Synopsis
HAURA / STORIES ABOUT LOVE by Abdul Nizam (Singapore) Stories About Love is an anthology feature film based on the themes of love, longing and lust featuring three local directors - James Toh, Abdul Nizam and Cheah Chee Kong - and is one of Singapore’s first feature film shot on digital video. The second segment Haura directed by Nizam stars Mark Richmond and Andrea De Cruz as a pair of lovers who meet over a one-night-stand. Soon Haura (De Cruz) finds their relationship taking a darker and irreversible turn as her lover (Richmond) reveals his true nature. Impressionistic and evocative of the unique visual style Nizam established in Datura (1999), the film examines the dichotomy between love and sex, and the sacred and the profane. Intertwined with the central story of the two lovers is the relationship between the flute-playing narrator (local musician George Chua) and his silent father who is obsessed with sexually explicit movies, as well as Haura’s younger sister and her boyfriend. GARIN’S HUMANISM: THE MAKING OF UNCONCEALED POETRY by Abdul Nizam (Indonesia, Singapore) A documentary about the making of A Poet: Unconcealed Poetry, Indonesian master Garin Nugroho’s acclaimed film about Aceh poet Ibrahim Kadir’s 1965 imprisonment after being falsely accused of being a communist. Featuring in-depth interviews with Garin Nugroho and scenes from the film, the documentary was shot during the period following the fall of President Suharto when the streets of Indonesia was engulfed by massive riots and unrest, providing a chilling parallel to the still-fresh horrors of the imprisonments and genocide of 1965-1966. The screening of Garin’s Humanisme: The Making of Unconcealed Poetry will be presented with newly translated English subtitles.