Experimental Film Forum

Experimental Film Forum 2011
Thursday 5 – Sunday 8 May 2011
The Substation Theatre
Admission: $7 and $5 (concession) available from the box office.
Reservations: Contact Mish’aal  6337 7800 / boxoffice@substation.org
This is an InHouse event 
Presented by The Substation Moving Images

Following on the success of its inaugural year, the 2nd Experimental Film Forum will showcase more exciting works in the area of experimental film from 5 – 8 May 2011.

Experimental film is an important medium and testing-ground for the expression of concepts and ideas. From inexpressible thoughts, to changing forms of storytelling, the Experimental Film Forum will showcase thought-provoking pieces and undoubted works of art. There will also be an informal discussion for like-minded enthusiasts and first-timers to share their ideas with practicing filmmakers and other professionals.

The Experimental Film Forum is a programme of The Substation Moving Images. Works have been selected and curated by experimental Singaporean filmmaker Victric Thng, and programme manager for Moving Images Aishah Abu Bakar.

Please see below for the full programme line-up

7–8pm: Reception
8–9pm: Screening
9–9:30pm: Discussion

Eternity – shypeoplesupperclub (WORLD PREMIERE) 60 min / 2011 / TBA
13 experimental videos on the theme – Eternity. Started in 2009, shypeoplesupperclub is an initiative that welcomes experimental film enthusiasts to make films/videos under a specific theme. This is the 2nd collection of films under this initiative.

Watch the trailer for this film below:

8–8:40pm: Screening
8:40–9:15pm: Q&A

Showcase of works by Brian Gothong Tan (38 min) / M18

A Psychoanalytical Neo-Feminist Film / 2004 / 1 min
16mm student film created by Brian Gothong Tan under the guidance of Kate McCabe in CalArts. Featured in ACMI (Melbourne) for the Contemporary Commonwealth exhibition in 2006.

The Ephemeral Body / 2004 / 1 min
Instant Noodles / 2006 / 2 min
Two short films exploring issues of gender, sexuality and cultural stereotypes.

20 Seconds / 2005 / 20 sec
A pair of young men at the beginning of their conversation.

The Mysterious Book of Invisible Children / 2005 / 1 min
Eyes firmly shut, schoolchildren float in a space-like world waiting to be woken up. Are they dreaming, or is this a sugar-coated nightmare?

Mobile (Promo) / 1 min
As the world becomes more mobile, has it also become more foreign?

States of The Nature /  7 min
Uniformed schoolgirls perform a choreographed dance sequence as the viewer watches in silence.

Street Twenty Three / 2005 / 2 min
Experimental film shot on location in Tampines St.23.

Imelda goes to Singapore / 2006 / 3 min
A comic reverie that features the likeness of former First Lady Imelda Marcos as a household maid in Singapore performing her favourite song, Dahil Sa Iyo. This satire on the musical genre is also a darkly political allegory of the Marcos regime.

Vivien’s Dream (collaboration with Ong Keng Sen / Theatreworks’ Vivien and The Shadows) / 2008 / 7 min
Commissioned by Carolina Performing Arts with support from the National Arts Council’s International Collaboration Grant (ICG), Vivien’s Dream accompanied Vivien and The Shadows, the performance directed by renowned playwright Ong Keng Sen. Inspired by the 1951 film adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire, the viewer is transported us into the fantasy world of Vivien Leigh’s Blanche DuBois.

Waking the Fluorescent Lion (excerpt) / 2008 / 2 min
An experimental piece commissioned by the National Museum of Singapore.

Falling (from Cake Theatre’s Temple) / 2008 / 2min 20s
Experimental film that existed as part of the video landscape of Natalie Hennedige’s Temple, commissioned by the Singapore Arts Festival.

Sex, Trauma, Violence / 2009 / 8 min
Inspired by the black and white Hollywood films of old, especially Hitchcock, this mini psycho-drama is a tale of a woman who is haunted by her repressed past. Trauma, sexuality, and mystery are themes explored in this 7 minute film, with a bit of surrealism added, to increase the dreamy and nightmarish atmosphere. Sex, Trauma & Violence is a commissioned piece of work for Blackberry Digital Cinema, a new Asian short film initiative.

About Brian Gothong Tan
Brian Gothong Tan is one of the most exciting and prolific multimedia artists to emerge from Singapore in recent years. A graduate in Fine Arts, Multimedia and Animation at the California Institute of Arts, his artistry has bagged him many accolades including the “Best Use of Multimedia” prize in the 2005 Life! Theatre Awards. His first solo exhibition, Heavenly Cakes and Sentimental Flowers, was held in June 2003. He also created Hypersurface, which was featured at the 9th Venice Architectural Biennale in 2004.

Last year, Tan represented Singapore in the cultural segment of the Commonwealth Games at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Federation Square in Melbourne. He was also the youngest artist participating in the Singapore Biennale 2006 with his installation, We Live In A Dangerous World. He recently completed Signs, Omens and Relics of Faith, an interactive multimedia installation as part of the 72-13’s Creatives-in-Residence programme in 2007. A master of many mediums, he was Director of Photography and Chief Editor of Pleasure Factory, an edgy drama screened in Cannes Film Festival 2007 under the Un Certain Regard section.

