singapore Short Film Awards - Broken Wing by Vicknesh Varan

This social documentary deals with the plight of foreign workers from India, covering the same ground as 'The Call Home' by Han Yew Kwang. It's shocking that nothing's changed in a decade and it's only gotten worse for them. The experiences shared are harrowing. They include extortions, beatings, cheating and exploitation. But the sharpness of the pain conveyed is evidently blunted by its own design. A real-life worker shares his predicament point-blank. However, his outpourings are interjected with a theatrical performance that aims to allegorise his situation. Decked in earth-toned tunics and with their faces dotted with tribal paints, the actors contort, gyrate, swing themselves to deliver some sort fo cryptic message related to the man's story.

To be fair, it was not that difficult to 'uncode' the pantomime. But the purpose it served in a film format seemed weak. Crisp cutaways of scenes or even photographs could preserve the intensity of its message better. Moreover, every 'act' was just a dance representation of what had been shared by the narrator, making the experience repetitive. It seems these 'staged' films are a tricky hybrid, nothing's beat 'Dogville' so far.

Singapore Short Film Awards - The Triumph by Ting Szu Kiong

Szu Kiong's films play a unique part in the filmmaking scene in that no other filmmaker makes films like his. And he takes risks. Well, not entirely because he's got the blessings of SFC for a number of his films. Take a look at the things he's made: The Triumph (1930s period short involving guns and rickshaws), The Forest Spirits (wu xia short, need I say more?) and he's on his way to make something about a vampire to he effect of the Hong Kong Vampire movies by Raymond Wong. 

Several things raise the skepticism about The Triumph. For a young director, it seems too ambitious to do period films. The mediocre acting reared its head at the first entrance of a character. Subsequent delivery was stilted and stagey (the girl who played the lead still pulled a palatable performance). Take away the grandeur of a period drama, the film is really resting on fragile ground. But there was a silver lining  - a moderate surprise that served to pay off my patience in watching the film. The girl who watches a dozen men fight endlessly over power gets to claim a reward for herself for living through these episodes. She keeps their charms that they wear on their neck and accumulate some good fortune for herself. 

It's hard to decide if this is strange or not. In a way, the film does not make a point because this is just about her enigmatic hobby of collecting charms and it leads to a free lunch (in the form of a handsome suitor). However, for the risks that she bore sitting through fights between men, this is a payoff, so it is essentially more than about the hobby, but a reward for braving the realities of her life. Perhaps, if it was made clearer how she paid her dues to be so blessed, then we could walk away with a amulet of wisdom about life.

Singapore Short Film Awards - Jaded Winds by Nelson Yeo

SSFA moments are partially made of these - you remember the films that touched and you also remember the films that appalled you. Watching 'Jaded Wind' was a like slap on the face. I sat up, jaws dropped, struggling to deal with the absurdist, random, amorphous thing that film was. The title belies the real thrust of the story. 2 supposed jaded warriors (ironically acted by 2 adolescents) settle their differences once and for all. The 'wu xia' (Chinese period kungfu) genre gets a painful contortion. Set amidst 'glorious' HDB flats, the 2 fight on top of a hill. We are treated to one slapstick antic after another. While most of us would like some room for the absurd after too much gravity seen in the other films, the filmmakers could have been a little more conscientious with the absurd antics. Unfortunately, corners were cut in the delivery. And many of the meaning behind the very personal jokes were lost. Risk well taken! But do try harder.