Things To Do In Singapore: The Singapore Palestine Film Festival Kicks Off & More
Our weekly edit of things to check out.
By Keng Yang Shuen & Hidzir Junaini,
Art lovers may be holding their breath for the upcoming Singapore Art Week, but there are still several significant events well worth checking out this weekend - especially the Singapore Palestine Film Festival, which spotlights insightful Palestinian stories, with proceeds going to Gaza-related causes. More details below.
Many of us have come to learn more about Palestine and its rich narratives in recent months, but here's another way to delve deeper into various facets of the country's culture, history, and struggles: the Singapore Palestine Film Festival presents 10 tightly curated films that aim to initiate meaningful discussions in Singapore about social justice, human rights, and the intricacies of the Palestinian narrative.
The proceeds generated from the film festival will be directed towards the Singapore Red Cross's Gaza Response. This support package will encompass essential items to meet fundamental and urgent requirements, including medical essentials such as medications, medical consumables, and equipment, as well as wheelchairs, hygiene kits, clean water, and crucial food provisions. Collaborating with the Egyptian Red Crescent and the Palestine Red Crescent Society, the Singapore Red Cross is actively involved in delivering this vital assistance to Gaza through the Rafah Border Crossing.
Get your tickets here.
Jan 12-21, various times, at Golden Village x The Projector, #05-01 Cineleisure
If you're someone in arts or creative circles, make sure to head down to the soon-to-close Peace Centre this weekend. Art collective CUN has organized a can't-miss grassroots event called Deep Cuts, bringing together Singapore and Singapore-based artists and creatives across arts, music, and nightlife scenes to examine the state of Singapore's creative communities and how they can be strengthened.
It's a rich showcase of some of the most interesting collectives, artists, and independent practitioners in Singapore - more than 40 in total, spanning various genres and generations. Participants include butoh dancer and Endless Return rave founder XUE, artist and curator Wang Ruobing, who's also behind the independent art outfit Comma Space and punk musician and fashion educator Ginette Chittick, all of whom will be speaking on their various spheres of expertise.
Hear directly from those who write and document the various scenes, such as music writer Hidzir Junaini, photographer Marisse Caine, and culture/nightlife journalist Michelle Lhooq.
And after all of that, stay on for Atom – the massive afterparty that rages on from 7 pm to 4 am and features a stacked lineup of 14 DJs in total, including Strangeweather's Yetpet, North East Social Club's B2B Tashasan, 0rbit's Xaetherx, Sivilian Affairs' Sivanesh, and more.
Get your tickets here.
Jan 13 and 14, various times, at Peace Centre
*SCAPE's signature festival, Comma, is back. For the uninitiated, it's the mall's way of spotlighting local youth talent from a wide variety of creative arts. A key part of the Comma festival is Music Day Out - a two-day segment dedicated to emerging music acts from Singapore and around the region. This year's lineup includes all-girl hardcore trailblazers Fuse, shoegaze heroes Blush, math-pop stalwarts Woes, and many more, along with industry sharing sessions.
But it's not just musicians getting the spotlight – fashion designer and artist Jamela Law, for instance, is staging an exhibition titled "Scars, Skins, and Styles: Physical Transfigurations" (pictured), using virtual technologies to explore themes of mental health, identity, and personal evolution.
More details here.
Jan 12 - 28, various times, at *SCAPE, 2 Orchard Link
The year’s first major celebration could potentially end up being the year’s best! Collective Minds kicks off its 2024 campaign with the much-anticipated return of Yung Singh and a salute to our sun-kissed shores. Yung Singh, crowned the “Breakthrough DJ of the Year” by the leading electronic dance music British monthly DJ Mag in 2021, has experienced a meteoric rise, delivering sensational sets at renowned venues such as Boiler Room, Fabric, Panorama Bar, Sonar, and Glastonbury. Similarly, Salute has traversed a parallel trajectory in recent years, propelled by outstanding albums and EPs on labels like 37 Adventures and Technicolour. While each artist is phenomenal individually, their collaboration is nothing short of unmissable. Brace yourself for a night of hip-hop, garage, grime, D&B, and South Asian bangers at the Esplanade Annexe Studio when Yung Singh and Salute take the stage.
Get your tickets here
Jan 12, 10pm - 3am, at Annexe Studio, The Esplanade