversive humour at its best – a horde of kids dressed in navy uniforms welcome Ken home in an innocent round of cosplay only to be given an awkward taste of the real Navy when they are ‘punished’ with push ups.

While the movie sticks with the ‘rites of passage in training camp’ plot, the story is a lot tighter and more gratifying than the previous two editions, demonstrating the fact that practice does make perfect, though its not everyday that the box office warrants you to make a sequel. Details of the enlistment procedures, training activities and little non-plot-additive sub-plots are kept economical. Instead, the movie conscientiously focuses on the exposition of the characters. Quite discernably, the character backstories carry more weight this time, making their individual episodes more compelling.

A few character threads brought forth the point. Lobang’s character was thoughtfully developed in this edition. He is not just your token ‘Sim Lim Ah Beng’ but really a sensible survivor who driven by his tough circumstances has become the street smart ‘Lobang’. Through the heart-renching performances of Aileen Tan as the drug-addict mother (not to mention Lobang’s endearing sister), we are transported deeper into his world and are able to connect with a character beyond the caricature.
‘Black Dragon’ is a new kid on the block (though we also notice the disappearance of some older characters and ethnic minorities. There is a new ‘Ang Moh’ recruit though his role is negligible.) If you think ‘Lobang’ was the token gangster in the film, he is just a tame fox compared to ‘Black Dragon’ who operates a gang and fists his way through everything. The script delightfully establishes his tension with his parents, exposing his inner conflict and providing some back story to his behavior.
One of the biggest challenges of writing a multi-character screenplay is connecting the disparate dots seamlessly, making sure the plot flows while the individual characters are going through their transition arcs. The movie scored in this respect with a calculated balance of the believable and the surprising. One classic scene is the duel between law-abidding Aloysius Jin and ‘Black Dragon’. For half the movie, the audience may have wondered who will it take to tame this dragon, and Aloysius turned out to be the unlikely ‘hero’. Noticeably, Aloysius fights like a bull but still stays in character, bawling to the wall after every successful punch delivered to ‘Black Dragon’.

Lobang’s rescue mission of his sister provided another resonant point in the movie which gave it substantial weight without seeming too deliberate. In an action-packed, high adrenalin sequence, moral dilemmas are explored and suspense is kept over what will happen to the illegal ‘rescue mission’ and the two rescuers. With the help of ample build-up to this point, the dilemma is very real and without trying too hard, it begs us to ponder to rift between what are rules and what is right.

Speaking about what is right in the movie, what is not so ‘alright’ is the excessive moralizing by various characters. The movie’s narrator Aloysius Jin, of course, has the upper voice on moralizing, but the Officer-in-command, the warrant officer, the sergeant and various voices from the platoon also join in the moralizing chorus. In a scene in which ‘Lobang’ gets chided for short-changing a training officer’s girlfriend, he is told it is wrong because of the Navy code of conduct. What’s strange is that it is just wrong to short-change your customer. Period. No need for a military code of conduct to tell you that! Another set of cringe-worthy moments is the graduation ceremony which could be mistaken for a Navy recruitment ad, with family members singing praises of the navy and its training and reminding us why the hell they went through was necessary. If there was a prize for the worst product placement in the film (the product placements this time were more subtle in general), it would the appearance of KPMG staff at the graduation ceremony saying how proud they were of one of their prospective ‘soon-to-be auditors’ for completing the training, in unmistakable KPMG logo-emblazoned T-shirts.
‘Ah Boys to Men 3: Frogmen’ or even the trilogy owes a lot of its success to Jack Neo’s penchant for humour and affinity with street lingo. While the series has returned with more breathtaking drone-shots, slicker action and ahem, perkier physiques (from the ‘Ah Boys’ grueling pre-shoot training), what connects these boys back with the audience is the comedy. Comedy is used to diffuse moments, bridge the conversation gaps, explain the unexplainable and most of all, maintain a certain upbeat tempo that keeps the audience at the edge of their seats. In a setting where propaganda can get the better of the movie and the movie risks being seen as a vehicle for the Navy, humour makes this movie relevant to the rest of us who may have no intentions of rubbing shoulders with the Navy.

Review by Jeremy Sing
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Production Talk on 'Rubbers' with Han Yew Kwang and Lau Chee Nien

February 23, 2015, 7:13 am
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RUBBERS is a heartwarming comedy for adults that injects humorous condom use in three parts: an elderly couple’s marriage rekindled; a single lady’s seduction of a hunky plumber; the punishment of a selfish playboy.


Screened at the Singapore International Film Festival in December last year, this quirky comedy injects magical realism, laughs and lust in its 83 minutes of content. Audiences should look out for fine local actors such as Yeo Yann Yann, who is said to be playing out her most suggestive role as yet. The film will officially arrive in theaters on 30 April.


Photo credit: 18g pictures

Rubbers is directed and written by Han Yew Kwang, who has directed numerous comedy features like Unarmed Combat, 18 Grams of Love and When Hainan Meets Teochew. Chee Nien, the producer, has been a long-term collaborator and has helped produce many of Yew Kwang's films.

We speak with director Han Yew Kwang and producer Lau Chee Nien on the making of Rubbers.


Photo credit: 18g pictures

Were there any difficulties which you met during casting?

We initially wanted to use new faces that were willing to try things out and go topless on screen. However, we realized that they lacked acting experience and comic timing which was important to the film. Thus, I ended up working with my longtime onscreen collaborators.  They did have some reservation on baring it all onscreen and doing sexy stuff in the beginning, but we managed to work things with the cast eventually.

Could you share with us about some challenges that you met with in making Rubbers?

The challenge for me was to make the cast as comfortable as possible on set for their performance depended a lot on their comfort level with the team and the environment. Another challenge my team and I had was the securing of film locations. During the scouting of film locations, many shop owners and landlords would not agree for their premise to be used upon hearing of the film’s theme. 

Were there any interesting experiences you/& your team had during the shooting of Rubbers?

We didn't plan for the full naked shot of Alaric’s back. However, during the last day of the shoot, I requested him to do the shot as I saw that he was enjoying himself on set. He promptly agreed and we immediately cleared the set for the shoot.


Photo credit: Dean Sam

Photo Credit: Dean Sam

How long did you take to make Rubbers?

We took about fifteen days to shoot all three stories over a period of nine months. We shot the first story in early July 2013, the second story in the second half of July 2013 and the last story in February 2014.

You raised US$9,102 from Indiegogo, did you manage to get any other sponsorship for Rubbers?

Durex sponsored us with their condoms. The other sponsorships (secured before our campaign on indiegogo) are found in Rubbers’ opening and end credits.

Would you share with us three bits of trivia about Rubbers that you would like SINdie readers to know?

·         More than half of the cast were actually production crew members of the shoot and some were profession crew members who didn't work on our set but cameoed for us. 

·         One of the guys who masturbated in one of the scenes in our film is actually almost doing the real thing... (Who is the one? It is for you to find out!)



·         The plot of the old couple’s short is based on a true story (of Catherine Sng, who played the wife role, when she was younger).

Photo credit: 18g pictures
Photo credit: 18g pictures
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'The Projector' and the village

February 25, 2015, 8:30 am
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The door to a new 'old' world

The Projector, possibly the edgiest cinema in town, has settled in nicely into the body of Golden Cinema and the ‘crossroads’ neighbourhood of Golden Mile. From the time it opened its doors to the film-watching community during the 25th Singapore International Film Festival till now, it has won quite a following and has become the new home for independent cinema.

According to the founders Karen Tan, Sharon Tan and Michelle Goh, The Projector is about the co-existence of the old and new. It does not take long for a visitor to observe that old seats are still there in tact. Enjoying the Projector is about exploring, experimenting and embracing the space. We made a trip down to this part of Beach Road on weekend afternoon and soaked in everything at the Projector and in its midst.
This stark relic from the 70s greets you as you climb the overhead bridge across to the Golden Cinema building.
Gateway to Malaysia, gateway to nostalgia
Is this the one and only left in Singapore?
Indie cinema meets Indian cinema in this building.
The daily rounds of goodbyes and hellos on the ground floor.
Balik Kampung? Or an escape?
It is the middle of the afternoon and none of the shops are open! How do they pay rent?
The only place in Singapore where the 'open-air' portion of the coffeeshop is fully air-conditioned.
There are quite a few age bands on this table, truly a strangers' reunion
Peanuts, tea and receding hairlines
Old, rusty and nowhere to go
EBay of yesteryear?
This shop rewards those who braved the empty corridors and creepy shops displaying occult figures and idols.
This makes you want to shout out the name of one Singaporean filmmaker.
As we were mentioning, here is one of the creepy shops. Too creepy to stare straight in the eye, but too fascinating not to see.

