15 Films you cannot miss at the 7th Singapore Chinese Film Festival

By Asian Film Festival on April 2, 2019 • ( Leave a comment )

We present a list of fifteen films you shouldn’t miss at the 7th Singapore Chinese Film Festival which will take place from April 18th – 28th, in Singapore.

14 Apples by Midi Z – Taiwan | 2018 – 84 min | Documentary

Shin-hong suﬀers from insomnia and encounters many problems in his life. His mother seeks advice from a fortune-teller. The fortune-teller asks Shin-hong to get fourteen apples. He should then take them to a temple in the rural area in central Myanmar and live as a monk for fourteen days, eating an apple a day. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

Schedule:
April 23rd | Tuesday | The Arts House | 7:30 pm

Trailer:

G Affairs by Lee Cheuk Pan – Hong Kong | 2018 – 105 min. | Fiction

The discovery of a human head ties a student, a cellist, an autistic teenager, a police ofcer, a prostitute, a teacher and a dog together in this ensemble mystery, an award winning project from the Third Edition of Create Hong Kong’s First Film Initiative. The directorial debut of long-time assistant director and Fresh Wave Film Festival alumnus Lee Cheuk-Pan is a multilayered, Rashomon-esque thriller that examines the current state of Hong Kong society through a gruesome murder: a twisted thrill ride that will keep audiences guessing to the very end. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 2018 Hong Kong Asian Film Festival Closing Film
– 38th Hong Kong Film Awards：Nominated for Best New Director, Best New Actor, Best Supporting Actress.

Schedule:
April 20th | Saturday | Golden Village Suntec | 7:00 pm

Trailer:

Girls Always Happy by Yang Mingming – China | 2018 – 117 min. | Fiction

Girls Always Happy portrays a single mother who lives with her daughter in a Beijing hutong. Looking at the contemporary urban life with a novel and often times satirical perspective, the flm represents the spectacle of mutual repulsion, hatred, and harm between a single mother and her daughter; and yet from their despair rises the power of tender love. The complexity indicates the unique observation on female relationships by director Yang Mingming, who also plays the leading role of the daughter. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 42nd Hong Kong International Film Festival: Firebird Award, FIPRESCI Award
– 20th Seoul International Women’s Film Festival: Best Director

Schedule:
April 20th | Saturday | Golden Village Suntec | 1:00 pm

Trailer:

In Character by Tracey Dong – China | 2017 – 74 min. | Documentary

Ye Jing, a director with a real Cultural Revolution complex, attempts to carry 13 young actors back to the era of the Cultural Revolution by taking them to a frearms factory in a village in Sichuan without the possibility of having any contact to the outside world – just like an anthropological experiment. These 13 young actors must wear clothes and listen to music from this period every day. When one of the actors asks whether he may leave, a great struggle ensues. It seems like that these actors have gone through some quite astonishing changes during their time together. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 12th FIRST International Film Festival: Nominated for Best Documentary

Schedule:
April 20th | Saturday | The Arts House | 2:30 pm

Trailer:

Long Time No Sea by Heather Tsui – Taiwan | 2018 – 96 min. | Fiction

Ma Na Wei lives with his grandma in Lanyu. His greatest hope is to be reunited with his father who works in Taiwan. His teacher, Yu Zhong-Xun, sees the National Aboriginal Dance Competition as a chance to be transferred back to Taiwan. As Yu trains the students, he discovers Ma’s talent. However, there is a big obstacle: the children don’t want to wear their traditional thongs on stage. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– The 55th Golden Horse Awards: Best New Performer

Schedule:
April 21st | Sunday | Golden Village Suntec | 4:30 pm

Trailer:

Meili by Zhou Zhou – China | 2018 – 88 min. | Fiction

Abandoned by her parents, Meili was raised by her elder sister, who is infertile. Meili is set up and raped by her brother-in-law before giving birth to a daughter in secret. Meili later runs away with her lover, but soon her lover abandons her and her sister, a victim of domestic violence, comes to her for help. When her brother-in-law finds her, Meili resigns herself to the dire reality. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 12th FIRST International Film Festival: Best Actress, nominated for Best Film

Schedule:
April 23rd | Tuesday | Golden Village Suntec | 7:15 pm

Trailer:

Still Human by Oliver Chan Siu Kuen – Hong Kong | 2018 – 112 min. | Fiction

A paralysed and hopeless divorcé, Cheong-wing is in need of a caretaker. He meets his new live-in Filipino domestic helper, Evelyn, who has put her dream on hold in order to come to Hong Kong for the sake of earning a living. Living under the same roof, these two strangers develop an unlikely relationship. As they get to learn more about each other, they also rediscover themselves – Cheongwing begins to reconnect with his estranged son; whereas Evelyn’s dream of being a photographer is reignited. Together, they help each other through ups and downs, twists and turns, love and loss and experience the diﬀerent seasons of life. Just when they think they have lost all hope, little do they know, life still has a lot to oﬀer. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 25th Hong Kong Film Critic Society Awards: Best Screenplay, Best Actor
– 38th Hong Kong Film Awards：Nominated for 8 Awards including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress

Trailer:

Ten Years by Kwok Zune, Wong Fei-Pang, Jevons Au, Chow Kwun-Wai, Ng Ka-Leun
Hong Kong | 2015 – 104 min. | Fiction

