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Singapore International Film Festival

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Singapore International Film Festival
LocationSingapore
Founded1987; 38 years ago (1987)
AwardsSilver Screen Awards
Festival date28 November to 8 December 2024
Websitesgiff.com

The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) (Chinese: 新加坡国际电影节) is the longest-running film festival in Singapore, founded in 1987.[1][2]

The 35th Singapore International Film Festival took place from 28 November to 8 December 2024.

History

[edit]

Originally launched to give local audiences an opportunity to watch independent and non-commercial films, the festival is now recognized worldwide by film critics[citation needed] for its focus on Asian filmmakers and promotion of Southeast Asian films.

The SGIFF was founded by Geoff Malone and Mill Valley Film Festival board member L. Leland Whitney in 1987.[3]

The 24th edition of SGIFF hekd in 2011 faced issues such as poor organisation and financial woes due to lack of sponsorships.[4] Founder Geoffrey Malone also resigned as the chairman of the Board of Directors with Shaw Soo Wei, former Executive Director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, taking over as the chairman.[4]

The SGIFF went on a hiatus for the next two years and in 2013, Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim announced the 25th edition of the SGIFF will be held in 2014 in combination with the Asia TV Forum and Market, Screen Singapore and the Asian Television Awards in a two-week event.[4]

For the 33rd edition in 2022, the film #LookAtMe, directed by Ken Kwek, was originally scheduled to be screened at the SGIFF but was refused classification by Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), which effectively barred the film from being screened in Singapore for "its potential to cause enmity and social division".[5] IMDA, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and Ministry of Home Affairs also stated that the pastor in the film engages "in an act prohibited by his professed religious faiths"; that the depictions of the pastor in the film are "suggestive of a real pastor in Singapore", and the allegations may be "perceived to be offensive, defamatory and contrary to the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act".[6] However, even with the ban, SGIFF decided to include the film in its advertised line-up, though the film was marked as unavailable for screening.[7][8]

For the 35th edition in 2024, the SGIFF was managed by a new general manager, Jeremy Chua.[9] Local actress Rebecca Lim was named as SGIFF's first ambassador for the festival.[9] Daniel Hui's film, Small Hours Of The Night, an official selection for the SGIFF was submitted for classification by IMDA for the festival but was refused classification by IMDA in November.[10] The lack of classification for the film resulted it being unable to screen at the SGIFF.[11] SGIFF programme director Thong Kay Wee continued to support the film and list it as an official selection.[11]

Edition Year Opening film Closing film Ref(s)
1st 1987 The Name of the Rose by Jean-Jacques Annaud The Mission by Roland Joffé [12]
2nd 1989 The Glass Menagerie by Paul Newman Testimony by Tony Palmer [13]
3rd 1990 The Children by Tony Palmer Blue Steel by Kathryn Bigelow [14]
4th 1991 Cyrano de Bergerac by Jean-Paul Rappeneau Dreams by Akira Kurosawa [15]
5th 1992 Raise the Red Lantern by Zhang Yimou A Brighter Summer Day by Edward Yang [16]
6th 1993 The Trial by David Jones Strictly Ballroom by Baz Luhrmann [17]
7th 1994 The Blue Kite by Tian Zhuangzhuang The Scent of Green Papaya by Tran Anh Hung [18]
8th 1995 The Red Lotus Society by Stan Lai Amateur by Hal Hartley [19]
9th 1996 The Confessional by Robert Lepage Memories by Kōji Morimoto, Tensai Okamura and Katsuhiro Otomo [20]
10th 1997 Gabbeh by Mohsen Makhmalbaf Breaking the Waves by Lars von Trier [21]
11th 1998 Hana-bi by Takeshi Kitano Happy Together by Wong Kar-wai [22]
12th 1999 Ordinary Heroes by Ann Hui The Hole by Tsai Ming-liang [23]
13th 2000 Monday by Sabu The Wind Will Carry Us by Abbas Kiarostami [24]
14th 2001 Yi Yi by Edward Yang Eureka by Shinji Aoyama [25]
15th 2002 Kandahar by Mohsen Makhmalbaf What Time Is It There? by Tsai Ming-liang [26]
16th 2003 Chi-hwa-seon by Im Kwon-taek Divine Intervention by Elia Suleiman [27]
17th 2004 Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring by Kim Ki-duk Goodbye, Dragon Inn by Tsai Ming-liang [28]
18th 2005 Steamboy by Katsuhiro Otomo Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence by Mamoru Oshii [29]
19th 2006 Dunia by Jocelyne Saab 4:30 by Royston Tan [30]
20th 2007 Sankara by Prasanna Jayakody Opera Jawa by Garin Nugroho [31]
21st 2008 The Princess of Nebraska by Wayne Wang Road to Dawn by Derek Chiu [32]
22nd 2009 Sincerely Yours by Rich Lee Milk by Semih Kaplanoğlu [33]
23rd 2010 Mao's Last Dancer by Bruce Beresford Dear Doctor by Miwa Nishikawa [34]
24th 2011 Red Light Revolution by Sam Voutas Senna by Asif Kapadia [35]
25th 2014 Unlucky Plaza by Ken Kwek In the Absence of the Sun by Lucky Kuswandi [36]
26th 2015 Panay by Cheng Yu-chieh — [37]
27th 2016 Interchange by Dain Iskandar Said — [38]
28th 2017 Angels Wear White by Vivian Qu — [39]
29th 2018 Cities of Last Things by Ho Wi Ding — [40]
30th 2019 Wet Season by Anthony Chen The Truth by Hirokazu Kore-eda [41]
31st 2020 Tiong Bahru Social Club by Tan Bee Thiam — [42]
32nd 2021 Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash by Edwin — [43]
33rd 2022 Assault by Adilkhan Yerzhanov — [44]
34th 2023 Tiger Stripes by Amanda Nell Eu — [45]
35th 2024 Stranger Eyes by Yeo Siew Hua — [9]