Equally ominous, found in the same building
We make a detour to the 3rd level where the Hindi and Tamil movies are still screened.
Room for thought
Framing the ordinary in a rather extraordinary place.
The place has gone through some refurbishment reminiscent of some HDB flats - think colour mismatch
Lucky him! He never ages a single bit.
A good stare at this begs the thought: Why do people like weighing themselves before entering the cinema? (particularly in the old days)
A not-very-romantic romantic corner
Seems like one of the easiest jobs in the world here. 
The distinctively-dated metal grille over the forbidden zone seems to beckon our curiosity
This door grille seems oddly placed. as if.......

Okay, it's getting a tad creepy, let's move up 2 more floors.

This is so 'Wallpaper' magazine

We reached mecca. The mecca of cinema.
This looks uncannily like a scene from Tsai Ming Liang's 'Goodbye Dragon Inn'
Perfecting the imperfect: The Green Room, the more conventional screening hall, is an extraordinary cross-breed of nostalgia and experiment.
Stencil, our favourite font of the day
More fun in the Redrum (pronounced 'red room') it seems.
Some drama is necessary
Cinema Paradiso goes digital, but this room feels like fun!
Pensive. That's what this lift-ceiling mural feels like. Something to haunt you till you make a trip back again. Won't be long!

Stay tuned for part 2 of our feature on The Projector as we speak to the three women behind it.
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Film Talk with The Projector's Founders

February 28, 2015, 7:41 pm
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The Projector is a new independent cinema at Beach Road and more than that, a creative platform that sets out to revive that special feeling of anticipation and enjoyment of going to the movies. With more edgy film programming, one-of-a-kind events, versatile spaces and an inviting cinema café,The Projector hopes to provide a genuine alternative to the cineplex chains in Singapore. It is a creative partnership between Pocket Projects and FARM. The idea was born out of a love for old, undiscovered spaces and a desire for an alternative venue for a different film watching experience. 
Each of the founders behind The Projector gave us 10 minutes of their time to talk about why they are doing this, the films they like and want to bring to Singapore audiences. 

Karen Tan, Founder of Pocket Projects

Karen believes no project is too small to influence the way we think about, experience and live in our city. She is grateful that she was given the chance to create the award-winning Lorong 24A Shophouse Series, Singapore (www.thelor24ashophouseseries.com). Before PP, she worked in an urban regeneration developer, and has extensive experience in real estate investment banking in London. Pocket Projects is a creative development consultancy and management company. www.pocket-projects.com

What are some of your favourite films?

Miyasaki films by Studio Ghibli. Perfect blend of fantastical imaginative detail yet dark, with beautiful artwork.
Kieślowski's Three Colours Trilogy. Beautiful stories beautifully shot.
Tan Pin Pin’s Singapore Gaga and Invisible City. Tapestry of collective social memories, which are at risk of getting lost in today’s fog of distractions. She’s quietly observant and candid.

What types of films would like to bring to Singapore?

A diversity of films, hopefully that which inspires thought instead of passive consumption would be nice

What was your previous job? 

My current job is running Pocket Projects, a creative development consultancy which I founded a few years ago. We look at adaptive reuse and place-making in the urban environment. The Projector is one of our current projects.

What made you take this plunge?

Life’s too short. Better do something you see a point in before you’re dead.


Sharon Tan, Manager of The Projector


With a background in planning, urban design and regeneration, Sharon brings to the table a broader urban perspective, drawing upon her work at the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore before joining the team at Pocket Pockets. The Projector marries all her greatest loves (film, alternative/creative stuff, food) under one roof. Come by and say hello in December! :)
  
What are some of your favourite films?

Haha I know I'm going to be judged by one and all based on these few choices! It's hard to shortlist just a few, but here goes:

Richard Linklater's Waking Life - One of the most mesmerising films i've ever seen. A swirling stream of philosophical musings through the protagonist's random encounters with seemingly familiar characters, coupled with rotoscope animation and a great soundtrack creates an exceptionally vivid lucid dreaming experience. I wish my dreams could be captured on film like this! Definitely my favourite of all of Linklater's films.

Incendies - I recall watching the film's opening sequence and as Radiohead's 'You and Whose Army' washed over the theatre I knew the film was going to be unforgettable. It was, and still is. I can watch the opening over and over again and it sends shivers up my spine every time, it's indescribable. I'm really proud that we're screening it at The Projector. Come catch it while you still can! And please come early so you don't miss the beginning...

Mary Poppins - I generally don't like musicals, but this film is such a visual treat and successfully juxtaposes zany magical escapism against the sobering backdrop of reality of that time. It is such a grown-up film for kids. 

Wong Kar Wai’s In The Mood For Love – The same reasons why others love this film and Wong Kar Wai. Beautiful portrait of solitude. I can watch this repeatedly on loop, alone.

Donnie Darko - Dark and enigmatic, disenchanted teenagers, killer '80s songs on the soundtrack.

What types of films would you like to bring to Singapore?

In a nutshell, films that present alternative perspectives, explore atypical subject matter and prompt introspection.

What was your previous job? 

I was an urban planner. Cities are full of enigmas, the stuff of films!

What made you take this plunge?

Realising if not now, then never!

Michelle Goh, Assistant Film Programmer of The Projector
What are some of your favourite films?

If I knew why I love certain films and not others I would be a film critic instead! I tend to lean towards films which are both visually and emotionally evocative, characters in shades of grey (which is why I'm not catching the movie with the same namesake!) and/or good dose of dark humour - these are just some films which have left lasting impressions on me. 

American History X
Boyhood
Oldboy
Submarine
The Big Lebowski 
The Hunt

What types of films would you like to bring to Singapore?

Wetlands - the most WTF NSFW movie of the year.

What was your previous job? 

I worked for a long time as a seabird field assistant out on remote islands - where the only thing to do after a day of bird molesting was to kick back and watch a great film.

What made you take this plunge?

When I went to college - I would spend a lot of my time hanging out at The Cable Car - a small independent cinema in Rhode Island, which consistently played fantastic non Blockbuster films in a tiny room from littered with couches, and I've since found many equivalent in various cities I've visited - except Singapore. Surely it's time now?


Go check out the Projector today or visit their website at http://theprojector.sg for the latest screenings.

Take a visual tour of The Projector and its neighbourhood in our previous photo story on The Projector.

Finally, check out their facebook page for more of the latest activities.
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6th Singapore Short Film Awards: Thoughts on Best Director

March 6, 2015, 11:29 pm
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Contending for Best Director at the 6th Singapore Short Film Awards are Bon Voyage, Destiny, Last Trip Home, Pifuskin and Stranger by Night. The five nominated films vary in genres from documentary to realist drama to surrealism to animation and to a kind of ad-style film-nugget.


Last Trip Home (Han Fengyu) (production still above)
Han Fengyu’s ‘Last Trip Home’ is the surrealist addition to the nominee cohort. But honestly, more like a tribute to Tsai Ming Liang than anything else. The film portrays a father and son duo trying to get back home on a car and home, from their accents, is probably miles up north in China. Following desperation in its opening scene where the father decides not to sell the car off for money (presumably the money was meant to pay for the air tickets home), the characters go through a transition of determination and then uncertainty again. While nothing much really gets going in the film, as they never manage to move the car out of the building they started off at, the point of the film is the exploration of dynamics between the father and son characters. Even that, the film fails to establish an authentic relationship between the two characters for the reason that its focus on stylistics seem to override everything else, like the mutual showering and the mimicking of musical instruments. The car wash cum shower in an empty carpark with the festive lights in the background did create some semblance of visual poetry but its deliberate, oddball style also made it awkward at the same time. The director must be credited though for the visual stunts he made his actors undergo, though getting more support from a credible script would have made the film more substantial.

Bon Voyage (Alvin Lee)

This film feels like the most classical example of directing among the nominees with its dedication to details and nuances. Bon Voyage is a relatively languorous piece about a young man about to leave for overseas studies, spending a ‘farewell’ afternoon with his grandmother who cooks him a humble meal. Thanks to the director’s eye for everyday details and a ear for conversation, the film presents a rich untainted ambience of its humble HDB setting and the understated farewell, which seems more important than what happens in the story. The film’s realist portrait of the humble farewell is also discernibly reminiscent of the strokes of directors like Hou Hsiao Hsien and Ang Lee (ala ‘Eat Drink Man Woman’), whose earlier films dealt with family traditions and daily life with the same sensibilities. Which makes this film border slightly on being a style-tribute.

