THE CAUSE

The predominant art form of our 21st century, film may be the one medium that can record our experiences in such detail that is closest to life. Film will tell us history in moving images and speech, and is an undeniable memory of our lives.

We have all encountered and enjoyed film, and local films are no exception. For Singapore as a growing nation, our local films are a vital part of our history and heritage as both cultural capital and documentation. Yet so many of our earlier local films are lost to time and decay because of a lack of support for the cause of film preservation. We cannot afford to lose any more of these collective memories that bind us as Singaporeans. We need to protect our local films.

Nothing else in the world can capture this - your life, what you see, hear and experience - the way a local film can. More than mere words, images, objects or even symbols, our film alone has the power to touch anyone anywhere anytime and transmit to them what it truly means to be Singaporean.

Through our film, we can keep our past and present alive for our future.

Save Our Film. Keep our memories alive.

THE CAMPAIGN

- The 'Save Our Film' Campaign Is A Rallying Cry For Young Singaporeans To Save Our Local Films From Disappearing -

The 'Save Our Film' campaign is brought to you by the Asian Film Archive (AFA) in partnership with a team of final-year students from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University. Conceived by youths for youths, this pioneering film campaign aims to raise awareness amongst youths aged 15 - 35 of Singapore's rich local film heritage and the importance of ensuring it is kept alive for our future. Through film preservation work by agencies like AFA, Singaporeans' memories of its culture, landscape and heritage can be safeguarded for generations past and to come. This campaign seeks to seed conversations between generations so local film memories and experiences, both new and old, can be shared.

Through the month of February 2010, look out for a series of nationwide guerilla publicity efforts, beginning with the campaign Mock DVDs+Posters on display at our supporting stores and cinemas. Do read the fine print! They promote five early Singapore titles with a twist -- these films have been lost and are thus unavailable. More information about them can be found on our Singapore Lost Film Wiki, along with our archived images of never-before-seen scans from the film memorabilia collection of Mr Wong Han Min. The public is warmly invited to contribute and grow the wiki as well.

Every weekend in February, catch impromptu Video Projections that will be happening at mystery locations around the city. Done in flash mob style, news of each week's location will be announced a few days prior here and on other online media channels. These original 3-minute videos feature our campaign messages done up in slick kinetic typography. Watch the two videos on our YouTube group now and stay tuned for these pop-up projections! You can even stand a chance to win a copy of the 'Singapore Shorts Vol. 2 (SSV2)' DVD by participating in our on-site local film trivia quiz - simply answer three easy questions on Singapore film but you'll have to come down to our projections to do it!

Don't miss the final campaign highlight, our Roving Showcase featuring exclusive Call for Memories recordings of members of our local film community, film memorabilia collectors, WWII survivors and others sharing their own fondest local film memory. This showcase will happen on the last Saturday afternoon of the month all along Scotts and Orchard Roads. Follow us as we trundle down Singapore's busiest shopping district with a nostalgic 11-inch television from the nineties and screen these interview clips to all and sundry! The local film trivia quiz will be happening on-site as well with more copies of the SSV2 DVD to give away.

Finally, show your support for the cause by taking part in our online Initiatives. You can contribute by volunteering and donating but if you lack the time or money, take the Pledge to save our film and tell us what you will commit to do to save our film in your own unique way.

This campaign is held as part of the Asian Film Archive 5th Anniversary celebrations for 2010.