In 2006, my brilliant wife Yen Yen and I made a feature film, Singapore Dreaming which has played at numerous festivals, been sold to multiple territories worldwide, and has also been screened at the Brooklyn Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution.
SYNOPSIS
Disappointed by his failed dreams, Loh Poh Huat visits his frustrations on his family. So when he wins the lottery, everyone believes the money will deliver them from their struggles. However, Loh dies abruptly and his elaborate and surreal Taoist funeral pitches the family into a battle where the stakes are the very meaning of life itself. Singapore Dreaming is a poignant yet darkly humorous story which follows the lives of six individuals as they navigate the rapidly changing conditions experienced in today’s modern South-East Asian cities.
PRAISE FOR SINGAPORE DREAMING
“It is life in its reality.”
– President S.R. Nathan, President of the Republic of Singapore
”…a delightful story of family ties, status anxieties and a rapidly changing metropolis. Boasting an ensemble cast of the highest order, this comedy of errors recalls the early films of Ang Lee and the work of Taiwanese director Edward Yang.”
– San Francisco Film Society
★★★★
“…the best movie (Singapore) has produced in a decade.
… a beautiful tale about Singaporean family life that is almost flawless in its verisimilitude. …”
– Neil Humphreys, TODAY
“Funny, moving, intelligent and true. The best Singapore movie I’ve seen.”
– Ivan Heng
★★★★
Movie of the Year
– MovieXpress.com
★★★★
“ one of Singapore’s best films ever.”
– FiRST, Singapore’s top film magazine
★★★★★
“The film guarantees a lot of laughs as well as deeper, meaningful messages on love, life and relationships”
– ChannelNewsAsia.com
“I’ve finally seen a Singapore film that is genuinely moving, and I’m not dreaming”
– Hong Minghua, columnist, Lianhe Zaobao
★★★★
“…realistic and moving”
– Shin Min Daily
“Radiantly honest”
– Catherine Lim
★★★★
“A terrific film… A must watch”
– MovieXclusive.com
“…a graceful satire about Western capitalism in the East.”
– Variety
- Montblanc Screenwriters Award at the 54th San Sebastian International Film Festival
- Best Asian Film Award at the 20th Tokyo International Film Festival
- Audience Award for Narrative Feature at the 30th Asian-American International Film Festival
- Best Screenplay, Inaugural Asian Film Archive Young Jury Awards
Nominations include: the Altadis New Directors Award (San Sebastian International Film Festival), the Most Promising Director Award (Vilnius International Film Festival), the Camera Novo Award (Belgium Cinema Novo Film Festival), the Most Promising New Director Award (Vilnius International Film Festival)
Festivals include the aforementioned as well as the Taiwan Women Make Waves Festival, the San Francisco International Film Festival, the Philadelphia International Film Festival, the Göteborg International Film Festival, the Singapore International Film Festival, the inaugural ASEAN Film Festival and many others