Destiny (Grace Chew)
The documentary ‘Destiny’ is an eye-opening documentary that brings us into the world of the marriage market in Vietnam and Vietnamese brides. The film exposes the motivations of these girls behind their desire to be married to foreign husbands, particularly Singaporean men, who are perceived to be financially stable and able to provide. Unfortunately, the choice of subject matter necessitates a feature-length treatment and the short form of this film tends to be merely a fact-dropping exercise, without any real point of rupture of progression. Nevertheless, the film still succeeds in its honest interviews with the stakeholders who sometimes offer frank opinions point blank, like saying which of the three girls featured have the best chance of finding a husband. The film has also aptly interjected the talk of the girls’ marriage dreams with the everyday scenes from their humble rural origins, demonstrating the directors’ eye for capturing the larger picture, which of course carries so much weight in the moderating the tone of the film’s message. 

Pifuskin (Tan Wei Keong)
The power of sound design is proven in Tan Wei Keong’s ‘Pifuskin’, which mixes visual drawing fragments with lucid sounds that served to evoke feelings. Exploring the concept of skin, this animation film breaks genre and narrative boundaries by crossing between the dream-like and the real world and sometimes making the lines blur. A boy is addicted to scratching himself and with through effective juxtaposed foley sounds, and symbolic imagery, the film digs a little deeper under the skin to explore what seems like issues of identity and self-awareness. Bordering on a kind of ‘scratching-gore’ porn, the director succeeds in making the audience uncomfortable and yet eager to watch the limits the boy would go to on his self-peeling adventure. A pity the film is a little disjointed as the images only seemed thematically joined but not narratively well-strung enough.

Stranger by Night (Clare Chong)
This is a clever, ad-sized filmlet with a near-punchline that is both entertaining and slightly evocative (largely due to the black and white style). Three characters each, take turns to visit ask for directions from the security guard and they turn out to be going to the same place. Other than letting Singapore’s favourite security guard, Lim Poh Huat, be himself, the film’s execution is mediocre and bland. The genius of this film is in its plot and its mirroring look at filmmaking and the characters involved. Take away these, the film is essentially resting on the thin grounds of a weak cast and perfunctory delivery. Ultimately, they all had to be saved by the eccentricities of Lim Poh Huat, the only authentic character in the film.

My vote for Best Director goes to Alvin Lee for Bon Voyage, for direction that is focussed, singular in its aims and natural in its execution.

Review by Jeremy Sing
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6th Singapore Short Film Awards: Thoughts on Best Fiction

March 7, 2015, 12:40 am
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The nominees for Best Fiction at the 6th Singapore Short Film Awards are Bon Voyage, Last Trip Home, Stranger by Night and Chamber of Ox. 

Bon Voyage


Bon Voyage is an understated short film that depicts a familiar narrative: the unspoken strong bonds between a grandson and his grandmother. On the cusp of his departure for studies abroad, he visits his grandmother's flat for a lovingly-prepared, humble home-cooked meal, after which they take a trip down memory lane. The narrative is clearly conveyed despite minimal dialogue, in the authentic and familiar setting of an HDB flat. However, the film's outcome is somewhat predictable, leaving the viewer hoping there had been some sort of resolution—a conversation, or any greater expression of emotion…any breaking of the silence (comfortable as it seemed)—provoked by the grandson's impending long-term departure.

Last Trip Home


Last Trip Home is about a father and son, Chinese immigrants, who wish to go back home with their only remaining possession, their car. The meandering film attempts to showcase moments of deep and tender intimacy between the two main characters, with varying levels of effectiveness—the moments of humour often seeming more natural than more deliberate scenes such as father and son showering together. At the end of the film they are not quite successful in their intentions. But this is a film that suggests, the journey is perhaps as meaningful and important as reaching the destination.

Stranger by Night


Stranger by Night is a stylish and moody little short enhanced by its being filmed in black-and-white; the absence of colour lends it a certain je ne sais quoi. It features lonesome security guard Lim Poh Huat who is visited by three mysterious individuals during the course of his shift. With the characters' unlikely outfits, particular mannerisms and little details like old-fashioned sunglasses and cigarettes, the film is visually pleasing but aside from the protagonist's expressive moments, lacks much depth and points of genuine emotional connection. 

Chamber of Ox


In Chamber of Ox, a man is seemingly pursued and haunted by feline apparitions after drowning a bag of kittens. The quirky, briskly-paced film uses creative and well-delivered animation techniques to create a world of creepy, menacing cats (both real and figurines) complemented by a creepy soundtrack and an expressive (human) protagonist whose desperation and panic still manages to evoke a bit of sympathy and definitely some laughs.

My vote for Best Fiction goes to Chamber of Ox for its unconventional, darkly funny narrative, conveyed through a variety of interesting filmmaking techniques. 

Review by Aditi Shiva 
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6th Singapore Short Film Awards: Thoughts on Best Documentary

March 7, 2015, 3:35 am
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Contending for Best Documentary at the 6th Singapore Short Film Awards are Chinese Housekeeper, Destiny, Family Recipe, Homeand The Longest-Distance Relationship. Submitted by students from Wee Kim Wee School of Communication, National Technological University and Laselle, College of the Arts, the five nominated films cover a whole range of topics –marriage, food, family and religion.


Home

A man with hoarding tendencies gets passed questions on why he hoards, while his long suffering wife and daughter are asked about their relationship with him. Home might possibly have been a winning entry if more background on mental illness was covered, and if the five minutes long film could come to a conclusion on the reason(s) for the main character’s behavior. What could be further honed on for Home was the choice of interviewee as he shared his story; the male interviewee gave lackadaisical replies, which makes the viewer wonder if a better historian should have been used.


Destiny
Destiny employs superb storytelling technique and excellent cinematography in all of its 20 minutes. The central theme is on the plight of Vietnamese women seeking marriages with foreign men in Singapore, and revolves about three young Vietnamese women. Tugging at heartstrings, Destiny would have been even more interesting if it had carried through to show viewers what happens to the girls in the end.




Chinese Housekeeper

Chinese Housekeeper, or Cheena Manaivi, is about a Singaporean Chinese lady who has married an Indian man. Practicing Indian customs and speaking in the Tamil language, she transcends the stereotype of a Chinese wife. The 11 minute length documentary employed good storytelling and shedded some light on Indian culture. More research on the topic and perhaps deeper insight into the lives of Milevaganam family could possibly enhance the value of the film.


Family Recipe


In this documentary made in loving memory of a late grandmother, her daughter brings to life her mother’s old cooking notes with the recreation of dishes her mother used to make. More than food should have been used to work on bringing out nostalgia though, for documentaries about food (and family recipes) are more than aplenty nowadays.


The Longest-Distance Relationship
The Longest-Distance Relationship (TLDR) is aptly and quirkily named. The people behind the camera are interestingly also the ones in front of it, and the four girls attempt to understand religions (rather swiftly) in the 24 minutes long film. Questions are asked, answers are not exactly given – but that is obvious the initial intent of the team. TLDR has high interest value, a strong voice, great technical competency, and despite some lack of research on each of the religions it touched on, TLDR is convincing as a documentary on self-discovery.

Concluding


Destiny and The Longest-Distance Relationship have got to be strongest contenders of the lot for Best Documentary. Picking one would definitely be a subjective choice, and Destiny is a personal favourite for its topic, interviewees’ honesty as well as apparent efforts (travelling to Vietnam) to create the film.

By Gwen Xu



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6th Singapore Short Film Awards: Thoughts on Best Script

March 9, 2015, 6:38 am
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The nominees for Best Script at the 6th Singapore Short Film Awards are The Elephant Cannot Fly, Moving Out Notice, Stranger by Night, The Body and November. 

The Body (picture above)
A young troublemaker seeks help from a man with experience after he kills a prostitute. In the efforts to dispose of her body, the elder cooly imparts advice to the more frenzied murderer on dismembering the corpse. His confident and callous exterior never wanes, though his patience trickles away through the night while the young man grouses and gets increasingly skittish. The drama intensifies when the sound of a vehicle approaches while the two have a dispute beside a deserted forest.


The Elephant Cannot Fly
Tackling a real and heavy subject, The Elephant Cannot Fly is stunningly poignant with its slow-paced opening and unsettling denouement. Mingling the pain of adulthood with the innocence of childhood, the nuances of this short make it for a sincere portrayal of a mother’s palpable sadness as it meets the purity of her son. 

