Singapore film-makers take home two prizes at Silver Screen Awards
Liao Jiekai, 32, won the Best Director award for his film, The Mist; while Chiang Wei Liang, 29, received the Best Singapore Short Film for Anchorage Prohibited.
The Mist, which centres around two women who recollect the sounds and images from places in their collective memories, was praised by the judging panel for successfully translating collective memory “in a poetic way” through sound and image, “without falling into experimental film pretension”.
Liao, who received a certificate, trophy and cash prize of S$2,000 (RM6,278), said the award was “very unexpected” and he saw it as “reaffirming our efforts to find a new language in dance films”,
“This prize is for every person involved in the film ... I was trying to do something new with this film, I was working with dancers for the first time, collaborating with them to develop a new language.” Liao also said that he was working on a feature film which will be an adaptation of a Singaporean Chinese novel, adding that he, along with the group Cinemovement (a collaborative project featuring works by dance and film artists in Hong Kong and Singapore), would be developing four more short films.
Meanwhile, the panel hailed Chiang’s film, which tells the story of two migrant workers with no money and their search for employment opportunities, as one that showed the challenges of “migrant workers without going into tropes of melodrama”.
Assistant director for the film Koo Chia Meng, who collected the award on behalf of Chiang, said Chiang’s input was “very heartfelt and very real”. “He actually wants to say something about immigrants in Taiwan ... but his film really spoke for all immigrant situations internationally.”
Anchorage Prohibited had also won the Best Short Film award at the Taipei Film Awards and the Audi Short Film Award at the 66th Berlinale.
However, lauded Singapore film-maker K Rajagopal had a disappointing outing at the Silver Screen Awards. His film, A Yellow Bird, was nominated in four categories ― Best Film, Best Director, Best Performance and Special Mention ― in the Asian Film Feature Competition segment, but went home empty-handed.
"Who wouldn't want their film to win but ... we don't set out to make a film to win an award," said Rajagopal. "I didn't even know I would go to Cannes when I made the film. An award is encouraging but film-making is beyond that; and I have a come along way, so I know this is not the end."
The film, which made its debut at the Cannes International Film Festival in May and had a sold out screening at the SGIFF, will be screened at Golden Village Cinemas from Dec 8.
This year saw 14 awards being presented at the Silver Screen Awards. Below is a list of the recipients,
Asian feature film category
BEST FILM: White Sun by Deepak Rauniyar
SPECIAL MENTION: Turah by Wicaksono Wisnu Legowo
BEST DIRECTOR: Abdullah Mohammad Saad (Live from Dhaka)
BEST PERFORMANCE: Mostafa Monwar (Live From Dhaka)
Southeast Asian short film category
BEST SOUTHEAST ASIAN SHORT FILM: In The Year of Monkey (Prenjak) by Wregas Bhanuteja
BEST SINGAPORE SHORT FILM: Anchorage Prohibited by Chiang Wei Liang
SPECIAL MENTION: On the Origin of Fear by Bayu Prihantoro Filemon
BEST DIRECTOR: Liao Jiekai (The Mist)
YOUTH JURY PRIZE: Still (Hilom) by PR Patindol
Southeast Asian film lab
MOST PROMISING PROJECT: Taste by Dong Phuong Thao
SPECIAL MENTION: Rahula by Puangsoi Aksornsawang
HONORARY AWARD: Fruit Chan
CINEMA LEGEND AWARD: Simon Yam
YOUNG CRITIC AWARD: Eliza Ho ― TODAY
Contributer : Malay Mail Online | All http://ift.tt/2fWspTP
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