Let’s interview Kan Lume, an award-winning local fimmaker!
I know someone who knows Kan. This can be done. :)
A Case Study- “D-War”, a Korean film also released in the US market
March 23, 2008D-War, directed by Korean director Shim Hyung-Rae, was released in South Korea and the US in 2007. D-War’s (poor) plot revolves around Korean mythology, but is set in modern Los Angeles, with a cast that mainly consists of Western actors.
So, is D-War a Korean or US film, if it attempts to portray parts of Korean culture/mythology in the US, and with a US cast?
Resources
March 22, 2008The Singapore Film Society. They have a blog.
Sinema.sg- a portal for local indie films
About the Singapore International Film Festival
//TBC
What makes a film “Singaporean”?
March 22, 2008The same can be asked of films from other countries- what makes a French film unique to France, or a Taiwanese movie Taiwanese? If films were people, what nationality would they give themselves? Is there an empirical way to determine how local a film is? If films can be local to specific countries, can they be international, or span across cultures? What role do the creators, cast and locations of the film play in defining its uniqueness to a specific country? When perceived as an art form, can films be local to any country? Can a foreign cast, talent and producers create a “local” film?
What makes a local film “local”?
Perhaps a combination of the culture portrayed in a film, its content, or its actors play a role in making a film unique to a particular country. Consider the following films considered to be “Singaporean”:
- One Last Dance
- Filmmakers are mostly non-Singaporeans
- “Produced in Singapore”
- Hong-Kong gangster-esque action
- Just Follow Law
- Directed by Jack Neo
- Produced in Singapore
- Most of the cast members are Singaporeans
- Plot provides a satirical look at a broad spectrum of society in Singapore
- Cages
- Produced in Singapore
- Cast and crew are of many nationalities, of which, a significant portion are Singaporeans
- Directed by an American director, Graham Streeter, who:
- Pleasure Factory
- Produced in Singapore
- Directed by Ekachai Uekrongtham, who is based in Singapore
- Is a docudrama of Singapore’s red-light district
- Received good reception from local and international critics,and has been screened at international film festivals
- Cast members are mainly Singaporean
- Men in White
- Produced in Singapore
- A horror-comedy
- Directed by Kelvin Tong, a Singaporean producer
- Cast members are mainly Singaporean
- Plot revolves around “Singaporean ghosts”
- 881
- Directed by local filmmaker Royston Tan
- Depicts the local Getai scene
- Wil be released in Japan
- Gathered good reviews
- Singaporean cast
Upon closer examination, it can be seen that (with the exclusion of One Last Dance) all of the above films portray society and culture in Singapore in one way or another. The filmmakers may not be Singaporean, (Cages), but that did not prevent the unique taste of Singapore to be shown in the film. It is also important to note that the mere location of a film does not make it local to that, as seen in One Last Dance.
//TBC
