Home-grown online entertainment channel Viddsee launched a new Singapore Film Channel with the support of the Singapore Film Commission (SFC), part of the Info-Communications Media Development Authority (IMDA). This was announced at the opening of the Singapore Media Festival yesterday. The channel, which goes live today, is dedicated to showcasing diverse and unique stories from home-grown filmmakers. The partnership is part of SFC’s efforts to cultivate greater awareness and appreciation for Singapore films.
Up
to 30 short films will be curated for the channel, which will feature works by
up and coming student filmmakers such as Tariq Mansor, Lauren Teo and other
notable independent filmmakers from Singapore such as Kirsten Tan and Leon
Cheo. The works selected for the channel offers a wide variety of genres from
documentary ("Longest Distance
Relationship" by Lee Sin Yee), comedy-drama ("The Lying Theory" by Lauren Teo, and “Move Out Notice” by Leon Cheo), to animation
("The Violin" by Ervin Han,
and “Ways of Seeing” by Jerrold Chong).
As part of the partnership with
SFC, Viddsee will also be commissioning their first original short film by a
Singapore filmmaker, to produce a heartfelt Singapore-inspired story for a
local and regional audience. The film will be released in the first half of
next year.
Co-founded by the engineering and
filmmaking duo Derek Tan and Ho Jia Jian, Viddsee- which has attracted over 500 million
users globally- utilises data and insights to grow its viewership and to
optimise content discovery. With its access to audience and proprietary
marketing insights, Viddsee will leverage data and audience engagement
analytics, as well as online marketing tools and strategies to drive viewership
to Singapore films on the channel and extend their reach to a new audience.
Viddsee will also spotlight
selected feature filmmakers such as award-winning local filmmaker K. Rajagopal,
to further the exposure and awareness of their works. This includes customised
marketing campaigns on Viddsee’s platforms, which will showcase the filmmaker’s
past works and trailers of upcoming feature films.
Some works on the initial showcase:
Rumble of train rails; Crashing of ocean waves; Soft caress of distant wind. Two people. Two ways of perceiving the world.
“Move Out Notice” by Leon Cheo
Wei, 21, has not clashed with her real estate agent mother for over a year since they started a new system – “talking” to each other solely through cheerful-looking notes. However, when Wei clumsily announces that she is moving out to live independently, her obstinate mother declares war.
Accolades: 17th San Diego Asian Film Festival, 9th Île Courts-International Short Film Festival in Mauritius
“The Lying Theory” by Lauren Teo
Set in a modern day local culinary school, "The Lying Theory" is a comedy drama between the world's most mistrustful girl and the world's most honest boy.
“The Longest-Distance Relationship” by Lee Sin Yee
Four friends laugh, ponder, doubt, and struggle as they embark on a journey to understand one another's religions and beliefs. Questions and conflicts begin to surface in their attempt to make sense of the existing diversity in religions.
