Anthony Chen (born 18 April 1984) is a

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

an film director, screenwriter and film producer. He is known for directing the feature films ''

Ilo Ilo ''Ilo Ilo'' (; literally: "Mom and Dad Are Not Home") is a 2013 Singaporean drama film. The debut feature of director Anthony Chen, the film features an international cast, including Singaporean actor Chen Tianwen, Malaysian actress Yeo Yann ...

'' (2013) and ''

Wet Season The wet season (sometimes called the rainy season or monsoon season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Generally, the season lasts at least one month. The term ''green season'' is also sometimes used a ...

'' (2019). His debut feature film, ''

,'' won the

Camera d'Or A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...

at the

2013 Cannes Film Festival The 66th Cannes Film Festival took place from 15 to 26 May 2013. American filmmaker Steven Spielberg was the Jury President for the main competition. French actress Audrey Tautou hosted the opening and closing ceremonies. The French film ''Blu ...

, making him the first and only Singaporean to have been awarded at

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

. The film also earned him the Award for Achievement in Directing at the 2013 Asia Pacific Screen Awards, as well as the Golden Horse Award for Best Narrative Feature,

Best New Director ''Best New Director'' was an award given by the New York Film Critics Circle from its first inception in 1989 until discontinuing in 1996. There was no award in 1993. 1980s 1989 *Kenneth Branagh – ''Henry V'' **Runners-up: Steve Kloves – '' ...

and

Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...

. In June 2023, Chen was invited to become a member of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...

Early life

Chen was born 18 April 1984, to Bernard and Joan Tai. Interested in film from a young age, Chen attended Nan Hua Primary School and The Chinese High School. He then attended the School of Film and Media Studies at

Ngee Ann Polytechnic Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP, ) is a post-secondary education institution and statutory board under the purview of the Ministry of Education in Singapore. Established in 1963 by the Ngee Ann Kongsi, NP is renowned for its business programmes and ...

. His graduating film from Ngee Ann Polytechnic, ''G-23'' (2005), was screened in various international film festivals and won awards in France, Korea and Belgium.

Career

Short films

In 2007 and 2008, Chen went on to direct ''Ah Ma'' and ''Haze'' respectively. Both attracted favourable criticism. ''Ah Ma'' was awarded a Special Mention in the short film competition at the prestigious

, making it the first Singaporean film to win an award at the festival. Following his mandatory conscription in the army, Chen was admitted to the

National Film and Television School The National Film and Television School (NFTS) is a film, television and games school established in 1971 and based at Beaconsfield Studios in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England. It is featured in the 2024 ranking by ''The Hollywood Repo ...

(NFTS) in the United Kingdom. Graduating in 2010, two of his short films, ''Distance'' and ''Lighthouse'', were released that year. These were followed up with ''Karang Guni'' (2012) and ''Homesick'' (2013). ''The Break Away'' (2021) is Chen's short film contribution to the anthology '' The Year Of The Everlasting Storm'', selected at the

2021 Cannes Film Festival The 74th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 6 to 17 July 2021, after having been originally scheduled from 11 to 22 May 2021. American filmmaker Spike Lee was invited to be the president of the jury for the main competition for the fes ...

Feature films

'', Chen's first feature film, was released on 29 August 2013 in Singapore theatres. Chen served as director, producer, and writer. According to Chen, the film was inspired by a real life maid who worked for Chen's family when he was a child. After its world debut at the 2013

, ''Ilo Ilo'' received a 15-minute long "standing ovation" and earned Chen the coveted

. Singapore Prime Minister

Lee Hsien Loong Lee Hsien Loong (born 10 February 1952) is a Singaporean politician and former military officer who served as the third Prime Minister of Singapore, prime minister of Singapore from 2004 to 2024, thereafter serving as a Senior Minister of S ...

noted Chen's achievement, and congratulated him and the film's cast on Facebook. On 19 October 2013, ''Ilo Ilo'' went on to win the

Sutherland Trophy The Sutherland Trophy was created in 1958 by the British Film Institute (BFI) as an annual award for "the maker of the most original and imaginative irst or secondfeature film introduced at the National Film Theatre during the year".''1963 Londo ...

for the Best First Film at the

London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the British Film Institute, BFI estim ...

. (The same night, one of Chen's tutors at NFTS, Pawel Pawlikowski, won the Best Film Award for ''Ida''). With ''Ilo Ilo'', Anthony Chen also made history by becoming the first Singaporean to win Best Narrative Feature and

at the 50th Golden Horse Awards, while Yeo Yann Yann won Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film. For ''Ilo Ilo'', Chen was named as one of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' magazine's annual "10 Directors to Watch". In September 2015, it was announced that ''Distance'', an "omnibus film" for which Chen served as executive producer and writer, will open the 2015

Golden Horse Film Festival The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival and Taipei Golden Horse Awards () are a film festival and associated awards ceremony held annually in Taiwan. The festival and ceremony were founded in 1962 by the Government Information Office of the Republ ...

in Taiwan. ''Distance'' consists of segments by the three directors Xin Yukun, Tan Shijie and Sivaroj Kongsakul, from China, Singapore and Thailand respectively. In spring 2018, Chen began production on his second feature film, ''

'', which reunites him with ''

'' stars Yeo Yann Yann and Koh Jia Ler. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and went on to be nominated for 6 Golden Horse Awards, with Yeo Yann Yann winning her second Golden Horse, for Best Actress. In February 2022, Chen completed his first Chinese feature film, '' The Breaking Ice''. ''The Breaking Ice'' was written and directed by Chen, and stars Zhou Dongyu,

Liu Haoran Liu Yuan (born 10 October 1997), known professionally as Liu Haoran, also known as Turbo Liu, is a Chinese actor. Liu haoran 18th on ''Forbes'' Forbes China Celebrity 100, China Celebrity 100 list in 2020, 19th in 2019, and 89th in 2017. In 2021 ...