6–7pm: Screening

	Digital Intermediated Swimming / Lee Hyung-Suk /Korea / 2010 / 5 min / PG Somewhere in the near future. In an old, abandoned film processing laboratory, films float in developing solutions like water weeds. The digital lens swims freely in the solution and breaks into the area of the films. About Lee Hyung-suk Lee Hyung-suk was born in Seoul, South Korea. He is currently studying at Yonsei Graduate School of Communication & Arts. His short film,Templementary was screened for the Wide Angle section in the Pusan International Film Festival in 2001. In 2002, Chapter 2; How to Breathe won the Best Short Film Award at the same festival. Under Construction won the Best Asian Short Film Award at the Bangkok International Film Festival in 2006.
	CH3CH20H / Yin-Ju Chen / 5 min / 2007 / TBA Two memories of alcohol abuse — reconstructed from found sound tracks, and put into a metaphorical image montage.  Two women from different generations talk about their life struggles and how they became alcoholics. About Yin-Ju Chen:  Yin-Ju Chen is a Taiwanese multidisciplinary artist. Since 2004, she has been regularly showing her experimental videos at the Other Cinema program at Artists’ Television Access in San Francisco. Her works also include photo performances, installations, and drawings.
	Mind Dance / Hsu Ya-Ting / Taiwan,USA / 2009 / 27 min / PG Chris, an aged filmmaker, struggles with the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. As reality slips out of his control, Chris’ memories become disorganized and the film itself literally breaks into fragments. About Hsu Ya-Ting Hsu Ya-Ting received a degree from the Film, Video, Animation and New Animation Department, at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2009. For her, making art lies not in creation, but the rediscovery of things that matter. Working within documentary, narrative and experimental films, Ya-Ting embraces all possibilities in breaking the boundaries of how we see the world.
	M / Félix Dufour-Laperrière / Canada / 2009 / 7 min / G Small architectures appear and overlap. Brief nebulas arise, the most complex structures sometimes recalling constellations and other stellar clusters. This abstract film shows the results of a year of visual and technical research, with scanned hand-drawn animations, manipulated and combined, accompanied by an electro-acoustic soundtrack. A texture-based sensory film comprised of alternations between densities, release, tensions and soft falls. About Félix Dufour-Laperrière Félix Dufour-Laperrière studied, lives and works in Montreal. His films have been presented in numerous national and international galleries, museums and festivals. He co-founded the online gallery L’appentis. M is his sixth film. The music for the film was provided by his relative, Gabriel Dufour-Laperriere.
	Gaze and Hear / Nontawat Numbenchapol / 10 min / 2010 / TBA This video art experiments and surveys on a person’s visual and sound perception, which influences their way of life, national integration, and their belief in fact. The video changes the common perception by using a Thai ancient tale narrated by a calm voice, along with strong visuals and sounds. About Nontawat Numbenchapol Nontawat Numbenchapol graduated from Visual Communication Design Department, Faculty of Fine Arts at Rungsit University. After graduation, Nontawat became a movie stills photographer, while continuing to make his own films. In 2010, he established a project called ‘Mobile Lab’, in order to experiment, and find new theories to change the way of human perception of visual and sound. Mobile Lab recently became one of Arts Network Asia (ANA) 2011 grant recipients.

Forum discussion – Experimental Cinema in Singapore’s landscape
8–8:45pm: Forum Discussion (free admission)

An informal discussion with filmmakers and educational practitioners on how experimental filmmaking is being explored today, in schools or institutions, and how it has become the lauded pieces in festivals overseas. Should experimental cinema be encouraged, is there an audience for the genre or is it merely a term for people who cannot classify their own films?

8–9pm: Live performance meets experimental film mixing

Uroboros
Images by Jordan Johari Rais
Music by Under The Velvet Sky
Mixing by Jun

For the first time at The Substation, this will be an experiment in progress. Layered images from different films will be merged, mixed, reconstructed to a live performance from Under The Velvet Sky. A soundscape exploration of sorts combined with classic imagery, treated with new elements, a definite treat for the senses. This piece has been specially created for the Experimental Film Forum, in co-relation to the opening film.

About Under The Velvet Sky
Under The Velvet Sky is a collective of multi-instrumentalists sharing a common passion for musical improvisation aspired by a diverse influence of music from Mozart to the avant-garde. Though the band was actively playing music on their own at home, in studios, at haunted hospitals & houses, it took them quite a while before they came out with a demo CD. In late 2008, they released a concept demo album, The Black Sea Sorcery.

Under The Velvet Sky are JORDAN JOHARI (alto/tenor saxophone, upright bass, synthesizers, piano, violin, & other sounds) REEF (electric/acoustic guitar, bass, drones, & other sounds) DIN MORELLO (drums, & other sounds) FENDI OTHMAN (drums, & other sounds) CAK (bass, electric/acoustic guitar, & other sounds) IMRAN (electric guitar, cornet, pocket trumpet, synthesizers, & electronic soundscapes).

The Experimental Film Forum is presented by The Substation Moving Images, and is supported by the Singapore Film Commission.