COST OF FINAL-YEAR SCHOOL
PROJECT
$26,000 V $6,000
DIRECTOR: NTU student
Cecilia Ang (middle) directing her short film Purple
Light.
PICTURES: JASON QUAH
SUPPORTING
ROLES: Ah Boys To Men's Maxi Lim (second from
right) and Noah Yap (third from right) in the short film, Purple
Light
NTU students hire Ah Boys To Men
actors to be in short film
REPORTS: THEODORA D'CRUZ
THEY were willing to spend whatever it took to realise their
passion for producing an impactful, quality short-film for their
final-year project (FYP).
Even if it meant forking out close to $10,000 each
from their pockets. Or, having to hire actors like Ah Boys to Men
stars Maxi Lim and Noah Yap to play supporting roles.
Their 24-minute film focusing on relationships in
the army cost a hefty $26,000.
The two undergraduates from Nanyang Technological
University's (NTU) Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and
Information (WKWSCI) felt that every cent spent on actualising
their film, Purple Light, was worth it.
They submitted their project yesterday and are
waiting for it to be graded.
'Like giving
birth'
Director Cecilia Ang, 23, said: "The experience is
worth it. I think it's sort of like giving birth. When you see your
baby at the end, it makes all the pain and hard work
worthwhile."
Miss Ang said the bulk of the money went into
hiring cast and their 20-strong film crew, most of whom were
freelancers.
The money also covered expenses for wardrobe,
transport, welfare and production supplies. She said although she
was aware of the costs in making a film, she initially expected to
fork out only about $5,000 of her own money.
To fund their exorbitant project, Miss Ang and
team-mate Charlene Yiu, 24, took on various jobs and video
competitions during the school semester, raising some $5,000.
Miss Yiu, who was also the producer and art
director, said: "It was tiring, but I'm used to juggling work and
study. It boils down to time management."
They also tried also getting public donations but
were more successful raising about $1,600 in funding from two
school grants.
Miss Ang and Miss Yiu's expenditure sheds light on
the importance of FYPs, a necessary component in the academic
curriculum of some undergraduate courses.
Usually worth more than the credits of a single
module, it has the potential to affect their overall grade point
average.
This is why some university and polytechnic
final-year students-spend large amounts on their FYPs.
Ms Nikki Draper, a senior lecturer at WKWSCI's
division of broadcast and cinema studies, said that while there is
no cap on the amount students can spend, "there are loads of great
ideas that don't cost a ton of money to execute".
She said: "Part of the FYP process is determining
the execution of a feasible idea, given your resources. Everyone
can probably think of some Hollywood big-budget movie flop.
"The mentality that a good idea needs a big budget
... is often a liability to producing work. People miss interesting
opportunities that way."
Students can also apply for grants either from
their schools or from outside organisations to help fund their
work.
Monitoring student'
spending
Some supervising professors also help ensure that
students don't go overboard with spending.
Ngee Ann Polytechnic's FYP coordinator Andrew
Millians said: "At Ngee Ann, we have to take into account the
financial situation of all of our students when approving and
supervising projects. We don't want one student with deep pockets
to effectively write cheques that everyone in the group ends up
having to cash."
He said he sees a trend where students are not
spending as much money for their FYPs.
He added that the school does provide a budget for
students to spend within guidelines.
But some will spend more than others, due to
factors such as the nature of the course and the available funding
or sponsorship, either from the school or external
organisations.
Photography major Bryan Ho from NTU paid $1,300 to
frame 35 photographs for his FYP.
The 25-year-old from the School of Art, Design
& Media (ADM) said although framing was not part of the project
assessment, it would be exhibited in the
annual ADM graduation showcase.
Mr Ho said: "Most of us were framing it up for the
whole gallery experience. I don't usually spend this much on my
projects, but it was the final push."
For Miss Felicia Pan, 23, an NUS engineering
undergraduate, her FYP was free of money woes.