, and Qu Chuxiao. According to ''Variety'', this film follows the blossoming relationship among three young adults in their twenties, set over a short few days in the winter snow. The film premiered at the

2023 Cannes Film Festival The 76th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 16 to 27 May 2023. Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund served as jury president. With the French film ''Anatomy of a Fall'' winning the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, Justine Triet became ...

in the

Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...

section. In March 2022, Chen is set to direct ''Secret Daughter'' starring

Priyanka Chopra Jonas Priyanka Chopra Jonas (; born 18 July 1982) is an Indian actress and producer. The winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, Chopra is India's highest-paid actress and has received List of awards and nominations received by Priyanka Chopra, nume ...

and

Sienna Miller Sienna Rose Diana Miller (born 28 December 1981) is an American-British actress. Born in New York City and raised in London, she began her career as a photography model, appearing in the pages of Italian '' Vogue'' and for the 2003 Pirelli Cale ...

. Chen's first English-language feature, '' Drift'', premiered at the

2023 Sundance Film Festival The 2023 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to 29, 2023. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 7, 2022. Films U.S. Dramatic Competition * '' The Accidental Getaway Driver'', directed by Sing J. Lee ...

. It was shot in Greece and stars

Cynthia Erivo Cynthia Chinasaokwu Onyedinmanasu Amarachukwu Owezuke Echimino Erivo ( ; born 8 January 1987) is a British actress and singer. Known for her work on both stage and screen, she is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Cynt ...

and

Alia Shawkat Alia Martine Shawkat ( ; born April 18, 1989) is an American actress. She is known for her performances as Maeby Fünke in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox/Netflix television sitcom ''Arrested Development'' (2003–2006; 2013–2019), Dory Sief ...

Personal life

2009 Chen married Rachel Yan, whom he met in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 2007. Their son was born in August 2018. Chen and his family have been based in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

since August 2022.

Favourite films

In 2022, Chen participated in the ''

Sight & Sound ''Sight and Sound'' (formerly written ''Sight & Sound'') is a monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). Since 1952, it has conducted the well-known decennial ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time. ...

'' film polls of that year. It is held every ten years to select the greatest films of all time, by asking contemporary directors to select ten films of their choice. Chen selections were: * '' A Brighter Summer Day '' (1991) * ''

The 400 Blows ''The 400 Blows'' () is a 1959 French Coming-of-age film, coming-of-age Drama (film and television), drama film, and the directorial debut of François Truffaut, who also co-wrote the film. Shot in the anamorphic format List of anamorphic forma ...

'' (1959) * ''

Tokyo Story is a 1953 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and starring Chishū Ryū and Chieko Higashiyama, about an aging couple who travel to Tokyo to visit their grown children. Upon release, it did not immediately gain international reco ...

'' (1953) * ''

Citizen Kane ''Citizen Kane'' is a 1941 American Drama (film and television), drama film directed by, produced by and starring Orson Welles and co-written by Welles and Herman J. Mankiewicz. It was Welles's List of directorial debuts, first feature film. ...

'' (1941) * ''

Mirror A mirror, also known as a looking glass, is an object that Reflection (physics), reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror forms an image of whatever is in front of it, which is then focused through the lens of the eye or a camera ...

'' (1975) * ''

Close-up A close-up or closeup in filmmaking, television production A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, s ...

'' (1989) * '' Kes'' (1969) * ''

In the Mood for Love ''In the Mood for Love'' () is a 2000 romantic drama film written, directed, and produced by Wong Kar-wai. A co-production between Hong Kong and France, the film follows a man ( Tony Leung) and a woman ( Maggie Cheung) in 1962 who discover tha ...

'' (2000) * ''

Pather Panchali (, ) is a 1955 Indian Bengali language, Bengali-language Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Satyajit Ray in his directorial debut. It is an adaptation of Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay's 1929 Bengali Pather Panchali ...

'' (1955) * ''

Burning Combustion, or burning, is a high-temperature exothermic redox chemical reaction between a fuel (the reductant) and an oxidant, usually atmospheric oxygen, that produces oxidized, often gaseous products, in a mixture termed as smoke. Combust ...

'' (2018)

Filmography

As director

As producer

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Anthony 1984 births Living people Singaporean expatriates in the United Kingdom Singaporean film directors Singaporean screenwriters Singaporean film producers Singaporean people of Chinese descent Hwa Chong Institution alumni Ngee Ann Polytechnic alumni Alumni of the National Film and Television School Directors of Caméra d'Or winners Asia Pacific Screen Award winners Singaporean expatriates in Hong Kong