News: Singapore short film snags grand prize at top Tokyo festival


dudezuav

New Member
Jun 17, 2018
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@ https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/spore-short-film-snags-grand-prize-at-top-tokyo-festival :

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I'm not very good at saying thanks, but I must pay tribute to the many good men and women who have made this project a reality.

This is my first short film in more than 10 years - the last being "My Blue Heaven" in 2007. And man do I love shorts. They allow me the freedom to do things that are out of my comfort zone and just experiment. I want this to be a showcase piece of many firsts - immersive technologies, 4K HDR, Dolby Atmos 3D Audio & 8K RAW workflow. And I wouldn't have been able to try out all these tech without the people below.

"Benjamin's Last Day At Katong Swimming Complex"(BLD) is not possible without the support first and foremost from the good folks of THECREATIVEROOM. Ric Aw and Pok. Thank you for allowing me to do what I want, and standing behind it. It was a tale that might have been rejected right from the concept stage, but you guys saw it through and helped me deliver it. Heni and team, you guys were the most dedicated and obliging producers and project managers. Kudos. And of course, the filmmakers Gladys, Nicole, & Shuming in the VOID DECK project - this project is also possible only because you guys are onboard!
Lee from Red, you guys were there with 4K RED ONE in my first feature film Blood Ties, and now the 8K Helium in this latest. From the first SG feature film to be printed from 4K RED to 35mm in 2009, to the first SG production to be delivered in 4K HDR + Dolby Atmos. My films wouldn't have looked so good without you.

The wonderful crew that partaked in making this BLD a reality, Amandi, Tiffany, Ben, Shawn, Emmanuel, Shireen, Andy and the rest of the team. Some of you I had worked with on many projects before, and some for the first time. Thank you all for the professionalism and teaching me so many things along the way. Not to forget the underwater crew Victor and gang. You guys made us wish we are born with gills.
Cast members Andrew, Josiah, Sean, Peter and the rest of the supporting cast members. You guys took us back to a time when things were simpler and dreamier. You guys shined brightly.

Finally, not forgetting the post guys working to deliver the final look and sound. My partner in crime Tingli Lim and her team Grace, Amirah, Carina and Yemin. The emotional scoring by Matthew J Kelly that made my heart cry. Zhiqi for putting all the pieces together. Junbin for making BLD one of my best looking films. Filipe for putting the sound design and music into a cohesive whole. And my mastering team Chinlong and Johnson working day and night to make everything happen for SGIFF. Mary for watching my spending and keeping us all in one piece. I love you MCL.
And of course my lovely wife Diane for enduring my nonsense, mood swings, and giving me some of the best advice from a film marketing/viewer perspective.

Shorts are very unique, in the sense that they are usually what builds many directors’ careers. And it is in their shorts that we see the building blocks of what is to come and the potential of what they could achieve. However, you don’t really get to see shorts very often other than at festivals where they are shown only once or twice in a country in a particular year and never available ever again. Many filmmakers are still unwilling to place their shorts on Youtube because it is not the best place to showcase their work for a myriad of reasons.
Like "My Blue Heaven", BLD will probably be shown only once in this complete director's cut in Singapore, ever. The final released version on cable will see several shots removed due to sensitivity. So for those wishing to see its in its entirety, this might be the only chance - at SGIFF (29th November 2017 SGIFF SG Panorama 2). It was a very late entry, and I am so grateful that it is selected. Coincidentally, this is also the first time I have my work shown in this festival. So I am really excited to see the reaction from the audience to my new work.
PS. I couldn't tag everyone cos not everyone is on my list. Please help me tag those not tagged but are involved in this production
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Everyone counts!