Moving Out Notice
Employing the uncharacteristic premise of communicating through notes, an obstinate mother avoids speaking to her daughter, Wei. As she covers every surface with post-it notes that dictate household chores and scribbles down replies to hold up during arguments, Wei gets increasingly exasperated at her mother’s stubborn unwillingness to talk. The cantankerous duo squabble through daily routines as this dynamic comedy brings to life one of a single parent’s greatest fears — when her only child finally grows up and wishes to leave the nest — and the looming ghosts of her past they dig up.

Stranger by Night
We are all acclimatised to the lone night guard who stations himself, stoic, unmoving and bored in his own small cubby. The loneliness gives way this story, told from the highlight reel of Lim Poh Huat’s monotonous night: a handful of carefully collected memories of his most intriguing interactions with strangers. With playful irony and the curiosity of repeated actions, three strangers, on three occasions throughout the evening, approach a night guard for directions — all to the same location.

November
Romance gets messy when teenage couple faces a hitch in their relationship. After Kai tests positive for herpes, Min has to deal with both her boyfriend's infidelity and the possibility that she has caught it too. As she waits in the clinic, her despondence is unforced but tangible in this striking and well-paced short, which ends on a note that carries a bittersweet encapsulation of one’s first attempt at love and undertones of the loss of one’s innocence.

Elephant Cannot Fly stands out as the winner because the story is the most compelling in spite of its duration. In dealing with human nature and how individuals react to emotional pain and despondence raised universal questions that everyone would have pondered over at some point of their lives. Whatever the cause of the pain, the short is a testament to how heavy the weight of sadness is and the lengths one would go to to end that pain, and even consider the world far too tainted for someone they love to want to let them undergo those same emotions. It is also a nod to the issue of mental instability which most skitter around and cannot encapsulate with such ease, despite the lack of actions or words spoken - which makes this film even stronger.

Review by Chris Yeo
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ShoutOUT!: ciNE65

March 11, 2015, 12:13 am
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In the third season of ciNE65, as Singapore celebrates 50 years of independence, Singaporeans are invited to reflect on our past, present and future as a nation with the theme “Believing• Home”. Launched by Nexus (www.nexus.gov.sg) since July 2011, this short film competition organised by Nexus provides a platform for Singaporeans and those in Singapore to reflect on and examine the beliefs and values that shape us, individually and collectively, as a nation.
This season, a new technical award, “Best Documentary”, has been introduced to encourage Singaporeans to film a real slice of life in Singapore. This award seeks to recognise the craft of film-makers who help us to reconnect with Singapore’s past, or bring a fresh perspective to Singaporeans’ everyday life.
The distinguished panel of judges includes film-makers Boris Boo, Chai Yee Wei and Kat Goh, Co-founder & Director of Content at Oak3 Jason Lai, film lecturer at LASALLE Mardhiah Osman, cinematographer Sharon Loh and Director of Asiatainment Pte Ltd Edmund Chen. The winners of “Overall Best Film” Award for both student and open categories can look forward to an overseas trip to an international film festival and learn from renowned industry experts.
ciNE65 will accept film entries from 30 December 2014 to 6 April 2015. From 15 May 2015 to the middle of June 2015, the public can cast their votes for their favourite films, actors and actresses through the Facebook microsite (www.cine65.sg) or SMS. The competition will culminate in an awards ceremony in June 2015.  Please visit www.cine65.sg to find out more about the competition.


COMPETITION OVERVIEW

30 December – 6 April 2015
·     Competition submission period
  • Participants can submit their competition entries on ciNE65 Facebook microsite (www.cine65.sg)  till 6 April 2015, 2359hrs.
January – February 2015
·     Seminars / Workshops
  • Free film-making seminars and workshops will be available to public on a first-come-first served basis.
7 April – 14 May  2015
·     Nomination & Judging
15 May – Mid Jun 2015
·         Voting for Audience Choice Films
o   Participants can vote via ciNE65 Facebook microsite (www.cine65.sg) or SMS for the nominated Audience Choice Films.
Mid June 2015
·         Awards Ceremony and Showcase of winning films.

PARTICIPATION GUIDELINES

·         Singaporeans can participate as an individual or as a team.
·         Each team should not exceed six (6) members.
·         Non-Singaporeans residing in Singapore can participate as part of a team.

There are two categories – Student Category and Open Category in this competition.

Student Category
·         Full-time students, who are studying in a local educational institution at the point of registration, are eligible to participate in this category.
·         Overseas Singaporeans who are studying full-time in an educational institution abroad, at the point of registration, are eligible to participate in this category.

Open Category
·         All Singaporeans (including overseas Singaporeans) are eligible to participate in this category. Non-Singaporeans residing in Singapore are welcome to be part of the team.
Submitted films should be original and should not be previously submitted for other competitions. The submitted films should revolve around the competition theme, “Believing • Home”. Each short film must adhere to the given theme and be no longer than 3:00 minutes in duration (including opening and ending credits). All film submissions must be produced in high definition (HD) quality.
All films must be submitted to www.cine65.sg by 6 April 2015, 2359hrs.
Please refer to the www.cine65.sg for a full list of the participation guidelines.


AWARDS AND PRIZES

There are three award categories: Jury’s Choice Awards, Audience Choice Awards and Inter-School Challenge. The Jury’s Choice Awards comprise eight technical awards each for the Student and Open Categories. The Jury’s Choice Awards will be determined by a panel made up of the organiser and industry professionals. 

The Audience Choice Awards comprise three awards which will be determined by the total number of votes received from the public.

The Inter-School Challenge applies only to the Student Category and it will be awarded to the school with the highest number of quality entries submitted by teams made up of members from the same school.

Only entries shortlisted by the Selection Panel will qualify for the award/s. An entry may be nominated for more than one award. A winning entry for any award will still be eligible for other prizes that it is nominated for.


Jury’s Choice Awards
The winners for the following awards will be determined by a panel set up by the Organiser.
Prizes
Student Category
Open Category
Cash Prize $3,000
Learning Trip to an International Film Festival
Submission to an International Film Festival
Panasonic Video Camera (Models: AG-GH4U for Open Category, HC-X1000GC for Student Category)
Overall Best Film Award

Overall Best Film Award

Cash Prize $1000
Panasonic camera (Models: DMC-GH4A for Open Category, DMC-FZ1000 for Student Category)
Best Cinematography
Best Cinematography

Cash Prize $1000

Panasonic product voucher worth $500 per award/category

Best Direction

Best Direction

Best Editing
Best Editing
Best Screenplay
Best Screenplay
Best Sound Design
Best Sound Design
Best Art Direction
Best Art Direction
Best Documentary
Best Documentary

Audience Choice Awards
The winners for the following awards will be determined by the total number of votes the submission received from the members of the voting public over the voting period.
Prizes
Both Categories
Cash Prize $1,500
Favourite Film Award
Cash Prize $500
Favourite Actor Award
Cash Prize $500
Favourite Actress Award

Inter-School Challenge Trophy
The Inter-School Challenge Trophy will be given to the school with the highest number of quality entries submitted in the Student Category by teams comprising all members from the same school.
Prizes
Student Category
Inter-School Challenge Trophy
Inter-School Challenge Award


JUDGING CRITERIA

A jury comprising film industry professionals and partners of ciNE65 Season Three jury will judge each film based on the following criteria:

·         Relevance to Theme
The film should reflect the theme “Believing • Home”.  

·         Ability to convey ideas
The film should be effective in engaging and encouraging viewers to reflect on the messages behind the story.

·         Execution & Treatment
The films should demonstrate a high standard of technical execution. This includes quality visuals, sound design and audio integration, lighting and camera positioning, and other relevant aspects that contribute to a positive viewing experience.

·         Originality
The film should be presented in a unique manner through the use of creative film-making techniques, imaginative writing and directing, and an original plot.

