Singapore Film Festival Roars Into Action With Uncensored ‘Tiger Stripes’ Screening, Talk of Local Industry Transformation

As BBC police procedural drama Vigil comes to its nail biting conclusion, fans will no doubt be sitting on the edge of their seats as they wait to discover exactly who was behind the hacked drones and what exactly they hoped to achieve by doing so. Since arriving on our screens two weeks ago, the exciting drama has captivated viewers at home for a second time, with the current season having followed hot on the heels of the show’s debut back in 2021, which was set on board a submarine.

Naman Ramachandran Pham Thien An’s “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell,” which previously won the Golden Camera at Cannes, has won the Asian Feature Film Competition at the 34th Singapore International Film Festival. Yoon Eun-Kyung won best director for “The Tenants,” which also won the FIPRESCI award. “Dreaming & Dying,” by Singaporean director Nelson Yeo earned a special mention.

Naman Ramachandran The Singapore Film Commission (SFC) celebrated its 25th anniversary during the 34th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) with a lavish party attended by the great and the good of the industry. Though the local box office for Singaporean films has yet to regain its pre-pandemic heights, they are doing well internationally with 2023 alone seeing selections at all the top festivals, including Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Locarno, Busan and San Sebastian.

Naman Ramachandran One of the most popular events at the 34th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) was a panorama event where six of the country’s leading indie film lights shared a panel to discuss opportunities and challenges. Opportunities are plentiful, with the festival world embracing Singaporean films and filmmakers warmly. Hong Kong-based Anthony Chen has had a stellar year with his directorial efforts “Drift” and “The Breaking Ice” which premiered at Sundance and Cannes, respectively.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore‘s Robot Playground Media (RPM) and Valencia-based co-producer TV ON Producciones (TOP) have commenced production on animated feature film “The Violinist,” it was revealed at the Asia TV Forum and Market. The film was unveiled at a presentation attended by the representatives of Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the Spanish Embassy in Singapore.

Alissa Simon Film Critic With her debut feature “Tiger Stripes,” Malaysian writer-director Amanda Nell Eu joins an exciting group of directors who provide subversive takes on genre and body horror. Julia Ducournau and “Raw” comes to mind, as do Agnieszka Smoczynska and “The Lure” and John Fawcett and “Ginger Snaps” — like David Cronenberg before them. Eu, an MA graduate of the London Film School, blends Malaysian folklore with heightened realism and a large dollop of “Mean Girls” in the story of a tween going through changes wrought by puberty and alterations in her friendship group.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Thailand’s broadcast and streaming group Mono Next and Korea’s Studio Genie have struck a deal to collaborate on content creation and distribution. Production of a Thai remake of a Korean series is on the cards, but has not been finalized. The memorandum was announced on stage at the Asia Television Forum in Singapore on Wednesday, with streaming unit Mono Streaming signing on behalf of the Thai group.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Singapore Film Commission and the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) have agreed to back training and development program Emerge, which supports writers, directors and producers to develop Chinese-language original films. The announcement was unveiled on Friday within the context of the Asia Television Forum (ATF) in Singapore.

Naman Ramachandran The popular Singapore Comic Con (SGCC) is back with an array of internationally renowned creators and characters. BBC Studios’ hit family animation “Bluey” is returning to the SGCC main stage and this time she will be joined by her sister Bingo in a new, refreshed “Bluey Live Experience,” which debuted last year.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore’s MediaCorp and Taiwanese production company Mission International have signed a memorandum of understanding for content development at the Asia TV Forum and Market (ATF). Mission International is led by producer Angie Chai, best known for hit teen idol drama “Meteor Garden” and forming successful boyband F4.

The third annual Red Sea Film Festival handed out its Yusr Awards on Thursday night, with Zarrar Kahn’s In Flames taking Best Feature and Farah Nabulsi’s The Teacher scoring a pair of wins including Best Actor for Saleh Bakri. See the full list below.

Naman Ramachandran Action comedy film “Baby Hero” was launched at Singapore’s Asia TV Forum and Market on Thursday. The film is a co-production between Singapore’s Hong Pictures and Bangkok-based Hollywood (Thailand). Principal photography will commence in the first quarter of 2024 with a view to releasing the film in 2025.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore‘s Mediacorp has begun introducing virtual sets into its scripted content, starting with two Chinese drama series, it was revealed during the ongoing Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF). “Strangers in the Dark” is about an outcast in school, who uses her vivid imagination to help solve various mysteries.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Singapore is launching a new fund to support international coproduction of TV series. It will also expand government investment into virtual production (VP). The two moves were announced on Wednesday by senior minister of state for communications and information Tan Kiat How at the opening ceremony of the Asia Television Forum and Market (ATF).

Naman Ramachandran “Sunday,” which has its world premiere at the Singapore International Film Festival, marks the feature directorial debut of Sean Ng. Ng previously directed a few shorts and his producing credits include feature documentary “André and His Olive Tree” (2020), which was Taiwan’s highest-grossing documentary that year. “Sunday” was developed at TorinoFilmLab.

Naman Ramachandran Chai Yee-Wei’s “Wonderland” comes to the Singapore International Film Festival after debuting at the San Diego Asian Film Festival where it won the audience award. Chai’s credits include “Blood Ties” (2009), “Twisted” (2011) and “That Girl in Pinafore” (2013), which premiered at the Shanghai International Film Festival. “Wonderland” is his fifth feature.

Naman Ramachandran Shaun Neo’s feature debut “My Endless Numbered Days,” a study of urban alienation, has its world premiere at the Singapore International Film Festival. Neo’s directorial short debut “Happily Ever After” (2015) screened at the 26th SGIFF and was nominated for best screenplay at the National Youth Film Awards 2016. “My Endless Numbered Days” follows Mitsue who returns to Japan after the disillusionment of a work opportunity in Singapore.

Chinese streaming giant iQiyi has hailed the integration of artificial intelligence into its development and pitching processes.

Naman Ramachandran The direct-to-consumer SVOD model which is undergoing uncertain times was the subject of a presentation by Tony Gunnarsson, senior principal analyst, OTT video, media and entertainment at Omdia. Gunnarsson was speaking at Singapore’s Asia TV Forum and Market. The number of pay-TV subscribers remains above one billion and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) is teaming with AI Singapore and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research to launch the S$70 million ($52.3 million) National Multimodal LLM Program (NMLP). The initiative, funded by Singapore’s National Research Foundation, will develop the country’s research and engineering capabilities in multi-modal large language (LLM) models. It will help to plug a critical gap because current LLM models are heavily Western originated.