If you’ve been enjoying keeping your distance from local cinemas thanks to Hulu and Netflix, then get excited to remain in the comforts of home by simply heading into the digital realm for the third instalment of the National Gallery’s Painting with Light.
Offered completely online this year, the museum’s trademark film festival will provide Singapore-based viewers unlimited access to a selection of new and award-winning Southeast Asian shows. The best part? Unlike previous editions, this year’s event will be entirely free-of-charge.
Look forward to checking out a thoughtfully curated line-up of 20 short films and full-length features, including seven local premieres, from now till Oct 25. Together, this series of stories explores the tangible and intangible aspects of home within a multitude of contexts while still delving deep into the practice of art.
Tenebrae
First, don’t miss out on the Singapore premiere of both Mekong 2030 and The Mental Traveller by Taiki Sakpisit. The former is an anthology of five Southeast Asian short films that reflect on the future of the Mekong River, while the latter is one that discusses the passing of time and thought patterns through five men who call a psychiatric ward home.
Next, catch Tenebrae by Singaporean film director Nicole Midori Woodford which follows a young girl named Iris and her mother’s last moments in their old home as residents vacate the Pearl Bank Apartments in Singapore before it is demolished.
The Diary of Cattle by David Darmadi and Lidia Afrilita that’s an award-winning number exploring farming is certainly a must-watch as well.
But besides the numerous flicks available for free, audiences should also be excited to get involved in a series of dialogues with participating filmmakers who will discuss their films and artistic practices. They include Taiki Sakpisit, director of The Mental Traveller, Leon Cheo, director of SIN-SFO, and Ismail Basbeth, director of Woo Woo (Or Those Silence That Kills You and Me).
So head on over to the National Gallery’s Painting with Light page to explore all 20 options available. Throwing a festival celebrating movies about art is one thing we know the adored art gallery certainly does well.
The National Gallery’s Painting with Light film festival runs from now till Oct 25. More information available here.
