[Film Festival]: 8th Asian Film Symposium

Beng Kheng SG

The Substation Moving Images presents
8th Asian Film Symposium
14 to 22 September 2008
The Substation Theatre and The Picturehouse
http://www.substation.org/AFS08.html

In its 8th year running, the regional film programme, which aims to deepen the dialogue and networking between countries in the region, will feature film screenings, forums, discussions and workshops.

<HIGHLIGHTS>
Highlights this year include the opening film LOVERS ON THE ROAD by Jessey Tsang, which premiered at the 32nd Hong Kong International Film Festival, and the closing film, THIS DARLING LIFE by Angie Chen, a poignant dog lovers movie that touched audiences at the Hong Kong Asian Film Screening 2008.

This year, there will also be a forum on film financing models in Asia, a seminar for young filmmakers by veteran Hong Kong filmmaker Angie Chen, a producer's workshop by Kelvin Sng and a documentary directors' talk by Tony Kern and Eng Yee Peng, who each bring with them experiences from different screening circuits, on distribution and marketing.

Plus appearances by the local and overseas filmmakers and curators! Join us at the only indie film networking event of the year!

Film details and ticketing info at:
http://www.substation.org/AFS08.html

Facebook event:
http://www.new.facebook.com/event.php?eid=23913354150

Please help spread the word!

<FILM PROGRAMME>
14 Sept Sunday - The Picturehouse
6.30pm – Reception, Opening films “Kawaii” & “Lovers on the Road”

15 Sept - The Substation, Theatre
7.30pm – Director’s Talk by Tony Kern and Eng Yee Peng on Marketing & Distributing Documentaries + Screening of “A Month of Hungry Ghosts”

18 Sept Thursday - The Substation, Theatre
7.30pm - S-Express: Singapore and Malaysia

19 Sept Friday - The Substation, Theatre
7.30pm - S-Express: Thailand and Indonesia

20 Sept Saturday - The Substation, Theatre
1.30pm - Producer’s Workshop by Kelvin Sng + Screening of “My Blue Heaven” & “Together”
4.30pm - Forum on Film Financing models
7.30pm - S-Express: Chinese 1

21 Sept Sunday - The Substation, Theatre
1.30pm - Medium Length Films: Philippines
4.30pm – Filmmaker’s Seminar by HK Filmmaker Angie Chen
7.30pm - S-Express: Chinese 2

22 Sept Monday - The Picturehouse
7pm - Closing films “Summar” & “This Darling Life”, Q&A and Reception

Beng Kheng SG

Tickets for the 8th Asian Film Symposium on sale now!

Catch the Opening Night’s films “Kawaii” and “Lovers on the Road”, with pre-screening reception, on 14th Sept, 6.30pm at The Picturehouse!

www.thepicturehouse.com.sg

Kawaii
/ 2006 / 27min / Taiwan / M18 (Some sexual scenes)
Director: Hsia Shao-Yu

Synopsis:
Han, a taxi driver, lives a peaceful life with his girlfriend, Ya-Chi, but hides a secret. He has been looking for his missing fiancée who left him suddenly several years ago. One day, Han accidentally sees her in Lou-Dong on TV. He decides to look for her. On the way there, a Japanese and Taiwanese couple get on Han’s taxi and they all end up headed for Lou-Dong. In the meantime, Ya-Chi plans for a night out after she knows Han is going to stay out all night and she plans to do something crazy…

Lovers on the Road
/ 2008 / 74:36min / Hong Kong / PG
Director: Jessey Tsang Tsui-shan

Synopsis:
Lei and her boyfriend, Nam, have a big fight over an ex of his before moving to Beijing. Now he works in a design firm, and she wanders the city asking other outsiders naive questions: How long have you been in Beijing? What do you miss most? She hooks up with a loquacious Japanese who waits tables in a posh art market, and travels with him to Shanxi for Buddha statues. Will she bed him? Is she taking the initiative or will she let him? Tsang Tsui-shan’s debut feature observes a 200% self-absorbed young woman in perpetual transit, going from nowhere to nowhere.

Beng Kheng SG

Catch the S-Express short film programmes of the 8th Asian Film Symposium coming up this week!

S-Express: Singapore

Explore the themes of growing up with some local films featuring nightmares and suffering that are recurrent themes in our education system with SUFFERING FOR SUCCESS and THE DREAM. Re-look too, our roots with CERITAKY MELAYU and the Chinese traditional REUNION dinners with family members that start to look really really whacky once you see them onscreen.

S-Express: Malaysia

Ever gritty and ever sharp, the Malaysian short films this year welcomes back Akashdeep Singh with his four short films that show great wit and criticism, THE WAIT, RODA-RODA, PINTU and TOOTA. 10 TAHUN SEBELUM MERDEKA shows us another way of editing political films with cutting-edge soundracks and guerilla visuals making it both fun and engaging!

S-Express: Thailand

With films from the heart, Thai short films this year feature the award-winning SILENCIO, about one man’s quest for the sound of silence and I’M FINE SA-BAY-DEE-KAH which emotes with feelings from the heart.

S-Express: Indonesia

Love, love, love with your arms and not arms for war. Raw and engaging are the films this year with STILL LIFE that puts things upfront in perspective and TROPHY BUFFALO that points out some obvious points, which people who fancy themselves as adults, often tend to miss.

http://www.substation.org/AFS08.html

Beng Kheng SG

S-Express: Thailand & Indonesia, 19th Sept, 7.30pm, The Substation
Tickets: $8/6

Watch the films and join in the post-screening discussion with:

<From Thailand>
- Chalida Uabumrungjit, curator of S-Express: Thailand and project director of the Thai Film Foundation.
- Guest filmmaker, Sivaroj Kongsakul of SILENCIO

Awards
(Jury Mention : 30th Clermont Ferrand Short Film Festival 2008 : France, Special Mention : 24th Hamburg International Short Film Festival 2008 : Germany, Best Film: Busan Asian Short Film Festival 2008 : Korea, Jury Recommendation : The 13th Hong Kong Independent Short Film & Video Awards 2008)

<From Indonesia>
- Varadila Nurdin, curator of S-Express: Indonesia and program manager of minikino
- Guest filmmaker, Ariani Darmawan of STILL LIFE.

Producer’s Workshop, 20th Sept, 1.30pm, The Substation
Tickets: $8/6

Meet Kelvin Sng who will be sharing on the 3 different types of productions he produced, how to find money, how to get and coordinate crew/cast, how to maximise efficiency on the set and lastly, his experience with 3 different directors (always giving the directors what they want.

Film Financing Forum, 20th Sept, 4.30pm, The Substation
Free with registration at [email protected]

Moderated by Juan Foo, Film Producer

Paneled by the S-Express film curators and guest filmmakers from around the region, the forum aims to provide insights into the film funding models and film investment environments of the different countries in Asia. So join us in sneaking a peep into our neighbors’ piggy banks to see how they find their funding.

S-Express: Chinese 1, 20th Sept, 7.30pm, The Substation
Tickets: $8/6

Watch the films and join in the post-screening discussion with:

- Maggie Lee, curator of S-Express: Chinese, Opening and Closing Nights of the Asian Film Symposium.
- Guest filmmaker, Hsia Shao-Yu of KAWAII and SUMMER