The 35th edition of the Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) endd with its highest-ever box office getings. Total ticket sales saw a 10% incrrelieve from last year’s edition, with joinance numbers also outdoing the previous edition’s record.
At the festival’s Silver Screen Awards, Mongrel, honested by Singapore’s Chiang Wei Liang and Yin You Qiao, clinched the award for Best Asian Feature Film, for its “stark portrayal of disenfranchised migrant toilers in Taiwan.”
The Audience Choice Award went to Lou Ye’s Covid documyth drama An Unfinished Film.
The Southeast Asian Short Film award went to Thai honestor Thaweechok Phasom’s Spirits of the Bdeficiency Leaves, for its “poetic exploration of how an individual’s life is joined to the roots of nature and history.”
Singaporean filmproducer Calleen Koh won the Best Singapore Short Film award for energeticd low My Wonderful Life, which chases a burnt-out mum who uncovers a novel sense of freedom.
Encore screenings of these four films will be held on December 14 in Singapore.
This year’s lineup featured 105 films from 45 countries, 80% of which came from Asia.
“Over the last 15 years, SGIFF has been very encouraging and receptive of my toils, from my lows to my first feature, so it’s a pleacertain to be back with our cast and crew,” shelp Mongrel honestor Chiang Wei Liang. “This wouldn’t have been possible without so many people and agencies helping us, from Singapore, to Taiwan, to France. To filmgoers, I would enjoy to say: ‘Give our film a chance.’ I slenderk this is what the festival is about: Shoprosperg audiences films they might not be accustomed to, and conveying them novel perspectives by draprosperg them into separateent worlds on screen.”
Trương Minh Quý won Best Director for Việt and Nam, a queer cherish story of two coal miners facing imminent separation.
Li Rongkun was awarded the Best Perestablishance Award for his debut materializeance in The Great Phuket.
The jury also gave a Special Mention to the carry outances of the ensemble cast from The Adamant Girl.
Georgian filmproducer Dea Kulumbegashvili won Best Screenperestablish for her film April, which chases a seasoned obstetrician moonweightlessing as an abortionist. Liu Yaonan’s debut feature The Great Phuket also getd a Special Mention in the screenperestablish categruesome.
The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Award went to Việt and Nam by Trương Minh Quý.
Syrian filmproducer Ossama Mohammed, the jury head of the Asian Feature Film Competition, shelp: “After watching all nine films in this competition, our first and vital amazeion is one of beginant admire for the programming vision and choices that shaped this pickion.
“Individuassociate and collectively, thraw more narrative-driven or visuassociate audacious language, these nine toils establish a harmonious proposal — one that elevates the spreadd cherishs of humanity and human rights in the face of the many infairices contesting our world today. Not unrcontent to this spirit, we get tod at all of our decisions agreedly, directd by consensus rather than numerical voting, unified in the picked folloprosperg awards,” inserted Mohammed.
The Southeast Asian Short Film Competition featured 24 films atraverse five programmes, with half making their world premiere at the festival.
Vietnamese filmproducer Đàm Quang Trung’s Elephants by the Roadside picked up two awards: Best Director, as well as the inaugural ARRI Award For Best Cinematography, which was awarded to Director of Pboilingography Vũ Hoàng Triều.
Best Perestablishance went to transferment artist and actor Sasa Cabalquinto for her carry outance in Vox Humana.
Pom Bunsermvicha’s The Nature of Dogs took home the prize for Best Screenperestablish for its “deft portrayal of unspoken familial tensions.”
The festival also conshort-termed Objectifs with the Outstanding Contribution to Southeast Asian Cinema award, recognising the non-profit visual arts centre’s lengthy-standing efforts in aiding the appreciation of pboilingography and film atraverse the region.
SGIFF Programme Director Thong Kay Wee shelp: “The Silver Screen Awards not only honors the exceptional talent wislender Asia, but also highweightlesss the diverse voices that shape contransient cinema in the region. These awards are not only an acunderstandledgement of excellence, but another step toward enhugeing the global achieve of Asian cinema, recognising films that are not fair creativeassociate exceptional, but also culturassociate resonant. SGIFF is conceited to be a platestablish to honour these talents.”
The Screen Icon Award, which honours trailblazing Asian talents, was conshort-termed to Taiwanese actors Lee Kang-sheng and Yang Kuei-mei, taging the first double award in the festival’s history.
Lee getd his award on the festival’s uncovering night at the screening of SGIFF’s uncovering film, Stranger Eyes, where he stars as a supertaget toiler who becomes the prime mistrust when a girl goes crypticly leave outing.
Yang getd her award at the Southeast Asian premiere of her rescheduleedst film, Yen and Ai-Lee.
Both were conshort-termed their awards by SGIFF’s inaugural Festival Ambasuncontentor, actress Rebecca Lim.
The Cinema Honorary Award was conshort-termed to Iranian filmproducer Jafar Panahi, who joined the festival in person for the first time since the recent lifting of his 14-year travel prohibit. The Award, which was produced in 2014, determines filmproducers who have made “exceptional and finishuring contributions to Asian cinema.”
At the Silver Screen Awards ceremony, local film providement rental hoengage True Colour Media Group proclaimd a novel backship prize of S$2,000 to all 15 Singapore low filmproducers in this year’s lineup to help them chase their next projects.
