27th SGIFF Press Conference - Photo courtesy of SGIFF and Bonnie Yap Photography
The 27th edition of the Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) has revealed its full festival lineup and special programmes on October 27th, in an intimate sharing session with the press and filmmakers.
The
lineup, spanning 161 titles from 52 countries in 13 sections, can also boast of
being the site of 18 Asian premieres, 9 international premieres, and 16 world
premieres.
Festival Opener and Special Presentations
The
festival will open with the Asian premiere Malaysian neo-noir thriller Interchange
by director Dain Iskandar Said, and the world premiere of the first ever
Festival Commission, The Pursuit of a Happy Human Life,
by director Gladys Ng, who also won Best Singapore Short Film in the 26th
edition of SGIFF.
Three
films will also be screened in special gala showcases across the 12-day
Festival: Mrs K, a unique take on the Wu-Xia
genre by Malaysian director Ho Yuhang featuring Hong Kong veterans Kara Wai and
Simon Yam; Three Sassy Sisters, a musical by director Nia Dinata inspired
by the Indonesian classic Tiga Dara;
and The Road to Mandalay, a dramatic
thriller by Myanmar-born Taiwan-based rising star Midi Z.
The
Special Presentation screenings will be presented with their directors and
casts in attendance.
The Silver Screen Awards
Ten
films will compete in the four categories of the Asian Feature Film Competition
in the 27th edition of SGIFF, with the works of Bangladeshi director
Abdulla Mohammed Saad, Live From
Dhaka, and Indonesian director Wicaksono
Wisnu Legowo, Turah, making
their world premieres, and Nokas
by Indonesian director Manuel
Alberto Maia and Filipino director Jet Leyco’s Town In A Lake making their international premieres.
Other
competing films include recent premieres from the festival circuit: Singaporean
director K Rajagopal’s A Yellow
Bird in Cannes, Thai filmmaker Anocha Suwichakornpong’s By The Time It Gets Dark in Locarno, FIPRESI recipient Chu
Hsien-Che’s White Ant in
Busan, and Nepalese Deepak Rauniyars’ White
Sun in Venice.
The
jury panel for the Asian Feature Film Competition is led by jury head Naomi
Kawase, the Japanese film festival darling, and supported by Hong Kong director
Herman Yau, Lebanese documentarian Jocelyn Saab, and Singaporean actor Sunny
Pang.
The Awards
will also be presenting the Cinema Legend Award to acclaimed Hong Kong actor
Simon Yam, and feature a tribute to Hong Kong filmmaker Fruit Chan.
Singapore Panorama and Asian Vision
The
Singapore Panorama section will be presenting four world premieres by local
directors: omnibus film 4 Love,
Kan Lume’s coming-of-age drama Ariel
& Olivia; Min-Wei Ting’s experimental I’m Coming Up; and Sam Loh’s erotic thriller Siew Lup, itself a follow-up to his 2014 film Lang Tong.
The
Asian Vision section will be presenting the world premieres of Chinese auteur
Li Hongqi’s Hooly Bible II,
the prolific Korean provocateur Lee Sang-woo’s Walking Street, as well as the international premieres of
Thai director Kongkiat Khumesiri’s Khun
Pan, and Malaysian New Wave pioneer Amir Muhammad’s first film after a
seven-year hiatus, Voyage Of
Terengganu.
Special Programmes
SGIFF will be hosting five masterclasses with acclaimed directors,
Tran Anh Hung, Naomi Kawase, Herman Yau, Anurag Kashyap, and Fruit Chan,
throughout the Festival period.
A dialogue session with leading auteur Darren Aronofsky will
also be held, along with a screening of his stunning and critically acclaimed
debut, Pi.
The 27th Edition of the Singapore International Film Festival will run from the 27 November to 8 December 2016, in conjunction with the Singapore Media Festival.
The 27th Edition of the Singapore International Film Festival will run from the 27 November to 8 December 2016, in conjunction with the Singapore Media Festival.