The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) ( Chinese: 新加坡国际电影节) is the longest-running

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online. Films may be of recent ...

in Singapore, founded in 1987. The 35th Singapore International Film Festival took place from 28 November to 8 December 2024.

History

Originally launched to give local audiences an opportunity to watch

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

and non-commercial films, the festival is now recognized worldwide by

film critics Film criticism is the analysis and evaluation of films and the film medium. In general, film criticism can be divided into two categories: Academic criticism by film scholars, who study the composition of film theory and publish their findin ...

for its focus on Asian filmmakers and promotion of Southeast Asian films. The SGIFF was founded by Geoff Malone and Mill Valley Film Festival board member L. Leland Whitney in 1987. The 24th edition of SGIFF hekd in 2011 faced issues such as poor organisation and financial woes due to lack of sponsorships. Founder Geoffrey Malone also resigned as the chairman of the Board of Directors with Shaw Soo Wei, former Executive Director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, taking over as the chairman. The SGIFF went on a hiatus for the next two years and in 2013, Minister for Communications and Information

Yaacob Ibrahim Yaacob bin Ibrahim ( Jawi: ; born 3 October 1955) is a Singaporean former People's Action Party politician who served as minister-in-charge of Muslim affairs between 2002 and 2018, minister for community development, youth and sports between ...

announced the 25th edition of the SGIFF will be held in 2014 in combination with the Asia TV Forum and Market, Screen Singapore and the Asian Television Awards in a two-week event. For the 33rd edition in 2022, the film ''#LookAtMe'', directed by

Ken Kwek Ken Kwek (born 7 May 1979) is a Singaporean screenwriter, director, playwright and author. His short film compendium, ''Sex.Violence.FamilyValues'', was banned by the Singapore and Malaysian governments in 2012. His first feature film ''Unluc ...

, was originally scheduled to be screened at the SGIFF but was refused classification by Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), which effectively barred the film from being screened in Singapore for "its potential to cause enmity and social division". IMDA,

Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

, and

Ministry of Home Affairs An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the i ...

also stated that the pastor in the film engages "in an act prohibited by his professed religious faiths"; that the depictions of the pastor in the film are "suggestive of a real pastor in Singapore", and the allegations may be "perceived to be offensive, defamatory and contrary to the

Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act The Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act 1990 ("MRHA") is a Singapore sources of Singapore law#Statutes, statute which, according to its long title, provides for the maintenance of religious harmony, for the establishment of a Presidential Cou ...

". However, even with the ban, SGIFF decided to include the film in its advertised line-up, though the film was marked as unavailable for screening. For the 35th edition in 2024, the SGIFF was managed by a new general manager, Jeremy Chua. Local actress

Rebecca Lim Rebecca Lim Hui Ling (born 26 September 1986) is a Singaporean actress and host. Lim has won Best Actress in a Leading Role at the Asian Television Awards and two Best Actress in a Leading Role awards, a Best Supporting Actress award. Lim als ...

was named as SGIFF's first ambassador for the festival. Daniel Hui's film, ''Small Hours Of The Night'', an official selection for the SGIFF was submitted for classification by IMDA for the festival but was refused classification by IMDA in November. The lack of classification for the film resulted it being unable to screen at the SGIFF. SGIFF programme director Thong Kay Wee continued to support the film and list it as an official selection.

Awards

The Silver Screen Awards Competition was introduced in 1991 to encourage advances in Asian film-making standards. Every year, a selection of Asian feature and short films take part in the competition. In 2014, the Southeast Asian Short Film category was introduced, replacing the Singapore Short Film category. The first Southeast Asian Film Lab was introduced in 2015.

References

{{Silver Screen Awards for Best Film Film festivals in Singapore Film festivals established in 1987 1987 establishments in Singapore