·         Emotive Impact
The film should engage the emotions of the audience and leave a lasting impression.



ciNE65 SEASON THREE JURY

The jury comprises:
·         Boris Boo, film director
·         Chai Yee Wei, film director
·         Edmund Chen, Director of Asiatainment Pte Ltd
·         Jeremy Sing, founder & editor of SINdie website
·         Joe Ng, film and TV music composer
·         K. Rajagopal, film-maker
·         Kat Goh, film director
·         Jason Lai, co-founder & Director of Content at Oak3
·         Mardhiah Osman, film lecturer at LASALLE College of the Arts
·         Sharon Loh, cinematographer
·         Colonel Roland Ng, Director, Nexus
 
WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS

For more information on ciNE65 Season Three, please visit the following social media platforms:
·         Official Facebook microsite: www.cine65.sg
·         Facebook: www.facebook.com/cine65
·         YouTube: www.youtube.com/cine65sg
·         Instagram: www.instagram.com/cine65sg

To view our ciNE65 Season Three commissioned films, please visit the following YouTube links:
·         SINGAPURA by Bertrand Lee: http://youtu.be/NO1m6SFg7KI 
·         Tireless by Kenny Tan: http://youtu.be/nsbBbhK2pVE 
·         Old Kakis by N. Mohamed Yahssir: http://youtu.be/7cHadL08GFk

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ShoutOUT!: The 6th Singapore Short Film Awards is back at the Projector

February 18, 2015, 12:46 am
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The Singapore Short Film Awards is back here again, celebrating the most edgy independent films made in the last year.  The awards showcases the depth and breadth of the local short film scene, recognising excellence in homegrown filmmaking talent through categories such as Best Director, Best Fiction Film, and Best Performance. Submissions to the awards will be screened throughout the week, with the nominees screened on Thursday and Friday. From intimate documentaries to quirky animations to moving dramas, there’s something for everyone! The Projector will proudly host this event this year from 2nd to 8th March 2015.

145 short films will be screened over the course of this week. For more details on all 145 films, as well as the screening schedule - please visit http://www.substation.org/event/6ssfa
The 6th Singapore Short Film Awards
Presented by The Substation, Moving Images
Monday 2 to Sunday 8 March 2015
Weekdays from 7pm
Weekends from 10am
Venue: The Projector
Admission: Entry by donation
Supported by Infinite Frameworks, Samuel Seow Legal Corporation, and Camera Rental Centre

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Here are this year's 27 nominees:

Best Fiction:

Bon Voyage

Last Trip Home



Chamber of Ox

CHAMBER OF OX: EXCAVATION from Mads K. Baekkevold on Vimeo.

Stranger by Night


Best Director:
Alvin Lee for Bon Voyage
Grace Chew Hui Min for Destiny
Han Fengyu for Last Trip Home
Clare Chong for Stranger By Night
Tan Wei Keong for Pifuskin

Best Documentary:
The Longest Distance Relationship
Destiny
Chinese Housemaker
Family Recipe
Jia (English trans: Home)

Best Animation:
Afterline
Nascent
Cap’n Shmelly
Pifuskin

Best Performance:
Juliette Yu-Ming / Dancer in Rite of Passage
Lim Poh Huat, Yulia Valerio, Russell Tan, and Ram Rengachari / Stranger By Night
S. Sithira Thevi / Grandma in At Your Doorstep
Zhang Zheng Yang / Son in Last Trip Home
Teo Jun Jie and Lau Xiang Ying / Passenger

Best Script:
Chen Yingxuan / Move Out Notice
Clare Chong / Stranger by Night
Kenny Gee / The Body
Shane Lim and Angelica Ho / November
Tan Seong / The Elephant Cannot Fly

Best Editing:
Mads K Baekkevold / Chamber of Ox
Lau Xiang Ying / The Longest Distance Relationship
Shelley Chan / Glitch
Ng Xi Jie and Julie Zhu / The Swan of Tuonela

Best Sound:
Juliette Yu-Ming and Alexandre Brasil / Rite of Passage
Teo Wei Yong / Cap’n Shmelly
Avery Shen of Home Studio and Jesmen Tan / Bon Voyage
Ben Huff and Veronica Mullins / Nascent
Nick Talbot, Russell Adam Morton, and Mads K. Baekkevold / Chamber of Ox

Best Art Direction:
Michelle Cheong and Wendy Chee / At Your Doorstep
Keith Chong / Anchovies
Jerrold Chong and Ilana Kirschbaum / Nascent
Yi-Jun Ian / Graduation

Best Experimental Film:
Pifuskin
Rite of Passage
You’re Dead To Me
The Swan of Tuonela

Best Cinematography:
Lim Beng Huat / Anchovies
Michael Zaw / At Your Doorstep
Jolinna Ang Sok Kun / Farewell Summer
Tang Hui Huan / Destiny
Seongbin Baek / And The Wind Falls

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Venue address:
The Projector, 5th Floor
#05-00, Golden Mile Tower
6001 Beach Road, Singapore 199589

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For enquiries, please email:

Vincent Quek
Programming Manager, Moving Images
The Substation
vincent@substation.org

For more info: http://www.substation.org/event/6ssfa
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ShoutOUT!: 18 original short films at Latent Spaces

March 19, 2015, 10:21 am
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Under the programme 'Nightmare on Armenian Street' at the Substation last year, 18 original short films, each inspired by the different levels of hell in Chinese mythology were commissioned and made. See our interviews with the filmmakers here:
Part 1
Part 2
Watch them again at LATENT SPACES this Saturday!
Here are the screening details.
Where:
262 Pasir Panjang Road, Singapore 118628 

When:
21 March 2014, Saturday 

Screening starts at 2pm 
2 hours 40 mins runtime, with 15 minutes intermission. 
Q & A with the Filmmakers after the screening 
Rated R21 

Admission by donation. 

 Here is the list of films:

 LEVEL 1 | CHAMBER OF TONGUE RIPPING 
 Chamber of Tongue Ripping by Wesley Leon Aroozoo 

LEVEL 2 | CHAMBER OF SCISSORS 
Chamber of Scissors by Fade to Salon 

 LEVEL 3 | CHAMBER OF IRON TREES 
The Golden Bok Choy Scam by Allysa Sing 

 LEVEL 4 | CHAMBER OF MIRROR 
Hall of Mirrors by Koh Chong Wu 

LEVEL 5 | CHAMBER OF STEAMER 
Chamber of Steam by Dzafirul Haniff 

LEVEL 6 | FOREST OF COPPER COLUMN 
Forest of Copper Columns by Russell Adam Morton 

LEVEL 7 | MOUNTAIN OF KNIFES 
Mountain of Knifes by Nelson Yeo 

LEVEL 8 | HILL OF ICE 
Hill of Ice by Koo Chia Meng 

LEVEL 9 | CAULDRON OF BOILING OIL 
Play Play Only by "Kopi Bing" 

LEVEL 10 | CHAMBER OF OX 
Chamber of Ox by Mads K. Baekkevold 

LEVEL 11 | CHAMBER OF ROCK 
Chamber of Rock by Yeo Siew Hua 

LEVEL 12 | CHAMBER OF POUNDING 
Chamber of Pounding by Ila 

LEVEL 13 | POOL OF BLOOD 
Pool of Blood by JD Chua 

LEVEL 14 | TOWN OF QUITTERS 
Loop by Linh Duong 

LEVEL 15 | CHAMBER OF DISMEMBERMENT 
Chamber of Dismemberment by Ghazi Alqudcy 

LEVEL 16 | MOUNTAIN OF FLAMES 
Mountain of Flame by Syazali Bin Mohd. Fazal 

LEVEL 17 | YARD OF STONE MILL 
Yard of Stone Mill by Thong Kay Wee 

LEVEL 18 | CHAMBER OF SAW 
Branches by Teo Wei Yong 

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What's Happening in March: A list of film-related events!

March 23, 2015, 10:32 pm
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While this blog remains committed to promoting and championing local films, we recognize that many of you would like to know more about foreign or independent films that may be playing here. In light of that, we will be compiling a list of film-related events (whether the films screened are local or foreign) happening each month, and hopefully this mini calendar will help you organize your film-watching schedule.

Jack Neo's Ah Boys to Men 3: Frogmen is still playing in cinemas.

Sam Loh's Lang Tong, which premiered at the SGIFF last year, is likewise still playing in cinemas, albeit with several cuts by the MDA. (I've only seen the uncensored version, but I wonder if the cuts may have ironically made the film better.)

The Singapore Film Society will be holding a weekend-only screening of Foxcatcher, a biographical true crime drama, on 28-29 March, at Filmgarde Bugis. The film helped director Bennett Miller clinch a Best Director award at the Cannes Film Festival last year, and stars Channing Tatum, Steve Carrell, and Mark Ruffalo.

Cinephiles must have heard of The Projector by now, the restored cinema tucked away in a quiet corner of Beach Road. There's a wealth of cinematic goodness that's headed to that place. At the time of publishing, their Coen Brothers series is about to approach its end, culminating in a special-themed Big Lebowski night. Don your bathrobes.