Working independently on a biological experiment,
she researched on viruses in different water types and used the
school's laboratory equipment. The project is being graded.
But Miss Vernice Thiam, 20, a design student from
Singapore Polytechnic, spent $1,000 creating a full-scale, 2.5m
tall metal swing, only to get a C+ grade for it.
Miss Thiam said she did not have enough money to
properly finish her project.
Her swing cost $500 and transporting it from the
workshop to school another $300. The rest was spent on materials
and printing.
She could not afford to paint it so she presented
an incomplete swing.
This was a huge pinch as she forked out most of the
money herself, with $100 given by her parents.
The swing was scrapped after being exhibited and
graded, but Miss Thiam said she has no emotional connection with
it.
She said: "There was no point in keeping it. It
would have just been a waste of space, and because it wasn't coated
with paint, it would start rusting."
Her father, Mr Eric Thiam, 54, a logistics officer,
said: "I was very surprised that she had to actually build the
full-scale swing.
"Who's going to foot the bill? To me it's a waste
of money and time and a very heavy burden for a working-class
family like mine."
-Additional reporting by Celine Chen
FILM
STUDENTS: The five Ngee Ann Poly students
behind the short film Bird, including producer Tan Si En (extreme
left) and director Kristen Ong (third from left).
PICTURE: RAAPOW.COM
Poly students borrow props, work to
raise funds for film
FOR this group of student film-makers, it was crucial that they
worked within the budget.
And money, or a lack of it, did not hinder them
from producing a final-year project (FYP) deserving of an A
grade.
The team of five from Ngee Ann Polytechnic's Film,
Sound and Video course proved that money is not the-sole
determinant of quality work.
Producer Tan Si En, 20, said: "To us, money doesn't
make a film good. From the beginning, we gave ourselves a budget to
work with."
Bird their 16-mlnute film, centres on unrequited
love.
Shot in an abandoned house in eastern Singapore, it
was Inspired by director Kristen Ong's earlier obession with
sneaking into and photographing abandoned houses across the island
after school.
lt also starred Suria actress Messa Anwar.
Despite spending close to $6,000, each team member
only had fork out about $500 as the rest was subsidised by the
school.
While they did not have to spend on location and
prop, Miss Tan said they paid their actors a "nominal sum".
But this to them was reasonable amount. Miss Tan
said: "We are one of the groups who probably spent the least
producing our short film. The average cost ranges around $13,000
and last year's record was $20.000."
Resourceful
The team also took on several corporate work stints
to help shoulder the financial burden and managed to raise
$1,000.
Miss Ong, 20, is proud her team managed to remain
resourceful.
"We had a lot of networking and tried to source for
items instead of paying for them. We needed a tricycle to ferry
some of our equipment and we managed to borrow one.
"I am genuinely proud of our work and it doesn't
feel too much of a financial burden. Film requires a lot of
equipment and resources, but the work you make can also be seen as
an investment to be used in your portfolio, shown to future
investors, sent to film festivals, et cetera."
Does spending more money mean
better grades?
"I
don't think so. At the end of the day, the concept, how you execute
it and how you want to tell your story is more important than the
budget.
- Mr Royston Tan, 36, film-maker.
He spent $5,000 on a short film, Sons, which won more than 10
international awards
"Definitely not. The important
thing is to focus on building the story and getting good
subjects."
- Mr Pedro Shiu, 26, NTU graduate
who spent less than $2,000 on his FYP documentary and scored an
A-.
"I believe that there should be a
limit to how much a student should spend because it also matters
whether or not the family is financially sound."
- Madam Sally Ng, 50, a childcare teacher who has a daughter
studying in a polytechnic
"Some people are not financially
ready to come up with that kind of money and it won't be fair to
them. The project should bring out the student's
capabilities."
- Mrs Mary Anne Peroira, 49, a kindergarten teacher with two
children in university
News, The New Paper, Tuesday, April 23 2013, Pg 2-3