Thursday, November 27, 2008

What's Coming Up?



The Singapore film I rated as the best amongst the lot at this year's SIFF now has a regular theatrical screening at Sinema Old School! Granted that only one screening of 18 Grams of Love was available then, now there are multiple screenings for you to choose from. So there's no excuse not to experience what 136 people had that eventful night! Click on the flyer above for more details!

Also, writer-director of 18 Grams of Love, Han Yew Kwang, is running a contest on his blog right now, tying in with the upcoming theatrical screening. All you have to do of course is to write a love letter to your loved one. What do you stand to win? As far as Yew Kwang says, it will be a chance to read your winning love letter to your dearest in front of the movie audience. If you're shy, there's always me (*ahem*) you can count on to do it for you LOL since if all things turn out well, I'll be moderating the Q&A Session after the screening.


Trailer


If you need extra motivation, take a look here: http://blog.omy.sg/yewkwang where Yew Kwang himself has posted his very first love letter on his blog.

So what are you waiting for? Get cracking!
P.S. If you need help, drop me an email and I'll craft you what I think is the mushiest love letter ever, guaranteed to raise your loved one's goosebumps. The fine print says results may vary of course :-)



Next, Bruce Lee fans take note! The Picturehouse is screening FOUR - no Big Boss :( - of his famous hit movies, where you can see him take on a dojo full of karateka in Fists of Fury, kick Chuck Norris' arse in The Way of the Dragon in Rome, battle Shek Kin in the infamous Hall of Mirrors in Enter The Dragon, and of course, the bit role of his in the unfortunate Death Game where he battles various exponents en route to the top of a pagoda. You can hit this link for details and for starters, I surely would like to see his movies again on the big screen. Ticketing is a little pricey, though it comes with a goodie bag.

However, the key question I will want to find out is, DVD or 35mm? If it's the former, my opinion is that it just might not be worth it. Stay tuned!



The Substation is organizing a one-off screening called Four Short Films by Woo Ming Jin, who is an acclaimed director from Malaysia. For those interested, here are the details:

The Substation Moving Images presents:
Four Short Films by Woo Ming Jin
20th Dec Saturday, 5pm
The Substation Theatre
Tickets at $6/4 (concession for students, NSFs, SFS members)
Available at The Substation box office
*Includes post-screening Q&A with writer/director Woo Ming Jin


Film Programme

1. BLUE ROOF / 13min / 2007 / PG
Albert, a security guard in an apartment complex, is a middle aged man who walks with a limp, and is obsessed with collecting news articles on car accidents. Each morning, during his rounds, he goes up to the rooftop, and contemplates suicide. Will he ever jump?

Festivals & Awards: Rotterdam International Film Festival 2008, 12th Pusan International Film Festival 2007

2. CATCHING THE SEA / 13min / 2005 / PG
Catching the Sea is a short film about the lives of several people in a village after a mysterious disease strikes and kills their loved ones. Set in a dilapidating fishing island, the film is about reconciling death and moving on with life.

3. LOVE FOR DOGS / 24min / 2003 / PG
Love for Dogs tells two parallel stories; A construction worker returns to his hometown and tries to reconnect with his daughter after abandoning his family to work in Cambodia. The second story follows Lily, an overweight girl living with her aunt and dealing with the absence of her immediate family.

Festivals & Awards: Bangkok Short Film Festival (Special Mention Award), Digital MOV Festival 2005, Manila (Best Asian Short Film), Rotterdam International Film Festival 2005, Hong Kong Asian Film Festival 2004, New York Asian American International Film Festival 2004, New Talents, Young Cinema Film Festival, Taiwan

4. IT IS POSSIBLE MY HEART CANNOT BE BROKEN / 16min / 2005 / PG
It is Possible Your Heart Cannot Be Broken is a short film about the innocence and disintegration of love. It tells the story between two people, Apple and Ah Tat, told in two different perspectives. Ah Tat, a dreamy simpleton romantic meets the jaded but equally insecure Apple. Can these two people - obviously completely different yet yearning for the same thing- sustain their relationship?

“This is a big city, but sometimes it’s the loneliest place.”

Festivals & Awards: Rotterdam International Film Festival 2006, Los Angeles Asia Pacific Film Festival 2006, Singapore International Film Festival 2006, Hawaii International Film Festival 2006

POST-SCREENING Q&A WITH WOO MING JIN

The last short should be interesting, as it stars fellow indie filmmakers Tan Chui Mui and Liew Seng Tat!

Director’s Statement:

My films have focused on nature and its relationship with humanity. I have always been fascinated by the “beauty of ruins”. Nature is an element that man must live with, and that is something that plays out in my films. In these films, the characters struggle to reconcile their broken lives with their surroundings. Each character is flawed, and none of them has a solution to fix themselves.

Each film is framed and lit the way I intended, and in some ways, they reflect my thoughts and views of the world.

These four shorts best represent my work as an artist. The stories are small and intimate, but they are also powerful and poignant. They are also funny.

About Woo Ming Jin (Writer/Director)

Ipoh born Malaysian filmmaker, Woo Ming Jin, is an award-winning filmmaker who studied film and television at the San Diego State University after receiving a scholarship in 1999.

His feature film debut, Monday Morning Glory, premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival, and was invited to the Berlin International Film Festival, the first Malaysian film selected in the last 10 years. It was also selected to the Pusan International Film Festival, Tokyo International Film Festival, and Locarno International Film Festival, among others.

His second feature film, The Elephant and the Sea, has five awards and has been selected to screen in more than 30 film festivals worldwide, including the Rotterdam, Los Angeles, Seattle, Hong Kong, Vancouver, Torino, and Karlovy Vary Film Festivals.

This year Ming Jin received a script grant from the Pusan Film Festival for his next feature, Woman on Fire Looks for Water.


Looks like it's gonna be a busy run up to the end of 2008!

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