ARTICLE

An Enchanting Filmic Experience at this Year’s Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA)!

By Flora / 26 Apr 2017 (Wednesday)

Revolving around the theme of “Enchantment”, this year’s Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) returns for another year of boundary-breaking line-up, featuring Singapore artists and ordinary Singaporeans who take the international platform with their ideas and their performances.

SIFA 2017 is a biennale of Singapore expressions with 16 commissions focusing on Singapore artists including two Singapore collaborations with international artists, master filmmaker Lav Diaz from the Philippines and the National Theater Of Korea.

Festival-goers can expect over 90 unique events led by Singapore-based artists and residents of Singapore. The full programme line-up is an exciting spectrum of genres including for the very first time, a focus on filmmaking as performance and a focus on adapting Singapore novels to the live stage. Unlike previous years, The O.P.E.N. and SIFA 2017 will meld together into one continuous festival period spanning four months, allowing participants a seamless participatory experience.

The O.P.E.N and Singapore International Festival of Arts 2017
Date: 28 June - 9 September 2017

(Purchase your tickets here!)

Photo Credit: Akanga Film Asia

For starters, Lizard on the Wall is an interactive, one-of-a-kind event where everyday people are invited to participate in the movie-making process, directed by Singaporean filmmaker K. Rajagopal whose recent film 'A Yellow Bird' received raving reviews in the festival circuit. Audiences are now the actors in the film, where approximately 150 people will be selected to star as wedding guests in this hour-long movie. In addition, you’ll be invited to walk the red carpet at the gala premiere of your very own movie!

Registration is required for information and direction. (Head to the official website for more details)

If you think you are more of a person who excels behind the camera, then don’t miss the rare opportunity to learn from one of the best Southeast Asian filmmakers, Lav Diaz, who will be selecting a few participants to follow him on set to witness and observe this auteur at work on his latest movie ‘Henrico’s Farm’.

Photo Credit: Lav Diaz

The festival wouldn’t be complete without film screenings. Specially curated for SIFA, over 10 films from all over the world such as Hong Sangsoo’s ‘On The Beach at Night Alone’; Aki Kaurismaki’s ‘The Other Side Of Hope’; Geng Jun’s ‘Free And Easy’; and ‘The Laz Diaz Retrospective’ where director Diaz himself will be sharing insights to his films through a retrospective of his favourite scenes.

Other festival highlights include public discussions, open homes, theatre productions and interactive video installations.

Founding Festival Director, Ong Keng Sen links enchantment to each and every one of us making change happen: “Art introduces us to other realities. I hope to discover my ethics not in a culture of fear but in a culture of empathy to difference. The works in the SIFA 2017 ENCHANTMENT edition gesture us away from cynicism to laughter, to wit, to compassion and to generosity.”

SIFA 2017 The Singapore International Festival Of Arts SIFA 17 K. Rajagopal

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An Enchanting Filmic Experience at this Year’s Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA)!