Watch The Future Of Singapore Cinema As Part Of Singapore Youth Film Festival
Attention all Singapore cinema enthusiasts and young aspiring filmmakers: a new film festival is rolling into town.
By Imran Jalal,
The National Youth Film Awards (NYFA), which was started in 2015 by *Scape, has been given a shiny new name: the Singapore Youth Film Festival, or SYFF for short. This rebrand promises not only greater visibility but also broader public reach. In partnership with the Singapore International Film Festival, SYFF will feature screenings, conference sessions, and a grand awards ceremony for this year's film submissions in November.
For the first time, all nominated films for SYFF 2024 in the Student and Open Youth categories will be available to the public through ticketed screenings on selected dates in October and November at Golden Village x The Projector at Cineleisure. The full schedule will be released at the end of August on www.scape.sg/syff.
The festival will kick off with a special showcase of films from the past nine editions of NYFA, presented as part of *Scape’s Nightflix Somerset monthly outdoor film screenings. Dubbed the SYFF Capsule Edition, these screenings will feature critically acclaimed films such as Sexy Sushi by Calleen Koh and Ca$h by Tan Wei Ting.
The screenings – silent, so don’t forget your headphones – will take place on the first Saturday evening of each month at 7:30pm at Somerset Youth Park, starting on August 3. Subsequent screenings will be on September 7 and October 5. Registration is simple and entirely free via the Cinewav app. Here’s a sneak peek of what’s in store for the first two screenings.
Journey Of A Kavadi Bearer
Screening date: September 7
Director: Navin Danial
Synopsis: This documentary follows a Taoist medium participating in the annual Hindu festival Thaipusam. Join Michael on his spiritual journey, exploring his affinity with Hinduism and the belief that all religions are one.
Sleep Is A Waste Of Time
Screening date: September 7
Director: Chew Jia Hui
Synopsis: Meet Nick, a musician, inventor, photographer, and multihyphenate who lives a relentless 20-hour schedule daily. He resolves to live life to the fullest, viewing sleep as a waste of time.
Rocketship
Screening date: August 3
Director: Mathias Choo
Synopsis: A naive primary school boy plans an elaborate sparkler show to mend his parents' marriage before it’s too late.
No Regret
Screening date: September 7
Director: Lee Kian Ping
Synopsis: A father and son's relationship is strained by the son's dream of becoming a musician.
Sum Of Our Parts
Screening date: September 7
Director: Olivia Tan Jia Yi
Synopsis: In pragmatic Singapore, four local performance artists unveil their unconventional practice of using the body as a vessel for artistic expression.
The Parade
Screening date: September 7
Director: Ryan Benjamin Lee
Synopsis: In Singapore, politics is a cautious dance. This lively film transforms the city into a vibrant street parade brimming with pop culture, karaoke, and colour.
Bodhi
Screening date: September 7
Director: Zhen Yu Png
Synopsis: Li Ping, a single mother with big dreams for her only son, is disappointed when he wishes to become a monk.
The Believers
Screening date: September 7
Director: Dave Lim
Synopsis: A documentation of diverse emotions during rituals, The Believers explores the humanity in the intersection of secular and religious worlds, blending mundanity, exuberance, and absurdity.
Duka Lara
Screening date: August 3
Director: Nuryn Adryana
Synopsis: Erik, a worker on a floating fish farm, can't return home after two years. His loneliness conjures a sea spirit that challenges his self-pity.
Yi Yi (Time Flows In Strange Ways On Sundays)
Screening date: August 3
Director: Giselle Lin
Synopsis: As her late son’s childhood sweetheart prepares to marry, a mother’s sense of loss is reignited as she struggles to let go of the past.
Elephant In The Room
Screening date: August 3
Director: Hariz Zulkifli
Synopsis: A young caretaker inherits his father's dangerous elephant after a fatal encounter, while also managing his own elephant's musth phase.
A Man Trembles
Screening date: August 3
Director: Mark Chua and Lam Li Shuen
Synopsis: In 1998 Singapore, during the Asian Financial Crisis, a man and his family spend their final day on Sentosa island, confronting the strange proximity between salvation and terror.
Metabolist Regeneration Of A Dementia Nation
Screening date: August 3
Director: Jerome Xin Hao Ng
Synopsis: Golden Mile Complex, a 1970s Metabolist icon in Singapore, faces demolition. The film envisions an alternative, preserving it to absorb physical artefacts from the city’s threatened infrastructure.
Ca$h
Screening date: August 3
Director: Tan Wei Ting
Synopsis: Four cashier friends lock themselves inside their workplace for a desperate revolt against the cashless system. Can they resist the inevitable changes?