Sinema Showoff! Random Picks6 min read
Reading Time: 5 minutesSinema Showoff! Random Picks is a selection of short films curated by Singapore Polytechnic.
The selection consists of films are a that we have on-hand but were unable to fit into into our regular monthly themed-programme this year.
All directors will be in attendance for an interactive Q&A session after the screening.
This will be our last regular curated programme for the 2010 season. In December we will be screening the Curator’s Picks from the season. (So it’s going to the best Showoff! session!!!)
Programme Highlights
1. MINDROOTS
Yuan Ler | English | 5mins | PG
“˜Karma’ tracks the journey of Sentinel 5, who awakes from a deep slumber in limbo to begin a journey that will take her to The Triangle ““ a monolith of unknown origins.
Inspired by music from Singapore’s avant-grade post rock band The Observatory, “˜Karma’ is an experimental film that explores theme of existentialism, regret, and life beyond death.
~~~ Director’s Bio ~~~
Yuan Ler is an aspiring filmmaker and freelance director who has handled a blend of projects ranging from corporate videos, commercials, dramas, infotainments, to music videos and short films.
Ler is also part of the film collective birdmandog, which is responsible for several short films such as the unnamed feeling, Manu Saves the Day, The Fan People, and Girl and the House.
2. A NEW HOPE (World Aids Day Special)
Chermaine Ong | Thai | 19mins | PG
Set in Thailand, Pong struggles with the fact that she is HIV-positive and worries that her 6-year-old daughter is infected with the same disease. Su, 16, has been teased, ridiculed and avoided, all for a disease she had no fault in contracting.
A New Hope takes a poignant, heartwarming and at times even a light-hearted look at their endeavour and why, despite their circumstances, they still harbour hope for the future.
Supported by Singapore Film Commission (SFC).
~~~ Previous Screenings ~~~
Official selection, Singapore Short Film Festival 2010
~~~ Director’s Bio ~~~
Chermaine Ong graduated from the School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. She now works as a director, editor and producer and has done commercial work for local production company Peachblack.
3. LION’S PRIDE
Wesley Leon Arazoo| Chinese Dialect (Cantonese) | 8 mins | PG
During Chinese New Year, the Lion Dance Lion dances a celebratory dance to usher in prosperity and fortune. For the rest of the year, it is left abandoned, jobless and struggling in the wilderness.
~~~ Previous Screenings ~~~
In Competition, International Student Film And Video Festival Beijing Film Academy 2009, China
Official Selection, Outdoor Screening @ The Substation – Singapore Night Festival 2010
Official Selection, Best Of First Takes 2009, Singapore
Official Selection, Singapore Drama Festival 2009
Official Selection, Singapore Short Film Awards 2009
Official Selection, Singapore International Film Festival 2009
~~~ Director’s Bio ~~~
Wesley Leon Arazoo is A ‘serial short-film director’. He has made seven to-date and is continuing.
Most of his works are experimental and open to several interpretations. His films require the audience to think and reflect.
Wesley holds a Diploma in Interactive Media Design from Temasek Polytechnic. He is currently pursuing a degree in Digital Filmmaking at Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
4. COLOURS
Lee Chee Tian & Derrick Lui | English | 9mins | PG
This is a contemporary fairytale about a colourblind girl’s catapultic journey to find colours in her life, and her eventual realization that too much of a good thing isn’t really good.
~~~ Previous Screenings (Selected) ~~~
Chinh Gold Award, Chinh India Kids Festival 2007, India
Tadgell’s Bluebell Honor Award (Best film made by adults for or about children), Auburn International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults, Australia
Official Selection, Las Vegas International Film Festival 2009, USA
Olympia International Film Festival for Children and Young People 2007, Greece
Official Selection, Kuala Lumpur International Film Festival 2007, Malaysia
Official Selection, Mumbai International Children’s Film Festival 2009, India
~~~ Directors Bios ~~~
Lee Chee Tian & Derrick Lui met in 2005 in a scriptwriting course run by Jack Neo’s company J Team. Since, the class they have worked on two short films the first COLOURS in 2007 and subsequently PETER in 2009.