Awards

[edit]
Main article: List of Singapore International Film Festival awards

The Silver Screen Awards Competition was introduced in 1991 to encourage advances in Asian film-making standards.[46] Every year, a selection of Asian feature and short films take part in the competition. In 2014, the Southeast Asian Short Film category was introduced, replacing the Singapore Short Film category. The first Southeast Asian Film Lab was introduced in 2015.[47]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Frater, Patrick (17 October 2017). "'Angels Wear White' to Open Singapore Film Festival".
  2. ^ hermesauto (17 October 2017). "Golden Horse-nominated thriller Angels Wear White to open the Singapore International Film Festival".
  3. ^ Lui, John (21 February 2022). "Geoff Malone, architect and co-founder of Singapore International Film Festival, dies after long illness". The Straits Times. Singapore. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b c Loh, Genevieve Sarah (5 December 2013). "S'pore film festival to return after 2 years". Today. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
  5. ^ Chew, Hui Min (17 October 2022). "Local film #LookAtMe barred from screening in Singapore over potential to cause social division". CNA. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  6. ^ "IMDA refuses classification for local film #LookAtMe for denigrating religious community". TODAY. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  7. ^ Lui, John (26 October 2022). "SGIFF 2022 to open with Kazakh film, Ken Kwek's banned #LookAtMe still part of festival programme". The Straits Times. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  8. ^ Wong, Silvia (26 October 2022). "Singapore film festival stands by banned film '#LookAtMe' (exclusive)". Screen. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  9. ^ a b c "Singapore International Film Festival 2024 to open with Stranger Eyes, Rebecca Lim named first-ever ambassador". CNA Lifestyle. 4 October 2024. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  10. ^ "Singapore film about censorship refused classification by IMDA, remains in SGIFF lineup". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Singapore film about censorship refused classification by IMDA, remains in SGIFF lineup". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  12. ^ "It's a multinational feast". The Straits Times. 6 February 1987. p. 28. Retrieved 3 December 2024 – via NewspaperSG.
  13. ^ "1989: SGIFF 2 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  14. ^ "1990: SGIFF 3 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  15. ^ "1991: SGIFF 4 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  16. ^ "1992: SGIFF 5 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  17. ^ "1993: SGIFF 6 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  18. ^ "1994: SGIFF 7 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  19. ^ "1995: SGIFF 8 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  20. ^ "1996: SGIFF 9 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  21. ^ "1997: SGIFF 10 - Singapore International Film Festival". Archived from the original on 19 May 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  22. ^ "1998: SGIFF 11 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  23. ^ "1999: SGIFF 12 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  24. ^ "2000: SGIFF 13 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  25. ^ "2001: SGIFF 14 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  26. ^ "2002: SGIFF 15 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  27. ^ "2003: SGIFF 16 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  28. ^ "2004: SGIFF 17 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  29. ^ "2005: SGIFF 18 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  30. ^ "2006: SGIFF 19 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  31. ^ "2007: SGIFF 20 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  32. ^ "2008: SGIFF 21 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  33. ^ "2009: SGIFF 22 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  34. ^ "2010: SGIFF 23 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  35. ^ "2011: SGIFF 24 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  36. ^ "2014: SGIFF 25 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  37. ^ "2015: SGIFF 26". Singapore International Film Festival. Archived from the original on 26 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
    Wong, Silvia (7 December 2015). "India's 'The Fourth Direction' takes top award at Singapore fest". Screen International. Archived from the original on 26 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  38. ^ "2016: SGIFF 27 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  39. ^ "2017: SGIFF 28". Singapore International Film Festival. Archived from the original on 13 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  40. ^ "Festival 2018 - Singapore International Film Festival".
  41. ^ Frater, Patrick (22 October 2019). "Singapore Festival to Focus on Asian Excellence for 30th Edition". Variety. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  42. ^ Frater, Patrick (5 November 2020). "Singapore Festival Unveils Lineup for Hybrid Edition". Variety. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  43. ^ "Past Edition – 2021 - SGIFF 2022". sgiff.com. 13 November 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  44. ^ Lui, John (26 October 2022). "SGIFF 2022 to open with Kazakh film, Ken Kwek's banned #LookAtMe still part of festival programme". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  45. ^ Rosser, Michael (26 October 2023). "Singapore film festival unveils 2023 lineup, honorary award for Fan Bingbing". ScreenDaily. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  46. ^ "Singapore International Film Festival's Silver Screen Award for Best Film (Singapore Short Film)". www.roots.gov.sg. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  47. ^ Brzeski, Patrick (15 July 2014). "Singapore Film Fest to Launch Southeast Asian Film Lab". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
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