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The 18th Singapore International Film Festival Date: 4/5/2005 |
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Singapore - Happening from April 14 to 30, 2005, the 18th Singapore International Film Festival (SIFF) will continue to champion the cinematic medium by featuring more than 300 films from 40 countries worldwide, some of which are award winning entries from various international festivals in 2004 like the Venice International Film Festival, the Sundance Festival, the Berlin International Film Festival and many more. Unique highlights include the Japanese opening and closing animated movies Steam Boy and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence respectively, both of which feature as part of the Asian Anime line-up. This two-week long annual film event also promotes special programs such as Iraq Now! -- Oday Rasheed's asian premiere Underexposure appears as a celebration of the revival of Iraqi film since its hiatus from the early 90s, Tribute to Agnes Varda -- the leading female of French New Wave who pioneered her very own "Vardian" blend of film making techniques and Focus on Vietnam -- a line-up of Vietnamese cinema including the award-winning Buffalo Boy. Also, some of the longest films such as Lav Diaz's 11-hour-over epic Evolution of a Filipino Family as well as Edgar Reitz's almost 12-hour-long Heimet III will be played. ? Not forgetting movies with a music slant, the SIFF 2005 will also showcase five films for band buffs across the board. Details Romeo Must Rock Director Roxlee compiles footage from 1996-2004 that captures his brother Romeo Federicon Lee's forays into music, consisting entirely of various cacophonous and passionate renditions of one song -- "Wild Thing" by Jimi Hendrix. An indie rockumentary cracking an absurd humour on the raucous excesses of a punk rock lifestyle, Romeo Must Rock follows one man's journey in the making of his music. Date: April 17, 2005 Time: 7 pm Venue: Singapore History Museum Bix ? An Interpretation of a Legend An interpretation on the short but significant life of Bix Beiderbecke, an extraordinary trumpet player who lived hard and played even harder before passing on at the age of 28. Shot mostly in Bix's hometown of Daveport, Iowa, director Pupi Avati creates a world of beautiful young men dressed to perfection, posing with vintage automobiles and wandering the halls of theatres and ornate Midwestern homes. With a luscious soundtrack recreating many of Bix's original tunes, this is one must-watch for all jazz lovers. Date: April 24, 2005 Time: 2 pm Venue: Prince 1, Shaw Towers Honey Baby Mika Kaurismaki (one half of the Kaurismaki brothers) blends together the weariness of life on the road with the wondrously delicate elements of music in this tragi-comedic love story. Set in Europe, real-life singer-songwriter Henry Thomas plays Tom, a touring American songwriter who chances upon Natasha, a Russian woman returning home after having gone missing on her wedding day. Both begin travelling together, experiencing the simultaneous personal and political changes around them. The movie's featured songs are performed by Thomas himself while much of the soundtrack was written by Thomas and Nikki Sudden, ex-members of the quirky 70's post-punk band Swell Maps. Date: April 21, 2005 Time: 7 pm Venue: Jade 1, Shaw Towers Chain (Asian Premiere) Beautifully fragile and hauntingly poignant, Chain is set in a generic nowhere land homogenised by corporate culture, where a Japanese businesswoman Tamiko (Miho Nakaido) is sent to America in search of an empty spot to build a theme park while Amanda (Mira Billotte from D.C. band Quix*o*tic and sister of Slant 6?s Christina Billotte) has run away from home and works illegally on the fringes of the urban wasteland, roaming its malls and keeping a video diary to catalogue her restless wandering. With musical contribution from Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Chain is an ambient and evocative rendering of the emptiness of modern life. Date: April 16, 2005 Time: 7 pm Venue: Jade 2, Shaw Towers Post Revolutionary Era (World Premiere) Documented by director Zhang Yang, Post Revolutionary Era is an eulogy to the new Beijing where a whole generation of music lovers live and struggle for their art, some of whom include rock bands surviving in dirt poor rural farm areas and co-existing with their landlords (poor farmers themselves), saving up every yuan to simply rock out. Packed with footages of live shows, poetic explosions and manifesto-like declarations, Zhang?s documentary is a joyous exclamation on the redemptive power of rock and roll. Date: April 15, 2005 Time: 9.15 pm Venue: Singapore History Museum For SIFF ticketing information, please check out www.sistic.com.sg or www.filmfest.org.sg. |
| Source: MTVAsia.com |