Chee Tian works full-time as a Technical Supervisor with Sinema Old School and freelances as a scriptwriter and producer. He holds a Bachelor in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
Chee Tian was born in Singapore to Malaysian parents. He became a Singapore Citizen last year. He is married with three children aged 10, six & three.
Derrick Lui graduated from Murdoch University with a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies (Screen) (Distinction) and started his career at Mediacorp’s TVC arm a decade ago. He then moved on to MTV Asia directing various on-air promos and artist image spots.
Wanting to try different drama and documentary genres, he left MTV and currently freelances as a writer/director. His long list of works range from documentaries such as “The Medical Alphabet” for Channel News Asia, magazine/travelogue series “Flavours” for Mediaworks, to various dramas for Health Promotion Board and other corporate clients.
His latest film, “When Night Fa11s”, premiered and won a merit award in Milan.
Derrick is married with a two-year old daughter.
5. EPIPHANY (SINGAPORE PREMIERE)
Han Xuemei | English, Mandarin, Chinese Dialect (Cantonese) & Korean | 23mins | PG
Epiphany surrounds three strangers, an elderly woman, a teenage girl & a family man, who are progressing towards one incident which will change their lives forever.
~~~ Previous Screenings ~~~
Best of Film, The Crowbar Awards 2010
Best of Show, The Crowbar Awards 2010
Winner of Excellent Production Award, The 1st China International (King Bonn) New Media Shorts Award 2010
Official Selection, Vancouver Singapore Film Festival
~~~ Director’s Bio ~~~
Han Xuemei recently graduated with a Bachelor of Communication Studies with honours from Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.
EPIPHANY was her final year thesis film.
Xuemei is currently a freelance trailer producer / editor mainly doing work for MediaCorp’s Channel 8 programmes.
She is also very active member in the Singapore theatre scene both as cast and crew.
6. HOTEL 66 (CURATOR’S PICK)
Anthony Chen | Chinese Dialect (Cantonese) | 15 mins | PG
Set within the backdrop of London’s Chinatown, HOTEL 66 relates the uncanny rendezvous of two emotionally displaced workers: an innocent female security guard and a sleek-looking male sex worker. Trapped in their shared environment, through opportune encounters, they find solace in each other amidst their amoral surroundings.
~~~ Previous Screenings ~~~
Official Selection, Singapore Short Cuts 2010
Official Selection, Melbourne International Film Festival 2010, Australia
Official Selection, CinemaJove International Film Festival Valencia 2010, Spain
Official Selection, Huesca International Film Festival 2010, Spain
Official Selection, Shanghai International Film Festival 2010, China
Official Selection, Rushes Soho Shorts Film Festival 2010, UK
~~~ Director’s Bio ~~~
Anthony Chen graduated with a Diploma in Film & Media Studies from Ngee Ann Polytechnic. His graduation film, G-23, screened at festivals worldwide and won awards in Europe and Asia. His sophomore short, AH MA (GRANDMA), was nominated for the Palme d’Or for Short Film at the 60th Cannes Film Festival, and secured a Special Mention, the first time a Singaporean was awarded in Cannes. Haze, his third short film, was nominated for the Golden Bear for Short Film at Berlin.
Collectively, his films have screened at numerous festivals including Cannes, Berlin, Rotterdam, Pusan, London, Sao Paulo, Stockholm, Sydney, Montreal, Melbourne, Chicago and Hawaii.
Most notably in 2009, Anthony was accorded the Young Artist Award by the National Arts Council of Singapore, one of the most prestigious accolades for the arts in Singapore. He believes in making films that reveal, reflect and explore universal truths about the human condition.
Anthony recently completed his Masters at National Film & Television School, London with a scholarship from Media Development Authority (MDA).
Anthony is married and hopes to pursue a career in the UK while developing projects in Asia.
Total Running Time: 79mins.