Besides the Coen Brothers retrospective, The Projector will be screening Fritz Lang's Metropolis with live music accompaniment by Paul Searles from The Gunnery, happening 27th March, 8pm. Faith Akin's The Cut, Frederick Wiseman's National Gallery, and Jafar Panahi's Taxi will all be opening at The Projector too in the coming weeks.

And for those mourning the MDA's unceremonious banning of Tan Pin Pin's To Singapore, With Love, perhaps the screenings of Singapore GaGa and Invisible City might go some way to soothe your soul. Both are screening at - where else? - The Projector this Sunday (22nd March).  For more information, check out their website.


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ShoutOUT!: 80 hours to make 80 seconds in Cathay Motion Picture Awards

March 27, 2015, 7:25 am
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The Cathay Motion Picture Awards is in its 4th year this year. Essentially, teams that participate in this competition have 80 hours to create a 80 seconds film and a shot at winning $20K cash for Best Motion Picture Award and have their entry screened at all Cathay Cineplexes. Started in 2012, it gives aspiring filmmakers a platform to showcase their talent.

Last year, a short film called ‘Sole Sisters’ won Best Motion Picture. Here is the film:


This year, winning teams will walk away with the prizes stated below -

Best Motion Picture: SGD20,000 cash

1st Runner-up: SGD12,000 cash

2nd Runner-up: SGD8,000 cash

Each of the winning teams gets an exclusive Cathay VIP card worth more than $4,000 for each registered member of the team. They will also have their film screened in all Cathay Cineplexes for 4 weeks

There is also a Viewers' Choice, in which the winning teams gets an exclusive Cathay VIP card worth more than $4,000 for each registered member of the team.

Registration is now open and you can find out more about how to do so here.

Competing teams gather for a friendly shot before the competition kicked off last year.

Filmmaking warriors ready to make a dash!
 
At the awards presentation ceremony last year
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ShoutOUT!: Southeast Asian Film Festival returns with exciting works

March 31, 2015, 9:43 am
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The Southeast Asian Film Festival returns for its fifth year with an exciting presentation of the newest and most compelling cinematic work emerging from the region. This year’s Festival features films from Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam; as well as post-screening discussions from emerging and veteran directors. A celebration of independent filmmaking, the Festival reflects the diversity and contemporary socio-political and cultural issues of the region through film genres such as action, comedy, documentary, drama, and more.
 Snakeskin
 The Last Executioner
 Fundamentally Happy
Jade Miners
Dates: 10 April – 3 May 2015
Venue: Moving Image Gallery, Level 2, SAM at 8Q
$10* for each film screening (concessions available) | $7.50 per screening with purchase of 5 SEAFF tickets and more
Tickets are available from SISTIC from mid-March 2015. For ticket availability at the door, please call SISTIC at 6348 5555.
For more information, please visit the Singapore Art Museum link here.

The Last Executioner
Tom Waller, 2014, Thailand, 95 min
Thai with English subtitles, M18 (Mature content)
Friday, 10 April 2015 | 7.30pm
Singapore Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Tom Waller

This film tells the true story of Chavoret Jaruboon, the last person in Thailand whose job it was to execute by machine gun. A wild rock-and-roller in his youth, Jaruboon becomes a state prison guard in a bid for respectability. However, when he is appointed executioner, he is plunged into a never-ending conflict between his morality and his duty. How is it possible to reconcile the good karma that comes from being a dedicated family man and employee, and the bad karma that comes from being a killer?

The Search for Weng Weng
Andrew Leavold, 2013, Australia/Philippines, 96 min
English and Tagalog with English subtitles, PG13 (Brief nudity)
Saturday, 11 April 2015 | 5.00pm
Singapore Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Andrew Leavold and producer Daniel Palisa
This film is part of the festival sidebar Action Asia: The Wild Wild Years of Asian Film Action.

Standing just under 85 centimetres, Weng Weng was a Filipino James Bond who was adept at karate chops, machine-gun wielding, and the art of wooing a woman. An enigma even to those who have worked with him, his cinematic reign as the midget Agent 00 was an outrageous novelty that plucked him from complete obscurity and then returned him to it just as quickly. An engaging history of Filipino B-grade cinema and the business of film, power and politics, this documentary features directors, producers, actors, stuntmen, dwarf waiters, and even Imelda Marcos herself, each with their unique place in Filipino cinema.

Fluid Boundaries
Mun Jeonghyun, Vladimir Todorovic and Daniel Rudi Haryanto, 2014, Indonesia/Serbia/Singapore/South Korea, 87 min
Various languages with English subtitles, PG13 (Some mature content)
Saturday, 11 April 2015 | 7.30pm
Singapore Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with directors Vladimir Todorovic and Daniel Rudi Haryanto

In a series of video letters, a director from Indonesia, Korea and Singapore reflect on socio-political, cultural and geographical borders and share stories of people who cross them. Workers of different nationalities flock to Singapore to find a job, renewing their employment passes in Malaysia. Others find themselves frequently crossing the border demarcating East Timor and Indonesia. Desperate realities face an immigrant family in South Africa, while a person who left Vietnam for a refugee camp in Indonesia recounts his past. Another reminisces about tragic life of his uncle, who had to change his nationality from Joseon to Korean. What are the threads that tie these different individuals and their varied stories together? Through the lives of these people and the unpredictable twists of modern history, we witness the rigidity of borders melt away

The Look of Silence
Joshua Oppenheimer, 2014, Denmark/Finland/Indonesia/Norway/UK, 99 min
Bahasa Indonesia and Javanese with English subtitles, Rating to be advised

The 2012 documentary The Act of Killing was a troubling, surreal look at a forgotten chapter of Indonesian history: the killing of more than one million alleged communists, ethnic Chinese and intellectuals following the overthrow of the government by the military in the 1960s. This film focuses instead on the perspective of the victims rather than the victors of history. Village optometrist Adi’s older brother was one of these victims, and as he quizzes his patients about their memories of this violent era, he discovers the story of how his brother was murdered, and that some of his killers are still in positions of great power. Adi decides to confront each of them, asking them how they can possibly live side by side with their victims’ loved ones.

Sparks
Giancarlo Abrahan, 2014, Philippines, 120 min
Tagalog with English subtitles, M18 (Sexual Scenes)
Sunday, 12 April 2015 | 5.30pm
International Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Giancarlo Abrahan
Jimmy and Issey are professors who have been married for 25 years and are on the brink of separation. Jimmy’s research work is interrupted by an apparition who seems to be an ex-girlfriend, to whom he is equally haunted by and drawn to. Meanwhile, Issey goes on a creative writing retreat where she is mentoring young writers, and finds herself drawn to university student Gab. When one of Gab’s non-fiction pieces about his sexual awakening comes to widespread attention, a scandal ensues that puts everyone’s relationships under a spotlight. The virtuoso performances of Eula Valdez and Nonie Buencamino complement Abrahan’s deftly written, absorbing screenplay.

Vanishing Point
Jakrawal Nilthamrong, 2015, Netherlands/Thailand, 100 min
Thai with English subtitles, M18 (Sexual scenes)
Friday, 17 April 2015 | 7.30pm
Singapore Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Jakrawal Nilthamrong

The starting point of this experimental drama is a disastrous car crash that took place more than 30 years ago. The film then follows two characters whose lives intersect in tangential ways: an idealistic young journalist who accompanies police to crime scene reconstructions, and a factory owner in a border town, who is experiencing some family problems. Along the way we meet his teenage daughter, a motherly sex worker, a dreaming monk, and the film slowly but surely reaches its denouement. Wending through visions, tall tales and strange sceneries, this meditative work always returns to the notion of the karmic cycle and the idea that every action taken and decision made affects the course of one or many lives. Vanishing Point won the Hivos Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (2015).

Chasing Waves
Charliebebs Gohetia, 2015, Philippines, 92 min
Visayan with English subtitles, PG (Some violence)
Saturday, 18 April 2015 | 5.00pm
World Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Charliebebs Gohetia

Young Sipat’s family lives in the remote Southern Philippines community Panyan where he has spent his entire life. However, they are forced by their landlord to leave the mountains to migrate to the unfamiliar landscapes of the seaside. Nervous but excited, Sipat is convinced that his greatest dream of experiencing the beach will be fulfilled. As he counts down the days to his departure with his best friend En-En, he is unaware of what the future will hold. The semi-unexplored terrain of Barangay Tamugan with its peaks, caves, falls and rivers forms a dramatic backdrop to the natural, unaffected performances by the child actors.


