Source: Cathay Organisation
Singapore, 22 May 2013 – Submission for the Cathay Motion Picture Awards 2013 ended at 6:00pm on 21 May 2013 with a record 109 short film entries received. In its second year, Cathay Organisation’s annual short film competition saw a robust 120% increase in participation, compared to the 49 entries received in 2012.
Participation rate more than doubled for second installation of annual short film competition
The overwhelming enthusiasm and anticipation among this year’s participants was evident as the Cathay Motion Picture Awards 2013 committee conducted a competition briefing to a fully-packed theatre hall on Saturday, 18 May 2013, at The Cathay Cineplex. Following the briefing, the Awards committee flagged off all teams at 12:00 noon to commence the competition.
In conjunction with Cathay Organisation’s 78th Anniversary this year, the main criterion of the competition was to submit a motion picture of 78 seconds that was created within the production deadline of 78 hours. Participants also had to adhere to the competition theme that was unveiled during the briefing session – “Tomorrow”.
From 23 to 30 May 2013, all 109 entries will be subjected to a stringent shortlisting process by a committee consisting of six industry professionals, including Zaihirat Banu, CEO of Oak3Films, Anthony Chen, Director at Zhao Wei Films, and Isnor Dzulkarnain Jafaar, Founder of Singapore Malay Film Society, to select the top 15 finalists.
Participation rate more than doubled for second installation of annual short film competition
Following that, the 15 shortlisted motion pictures will undergo rigorous evaluation by a panel of judges from 3 to 23 June 2013. The top three winners will be determined solely by the judges on three criteria – originality, production quality and entertainment value. There will also be a Viewer’s Choice award which will be given to the motion picture with the highest number of public votes garnered via the official competition website (www.cmpa.com.sg) during the same period.
Realising dreams and the biggest cash prize in a local film competition
Cathay Motion Picture Awards is an annual short film competition created to fulfill Cathay Organisation’s commitment towards the development of Singapore’s film industry. Utilising its assets in cinema exhibition as the platform for aspiring filmmakers to showcase their talent, Cathay pioneers the path as the first and only movie exhibitor in Singapore to organise a short film competition.To push the competition to greater heights, Cathay Organisation has invited esteemed members of the local film industry to sit on the judges’ panel for Cathay Motion Picture Awards 2013, namely-:
1. Jack Neo, Founder/CEO/Director of J Team Productions
2. Philip Cheah, Film Critic
3. Lee Thean-jeen, Writer-Director
4. Stuart McAra, Executive Producer for Industrial, Light & Magic
5. Boon Chan, The Straits Times Life! Media Correspondent
6. Nicholas Yong, Managing Director of United International Pictures, Singapore & Malaysia
The winner of the Best Motion Picture will take home $15,000 in cash – the largest cash prize for a filmmaking competition in Singapore, while the first and second runners-up will win $8,000 and $5,000 cash respectively. All participants from the top three winners and the Viewers’ Choice award will receive an exclusive Cathay VIP card worth more than $4,000. With the card, each member of the team will be able to watch free movies at Cathay Cineplexes for a year. These winning entries will also be screened on Cathay Cineplexes’ circuit for a period of four weeks in 2014 – helping to realise the aspiring filmmakers’ dreams of watching their own productions on the silver screen.
The four winners – Best Motion Picture, First Runner-Up, Second Runner-Up and Viewers’ Choice award – will be announced at an awards ceremony on 18 July 2013, which is also Cathay’s anniversary date.
For more details on Cathay Motion Picture Awards 2013, please visit the website www.cmpa.com.sg or join the Cathay Lifestyle Facebook page for news and updates.