TELL YOUR S'PORE STORY THROUGH FILM

Calling all aspiring film-makers with a love for Singapore! Are you up to the challenge of creating a film that expresses what you love about Singapore in three minutes or less?

That is the question posed by the organisers of the nationwide short film competition called ciNE65 to all local and overseas Singaporeans, as well as non-Singaporeans residing here.

In an announcement on 12 Jul, the central coordinating agency for National Education (NE) - Nexus - unveiled that the competition opens this month and culminates in mid-November with an award ceremony. The closing date for submission of entries is 30 Sep.

Explaining the rationale for using film as a medium of choice for narration, Director Nexus Colonel (COL) Kelvin Koh said: "We hope to leverage on the vibrant film scene in Singapore for budding talents to share and reflect on what the country means to them."

Themed ciNE65, this competition calls for participants to depict anything and everything they see and feel about Singapore through film. The word "cine" means film and the number "65" connotes all things Singaporean, ranging from the year of independence in 1965 to the country's international dialling code (+65).

In addition, participants with an interest in developing their potential in movie-making can look forward to picking up tips and techniques from workshops and field trips organised in the course of the competition.

For instance, there will be a workshop that introduces different aspects of film-making, as well as a field trip to film production companies. Both events will be held near the end of this month.

Besides acquiring skills through such organised activities, tech-savvy participants can also watch online videos produced by mentors of ciNE65, who will share their relevant industry experiences on topics such as story development. These videos can be found on ciNE65's official website www.ciNE65.sg.

The competition will be judged by film industry luminaries which include Fly Entertainment chief executive officer Irene Ang and Homerun Asia founder Daniel Yun.

Entries will be judged based on criteria such as relevance to the theme, ability to convey ideas and emotive impact.

Ms Ang noted that there are many interesting things in the city to be featured in a film and gave an example of the pleasant drive from her shops in Chinatown back home, which is filled with eventful sights and scenes that make Singapore a beautiful country.

She added: "What I look forward to is people of various film-making standards coming forward with the sincerity and a true voice of who they are, and what they think Singapore is."

Mr Yun sees this competition as an avenue to discover and groom local film-making talents.

Citing the example of how local singers and songwriters have emerged to prominence in Asia, he pointed out that it is now the film-makers' turn to shine.

He said: "For the last 10 years and in the next 10 years, we are on an ongoing journey to uncover Singapore talents in telling stories. Such initiatives will encourage young people to tell their stories in honest yet interesting manners."

There are two categories for participation in this competition: one for full-time students, the other for the general public.

The award categories include "jury's choice" and "audience's choice", where winners will be determined by a professional judging panel and by votes from the public respectively.

For "jury's choice", the top prize of the student category comprises $3,000 cash , a learning trip, $2,999 worth of Sony camera equipment and a trophy. The best overall film from the open category will get $3,000 cash, $9,800 worth of Sony camera equipment and a trophy.

For "audience's choice", prizes for favourite films from both categories include $1,000 cash and $2,999 worth of Sony camera equipment.

In addition, selected winning films will be submitted for overseas film festivals and competitions. There will also be awards given out for outstanding performance in the technical aspects, such as screenplay, sound design and cinematography.

For more details on the competition, visit www.ciNE65.sg and be a fan of ciNE65 at www.facebook.com/ciNE65.