Garuda Power: The Spirit Within
Bastian Meiresonne, 2014, France/Indonesia, 77 min
Bahasa Indonesia with English subtitles, NC16 (Some violence and gore)
Saturday, 18 April 2015 | 5.00pm
Singapore Premiere
This film is part of the festival sidebar Action Asia: The Wild Wild Years of Asian Film Action.

An incredible journey into Indonesia's action films from their beginnings in the 1920s up to ithe latest international successes, this documentary is an insight into one of the less well-known cinematic action industries. This colourful history is closely related to the country’s own development, with the mythical heroes and spectacular set-pieces serving as escapism and indirect social critique while representing the popular desires of the tens of thousands of ordinary people who enjoyed them over the years. This film features hitherto unseen footage, rare images, unusual poster art and interviews with actors, directors and choreographers.

Aimless
Pham Nhue Giang, 2013, Vietnam, 87 min
Vietnamese with English subtitles, M18 (Sexual scene)
Sunday, 19 April 2015 | 3.00pm
Singapore Premiere

Leaving their village to earn a living in the big city, Tham and Quy’s relationship soon suffers in the face of their impoverished conditions. Depressed Tham falls for the charms of Thuat, an urbane and sophisticated man. When Quy discovers Thuat’s secret, he embarks on a desperate search for his wife. An examination about the choices and risks faced by women, the film presents the urban environment as a place where independence and agency can be pursued, but in the face of constant turbulence and temptations. Aimless won the Silver Kite from the Vietnam Cinema Association (2013) and the Silver Lotus from the18th National Film Festival, Vietnam (2013).

K’na the Dreamweaver
PIda Anita del Mundo, 2014, Philippines, 85 min,
T’boli with English subtitles, PG
Sunday, 19 April 2015 | 5.30pm
International Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Ida Anita del Mundo

This film tells the story of one of the legends of the T’boli indigenous peoples of Southern Mindanao. A century-old clan war has separated the community into two villages on the North and South banks of Lake Sebu. K’na is her village’s dreamweaver, but her budding romance with childhood friend Silaw is dashed when her father arranges a marriage between her and the heir to the throne of the North so as to end the war. As the wedding date draws near, a revolution brews among those who do not believe in the joining of the two royal clans.

Fundamentally Happy
Tan Bee Thiam and Lei Yuan Bin, 2015, Singapore, 60 min
English and some Malay with English subtitles, NC16 (Mature themes)
Friday, 24 April 2015 | 5.30pm
World Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Tan Bee Thiam and Lei Yuan Bin

Twenty years ago, Habiba and Eric were neighbours. When Eric revisits her home to find her still living there with her husband, what seems like a friendly reunion turns into the gradual revelation of a painful secret from the past. Winner of Best Production and Best Original Script at the 2007 Life! Theatre Awards, this chamber drama gets a film treatment by Singapore independents Tan Bee Thiam and Lei Yuan Bin, with the camera helmed by Christopher Doyle. An unflinching look at the consequences of abuse, Fundamentally Happy explores without judgment or condemnation critical issues such as trust, memory, relationships and consent.

JALANAN
Daniel Ziv, 2013, Indonesia, 107 min
Bahasa Indonesia with English subtitles, NC16 (Some coarse language)
Saturday, 25 April 2015 | 5.00pm

About 7,000 buskers roam the busy streets of Jakarta. Easy-going Boni lives in a sewage tunnel with his wife, tapping on city power and water supplies. Rare female busker Titi balances her religious family’s demands with her job, and plans to return to school. Dreadlocked Ho’s specialties are anti-establishment songs, but he is also looking for a stable relationship. With their original compositions as soundtracks, the film traces the three musicians’ elusive quests for identity, autonomy and love in a turbulent city overrun by the effects of globalisation and corruption. This film won best documentary at the Busan Film Festival 2013.

Jade Miners
Midi Z, 2015, Myanmar/Taiwan, 104 min
Myanma Bhasa with English subtitles, PG13 (Some coarse language)
Sat, 25 Apr 2015 | 7:30pm
Asian Premiere

Jade is a prized gem across Asia, and an important source is Kachin state in Myanmar. However, hostilities between the Kachin Independence Army and the Myanmar army have led to hundreds of kilometres of jade mines ceasing their operations as they become a war zone. Despite the risk of arrest or physical danger from the chaotic landscape, workers from all over Myanmar still flock to these deserted mines to dig illegally for jade, desperately hoping to find a piece that will transform their lives. Shot with the aid of locals, Midi Z has complied a sober and intimate social documentary that focuses on the daily lives of these labourers.

Justice
Joel Lamangan, 2014, Philippines, 120 min
Tagalog with English subtitles, R21 (Sexual scenes)
Sunday, 26 April 2015, 3.00pm
Singapore Premiere

Biring’s boss runs a human trafficking syndicate in Manila, and her job entails bribing the authorities to turn a blind eye to their illegal activities, which is not difficult when the bureaucracy is already corrupt. Even though her children refuse her money because of how it was made, Biring knows that in this line, it's better to see no evil, hear no evil and look after only yourself. However, when she is framed for murder, she starts on a spiral of ever-deepening reprobation. When she has to make the stark choice of whether to be a victim or a victimiser, her transformation becomes complete. This film features a complex, bravura performance by superstar Nora Aunor.

So Be It
Kongdej Jaturanrasmee, 2014, Thailand, 85 min
Thai and Hmong with English subtitles, PG
Sunday, 26 April 2015, 5.30pm
Singapore Premiere

Seven-year-old Thai-American student William becomes an overnight celebrity when he participates in a reality show that depicts his experiences in a Buddhist summer ordination programme. Meanwhile, 11-year old Bundit, who is from an ethnic minority hilltribe, starts on his own Buddhist journey as he is sent to a temple along with more than 2,000 children, where he chafes at the strict rules and being separated from his family. Both William and Bundit must learn in their own ways to pursue freedom of mind and self-control of spirit. The documentary-fiction hybrid film is a coming-of-age tale of two boys from vastly different backgrounds, who each have their own way of learning the meaning of Buddhism in daily life.


SNAKESKIN
Daniel Hui, 2014, Portugal/Singapore, 105 min
English, Rating to be advised
Saturday, 1 May 2015, 7.30pm
Asian Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Daniel Hui
Tickets are available from SISTIC from mid-March 2015.

It is the year 2066, and the sole survivor of an enigmatic cult recounts his country's traumatic history and the events that led to the rise and collapse of this cult. As he reminiscences, ghosts from 2014 and the years before appear as witnesses. Part dream documentary, part city symphony, this hybrid film traces the lineage of oppression as inscribed both in Singapore's physical landscape, as well as its collective unconscious. The narrative voice-over reflects on that which is forgotten, subjective, and polymorphic in history. This unusual film is a thoughtful look at the legacy and future of this strange Southeast Asian island.

2030
Nghiem-Minh Nguyen-Vo, 2014, Vietnam, 98 min
Vietnamese with English subtitles, M18 (Sexual scene)
Saturday, 2 May 2015, 5.00pm
Singapore Premiere

Set in the vast and beautiful coastal regions of southern Vietnam, this dystopic film envisions a near future when water levels have risen to swallow farmlands due to global climate change. The Vietnamese people must now live in houseboats and rely solely on rapidly-depleting fishing grounds for food. As vegetables are now highly priced commodities, huge multinational conglomerates are competing to build floating farms. Amidst all this is fisherwoman Sao, who was briefly involved with visiting science researcher Giang before her marriage. However, when her husband Thi is murdered, Sao sets out to discover the truth and is forced to make a dramatic decision.

Riddles of My Homecoming
Arnel Mardoquio, 2013, Philippines, 82 min,
No Dialogue, R21 (Sexual scenes and violence)
Saturday, 2 May 2015, 7.30pm
International Premiere
Featuring a post-screening discussion with assistant director Yam Palma

One of the most experimental narratives yet to speak of the conditions of exploitation and poverty in southern Philippines, this film is a visual tapestry of evocative symbols, choreography and landscapes. Alfad’s dream is to work abroad. Swallowed by the sea, his soul returns to the island of his birth where he finds his memories on its shore. Aliya is a young girl who represents the spirit of the new day and the uncertainty of the future. When they return to their homeland, they find it destroyed and the people searching for a divine presence to save them, which emerges in the form of old Wahab, ruler of a strange cult. However, female shaman Mariposa and rebel woman farmer Mayka join forces to confront him.