Ten Years is a collection of fve short stories; constituting a prophecy and a fable for Hong Kong. All the stories are independent, yet at the same time intricately related to one another. Through the flms, fve of Hong Kong’s young directors invite the audience to ponder over the most central issues concerning Hong Kong and reﬂect upon the present. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 35th Hong Kong Film Awards – Best Film

Schedule:
April 19th | Friday | Golden Village Suntec | 6:40 pm

Trailer:

Ten Years Taiwan by Lekal Sumi, Rina Tsou, Lu Po-Shun, Hsieh Pei-Ju, Lau Kek Huat
Taiwan | 2018 – 108 min. | Fiction

In Ten Years Taiwan, environmental disasters loom as the island’s indigenous people and immigrant workers are systematically exploited. Moreover, the loss of culture and the dropping birth rate have made the islanders escape from the reality at an unprecedented rate. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

Schedule:
April 27th | Saturday | Golden Village Suntec | 9:20 pm

Trailer:

The Lady Improper by Jessey Tsang – Hong Kong | 2019 – 108 min. | Fiction

Siu Man scowls through her job as a gynaecology nurse, while trying to hide her mail-order dildo from her co-workers. Her marriage has fallen apart due to a non-existent sex life. When her father is hospitalized, she is forced to take over the running of his Cha-Chaan-Teng (Hong Kong style diner). How can Siu Man, who’s been forbidden to enter the kitchen since childhood, recreate her father’s signature dishes? Unexpected help comes in the form of Chia-hao, a hunky Paris-trained cordon bleu chef who arouses both her appetite and her desire. She realizes that she must tackle her fear of intimacy head-on. It starts with cooking and pole-dancing lessons. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 38th Hong Kong Film Awards: Nominated for Best Actress

Schedule:
April 26th | Friday | Golden Village Suntec | 7:00 pm

Trailer:

The Moving Tent by Singing Chen – Taiwan | 2018 – 118 min. | Documentary

As a truck drives into a square and a moveable tent is set up audience members enter and hear the faint voices echoing from the cracks in society. As the tent becomes a convergence of the thoughts of those both on stage and oﬀ, we feel the power of resistance that the entire action entails. Tent theatre is a form of theatre occurring in a temporary tent. It originated out of experimental theatre in post-war Japan in the 60s’. “It aims to bring those voices and memories that have been relegated to the bottom of the society into the tents.” Functioning both as observer and participant, the director documents the tent’s movements around Taiwan in the past decade. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 2018 Taiwan International Documentary Festival – Taiwan Competition selected
– 2018 Women Make Waves Film Festival – Taiwan Competition selected

Schedule:
April 22nd | Monday | The Arts House | 7:30 pm

Trailer:

The Scoundrels by Hong Zi-Xuan – Taiwan | 2018 – 105 min. | Fiction

Rui, once a famous basketball player, faces his downfall and works as a street-parking fee collector, who also accepts jobs from a car theft gang. One night, a robber kidnaps Rui when he accidentally spots a seriously injured woman in one of their vehicles. Now the police and the public see Rui as the suspect of the bank robbery, and the girl who could clear his name remains unconscious. How can Rui get himself out of this quagmire? (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

Schedule:
April 24th | Wednesday | Golden Village Suntec | 7:15 pm

Trailer:

Tracey by Jun Li – Hong Kong | 2018 – 114 min. | Fiction

50-year-old Tai-hung appears to share a contented life with his wife Anne. But his humdrum life is turned upside down when he receives a phone call from Bond, telling him that he is married to Tai-hung’s old classmate Ching who has recently passed away. The news triggers Tai-hung’s memories and awakens his deep feelings for Ching long buried in his heart. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 55th Golden Horse Awards: Best Supporting Actor
– 38th Hong Kong Film Awards：Nominated for 9 awards including Best Screenplay, Best New Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress.

Trailer:

Umbrela Diaries: The First Umbrella by James Leong
Hong Kong | 2018 – 120 min. | Documentary

The flm charts the origins of the Umbrella Movement through the eyes of the activists and ordinary people who made it happen. Ranging from the Candle Light Vigil on June 4th and covering the period until September 28th, this documentary puts us at the heart of the action, allowing us to experience the highs and lows of that remarkable summer, when Hong Kong witnessed a “blossoming of democracy”. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 55th Golden Horse Awards: Nominated for Best Documentary

Schedule:
April 20th | Saturday | The Arts House | 4:30 pm

Trailer:

Xiao Mei by Maren Hwang – Taiwan | 2018 – 95 min. | Fiction

This is a story about fnding Xiao Mei. Xiao Mei is missing. The interviews and memories of nine individuals who were all connected to her gradually piece together the puzzle of her life. None of them knows where Xiao Mei has gone, but all they want is for her to be all right, so that everything will be all right.
Featuring the unique voice of Huang Hsin-Yao, director of critically acclaimed The Great Buddha+, Xiao Mei oﬀers a glimpse into a wandering girl’s troubled life. (SG Chinese Film Festival Catalogue 2019)

– 55th Golden Horse Awards: Nominated for Best Cinematography, Best Original Film Score, and Best Original Film Song

Schedule:
April 26th | Friday | Golden Village Suntec | 9:30 pm

Trailer: