A Showcase of Singapore Film and Video (1967-2007)

Date: 4pm, Sunday 4th March 2007
Venue: Candid Art Trust basement, 3 Torrens St, London, EC1V 1NQ
Duration: 65 min

"To remove foreign body, use a pair of tweezers.
This can only be done if the foreign body is visible and can be easily grasped with a pair of tweezers.
Do not attempt to dislodge the foreign body using a cotton swab or similar tools.
Seek medical help if you fail to remove the foreign body.
Pop painkiller if medical help does not arrive.
Pop painkiller if you do not wish to remove.
Yes, I hope it will infect, break in and spread.

This film programme is a showcase of films and videos from Singapore artists spanning 1967 to 2007, curated by Tan Bee Thiam of the Asian Film Archive."

Eyes Filmmaker: Rajendra Gour Year: 1967 Duration: 7 min "Pain and suffering viewed through the “eyes” of the people of the world. Awarded Bronze Medal at Malta International Film Festival. Rajendra Gour is one of the pioneering Singapore independent short filmmakers. His works found acclaim at international festivals and awards, long before the new wave of younger filmmakers in the 90s. In fact, it was in London that he premiered his first short film, Mr Tender Heart (destroyed) at the Commonwealth Film Festival in 1965. Eyes, made two years later was 15 minutes long but what is left now is only 7 minutes of the film."

Lurve Me Now and Microwave Filmmaker: Tan Pin Pin Year: 1999 Duration: 7 min "Two one-take shots of a Barbie doll fantasy. The filmmaker's love for an American icon is banned in Singapore. Tan Pin Pin is Singapore's foremost woman documentary maker and the only Singaporean who won a Student Academy Award (for Moving House, 2001) when she pursued her MFA with Northwestern. She writes on www.tanpinpin.com."

Imelda Goes to Singapore Filmmaker: Brian Gothong Tan Year: 2006 Duration: 4 min "Imelda Marcos and her two plastic bags from FairPrice, a union run supermarket chain in Singapore. This video makes references to the Marcos regime (1965-86) that was marred by rampant corruption and political repression. Imelda, the charismatic former First Lady of Philippines, lived a life of luxury amidst the poverty of the Filipinos. She used to croon her favourite song, Dahil sa iyo, at State functions to entertain visiting heads of state. Brian Gothong Tan is borned in Philippines and raised in Singapore. He's trained at California Institute of Arts and his works have been exhibited in the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) and the Singapore Biennale 2006. He maintains a website at www.briangothongtan.com."

Chlorine Addiction Filmmaker: Tan Kai Syng Year: 2000 Duration: 6 min "A flood of colorful images with a tongue-in-cheek voice-over narration read at furious speed. Selected for competition in the New Asian Currents programme, Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival. Chlorine Addiction is the collective title of 10 experimental alternative nonfiction films (44 min) with the theme Being 1.57m Short But Swimming Laps Everyday With (Breast) Strokes. The filmmaker was addicted to swimming one kilometer per day. This is the final chapter. Tan Kai Syng was top student at Slade School and Musashino Art University. Her works have been collected by Fukuoka Asian Art Museum and exhibited widely in festivals such such as Biennale of Sydney, transmediale 0.1 (Berlin) and OuterLimits (New York)."

Embryo Filmmaker: Loo Zihan Year: 2007 Duration: 6 min "Jack and Jill went up a hill to get a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown, Jill broke out in laughter. Loo Zihan is reading at the School of Art Design and Media, Nanyang Technological University. He is currently working on his first HD feature film Solos. "

Pain Filmmaker: Eric Khoo Year: 1994 Duration: 30 min "A graphic portrait of a sado-masochistic young man's obsession with pain. Ban on Pain was lifted in 1998. Winner of Best Director and Special Achievement Awards at 6th Singapore International Film Festival. Pain brought Khoo notoriety and a prize award for him to make his first feature film, Mee Pok Man, a landmark film for the Singapore film industry. Eric Khoo is the most influential Singapore filmmaker and a pivotal name in any history of Singapore film. To date, he is also the only Singaporean filmmaker invited to showcase his works at the Cannes Film Festival. For more details on his works, visit http://www.asianfilmarchive.org/fac/about_eric.asp."

Sewing Room Filmmaker: Ang SooKoon Year: 2005 Duration: 5 min "In her private sewing room, a handiwork is about to transcend the boundaries of its own craft. Selected for International Film Festival Rotterdam 2007. Ang SooKoon is a Singapore artist currently living and working in Amsterdam. Her works have been exhibited in film festivals in Rotterdam, Hong Kong, Fukuoka, Oberhausen and Clemont Ferrand. She was artist-in-residence at Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten, Shanghai Duolun MoMa and www.sookoonang.com."

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