Wukan: The Flame of Democracy
Lynn Lee and James Leong, 2013, Singapore, 90 min
Mandarin with English subtitles, NC16 (Mature content)
Sunday, 3 May 2015, 3.00pm
Wukan, a village in southern China, captured international attention in 2011 when demonstrators took to the streets to rebel against decades of corrupt rule. When the village committee fell and democratic elections were announced, Wukan’s residents then found themselves grappling with the challenges of a new political system. Former rebel leaders now had to respond the demands of the electorate, and deal with provincial and county authorities. This intimate documentary of a rural Chinese community mirrors the complex mix of challenges, euphoria, hopes and hard realities facing fledgling democracies across the world.

NOVA
Nik Amir Mustapha, 2014, Malaysia, 106 min
Bahasa Malaysia and some English with English subtitles, NC16 (Some drug use)
Sunday, 3 May 2015, 5.30pm
International Premiere

Filmmaker Berg, obsessed with an unidentified blob he saw in the sky when he was a student, reunites his old friends on a whim, calling them to go on a road trip for old times’ sake, while capturing this alien spacecraft on film. Despite their doubts about Berg’s filmmaking abilities and drug habit, they all agree to go on this expedition, as each of them have their personal reasons for doing so. As they reminisce, tension arises as they start to disagree on what happened back in school. This chase for this elusive UFO becomes more than what it seems. A quirky genre mash-up of comedy, sci-fi and buddy movie, NOVA contains several homages to Malaysian cinema.

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Production Talk with Ken Kwek on 'Unlucky Plaza'

April 5, 2015, 6:05 am
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Ken Kwek's second feature film 'Unlucky Plaza' first made its appearance as the opening film of the 25th Singapore International Film Festival last year. It is back for a commercial run in cinemas come 16 April. This is a film that has garnered a lot of attention for its bold and daring treatment. John Lui from The Straits Times says 'We've never seen a Singapore film like this'. The Toronto International Film Festival calls this a 'nail-biting, multi-character thriller from one of Asia's most exciting filmmakers'. SINdie has a review of the film here.

Film Synopsis

Sh*t Hits The Fan In The World’s Safest City

When a chance to save his ailing diner goes belly up, Onassis Hernandez, an émigré and single father, is pushed over the edge. Onassis takes a property guru and his wife hostage in their designer bungalow and a standoff with the police ensues. The crisis, captured on Youtube, sparks a media circus and riots in the world’s safest city. As more lives are threatened, an increasingly desperate Onassis forces the situation to a violent, heart stopping conclusion.

“A nail-biting comedy thriller from one of Asia's most exciting new directors” (Toronto International Film Festival), UNLUCKY PLAZA is Ken Kwek’s debut feature and stars Adrian Pang, Judee Tan, Guo Liang and acclaimed Filipino actor Epy Quizon as the beleaguered Onassis.
We catch up with director Ken Kwek to find out more behind the scenes in our Production Talk interview on 'Unlucky Plaza'.

Unlucky Plaza says a lot of about the current social fabric of Singapore, what made you approach this subject matter in the way that you did with Unlucky Plaza, an ambitious and dramatic storyline?
I returned to Singapore in late 2005 after spending several years in the UK. I got a job as a newspaper reporter here, my first real job. It was the best way to be re-introduced to the city of my birth, writing stories about our politics, the way people live, the radical social changes taking place at the end of the LKY era. UNLUCKY PLAZA is a dramatization those social changes, using a hostage crisis to explore the tensions between classes and the great cult and culture of money.
    
After you got the story, what shaped the film majorly as the journey of making it began - the actors? the location? cinematic/directorial influences?
The actors – for me it always begins with the actors. I wanted time to cast, to develop a rapport with the chosen actors, to workshop and improvise scenes with them. Locations are, of course, important, as are the key creatives you pick like your composer, cinematographer etc. But if you ask me what’s the biggest and most consistent element that influenced the way UNLUCKY PLAZA was constructed, it was the acting and how the actors played out their scenes.


How long did you take to develop the script? What were the challenges you faced in developing the script?
The script took about a year to develop and right up to the first day of principal photography I was refining the scenes on the page. UNLUCKY PLAZA was a joy to write and the real challenge lay in convincing investors that I’d be able to deliver as a director what looked promising on paper.


There is definitely a style of comedy in your direction that is very daring. Tell us about your directorial style in this film and how it departs from Sex.Violence.Family Values.
Sex.Violence.FamilyValues was a satire, an attack on social prejudices and puritanical values. The comedy in UNLUCKY PLAZA is used not to lampoon the characters, but to evoke empathy for their bad judgment. Their weaknesses are ours, too.

What were the biggest challenges you faced during the production?
There was a scene where we were shooting a public demonstration involving some 100 extras. The police, acting on a tip that there was a big, rowdy protest in Siglap, came and interrupted our shoot. The press came too. There was a stressful delay, and I was worried that the production would be shut down. Fortunately, I think everyone realised it was a big misunderstanding and we resumed filming after a couple of hours.
  
How was the financing stage of this film like? Did the ban on your earlier film influence the financing process?
I don’t think the ban on SVFV affected the fund-raising for UNLUCKY PLAZA in a bad way. If anything, a couple of investors were drawn to the project because they liked SVFV enough to consider a stake in my first feature.

If there was a significantly bigger budget, how differently would you have made the film?
I wouldn’t. I’d take the extra money and make another two films.

How differently did audiences overseas react to the film compared to Singapore (I know you only had one screening in sg)?
The audience in Toronto was fantastic and I think they enjoyed the dramatic elements of the story. Warsaw enjoyed the film’s dark humour. And Singapore audiences are quite naturally more interested in the social themes.

What's the best compliment and the worst remark you heard about 'Unlucky Plaza' and why?
I’m not shirking the question, just adhering to a personal code that you can’t spend too much time thinking about what others like or don’t like about your work. You can’t please everyone, and sometimes negative remarks tell you more about the critic than about the film. I’m glad at least that people aren’t indifferentabout it.

You can find out more about Unlucky Plaza in the following links:

www.unluckyplazamovie.com

www.facebook.com/unluckyplazamovie

Here is a visual look behind the scenes in this 'making-of' video. Enjoy!
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ShoutOUT!: Singapore Chinese Film Festival (17 - 30 April 2015)

April 5, 2015, 8:53 pm
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The Singapore Chinese Film Festival (SCFF), jointly organised by the Singapore Film Society (SFS) and SIM University’s UniSIM Centre for Chinese Studies, will be held over 14 days from 17 – 30 April. Into its third year, SCFF seeks to promote quality Chinese cinema in all its forms and diversity to audiences in Singapore, as well as promote cultural exchanges between invited filmmakers and local film community and audiences.



This year, 40 films will be screened across different sections, namely Chinese Panorama (the main segment consisting of 20 current feature films), Documentary Vision (5 titles), and Chinese Shorts Showcase (4 short films). SCFF will also pay tribute to director Lee Hsing with 11 of his films screened under the Lee Hsing Classics retrospective programme.

In addition to film screenings, two Chinese Talkies film panel discussions will be held. “The Challenges and Opportunities of Filmmaking in Mainland China”will be held on 18 April at UniSIM. It will feature insights from a young generation of filmmakers: Ho WiDing, Xin Yukun, and Zhang Bingjian. “Tribute to Lee Hsing: A Life in Cinema”, featuring director Lee Hsing, director Wan Jen, and film academics Liu Hsien-Cheng and Zhang Jianyong, will be held on 25 April at the National Museum Gallery Theatre.



Besides film screenings and panel discussions, SCFF will also hold a poster exhibition at the National Museum to allow the younger generation to learn and discover the early classics and film heritage of Taiwan.

For media queries and interviews, kindly contact David Lee, Vice Chairman, Singapore Film Society (davidlee@sfs.org.sg) or Associate Professor Foo Tee Tuan, Deputy Director, UniSIM Centre for Chinese Studies, SIM University (ttfoo@unisim.edu.sg).

For more information and latest updates, please visit:

Official Site: www.sfs.org.sg/scff
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/SGChineseFilmFestival
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SCFFest
Instagram: https://instagram.com/scffest/
Weibo: http://www.weibo.com/sfsblog

Ticketing information (Advance ticket sales starts from 2 April):

$13: General Public
$10: SFS and UniSIM Members (Only for tickets purchased at the cinema box office with valid
membership card)
$11*: Senior Citizens (aged 55 and above) for Lee Hsing Classics only
*SISTIC booking fee of $1 per ticket will apply.

For festival screenings at Golden Village Suntec City and Golden Village Vivocity:
http://www.gv.com.sg/

For Lee Hsing Classics: http://www.sistic.com/
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