SGIFF 2025 draws to a close with 44 sold-out screenings and 33% increase in tickets sold

The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), part of the Singapore Media Festival 2025 hosted by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), closed its 36th edition on a historic high on 7 December, setting a new festival record with 44 sold-out screenings. For the third consecutive year, SGIFF achieved a new box office record, with ticket sales rising 33% from 2024. This year, the festival also saw its strongest turnout with a 28.7% increase in participation compared to last year, marking the festival’s strongest … Continue reading SGIFF 2025 draws to a close with 44 sold-out screenings and 33% increase in tickets sold

SGIFF 2025: SGIFilmFeud and #SaveOurCinemas bring up urgent conversation on the state and future of cinema

In the era of the streaming wars and the grief from closure of major cinemas, this year’s Singapore International Film Festival raised the pertinent question of the now and future state of communal film culture in Singapore across two panel discussions. Though framed differently, one gamified and playful, the other urgent and elegiac, SGIFilmFeud and #SaveOurCinemas, converged and circled the anxieties, structural challenges, and diminishing … Continue reading SGIFF 2025: SGIFilmFeud and #SaveOurCinemas bring up urgent conversation on the state and future of cinema

SGIFF announces winners of the 2025 Silver Screen Awards, honouring excellence across Asian cinema

In a night shimmering with cinematic daring, the 36th Singapore International Film Festival unveiled the winners of its 2025 Silver Screen Awards, an event that once again affirmed Southeast Asia as one of the world’s most vibrant storytelling regions brimming with potential. First introduced in 1991 as the pioneering international competition devoted to Asian cinema, the Silver Screen Awards have long stood as a beacon … Continue reading SGIFF announces winners of the 2025 Silver Screen Awards, honouring excellence across Asian cinema

Reviving Jit Murad’s Lost Play: An Interview with director Zahim Albakri, and cast members Ghafir Akbar and Sabrina Hassan of ‘ENTOURAGE – Murder Amongst Friends’

It begins, unexpectedly, with a laugh. “I actually think it’s one of his most well-crafted plays,” says Dato’ Zahim Albakri, the director of ENTOURAGE – Murder Amongst Friends, and one of the late Jit Murad’s closest collaborators. “Some of the writing is his best and really quite fabulous. It’s different from his other plays, but it’s definitely him; you recognise the writing.” Then, almost in … Continue reading Reviving Jit Murad’s Lost Play: An Interview with director Zahim Albakri, and cast members Ghafir Akbar and Sabrina Hassan of ‘ENTOURAGE – Murder Amongst Friends’

SGIFF 2025: An Interview with ‘Silent Friend’ director ldikó Enyedi and star Tony Leung

For Hungarian filmmaker Ildikó Enyedi, her new work Silent Friend began as an instinct, an idea circling her for decades about how humans seek connection with the natural world. “I wrote this script very instinctively,” she says. “These topics were interesting to me for decades.” The film moves across three vastly different eras—1908, 1972, and 2020—each anchored by a centuries-old ginkgo tree and characters whose … Continue reading SGIFF 2025: An Interview with ‘Silent Friend’ director ldikó Enyedi and star Tony Leung

SGIFF 2025: An Interview with Girl 女孩 director Shu Qi, and stars Bai Xiao-Ying and 9m88

When Girl opened the 2025 Singapore International Film Festival at Marina Bay Sands, the theatre was filled to its edges, with filmmakers, industry regulars, influencers, and longtime fans gathered to witness one of Asia’s most beloved stars step into a bold new role. For Shu Qi, who has spent decades defining onscreen charisma, the packed house represented both the reputation she’d built up over the … Continue reading SGIFF 2025: An Interview with Girl 女孩 director Shu Qi, and stars Bai Xiao-Ying and 9m88

da:ns focus: An Interview with Nederlands Dans Theater artistic director Emily Molnar on rigour, collaboration and the joy of platforming new voices

Ten years on from their last tour here, Nederlands Dans Theater 2 (NDT 2) returns to the Esplanade this season with a trio of works that Artistic Director Emily Molnar describes as “a programme that truly shows where we’re at.” For Molnar, bringing NDT 2 back to Singapore is “an absolute pleasure,” and the triple bill, featuring works by Alexander Ekman, Botis Seva, and Marcos … Continue reading da:ns focus: An Interview with Nederlands Dans Theater artistic director Emily Molnar on rigour, collaboration and the joy of platforming new voices

Film: An Interview with SGIFF General Manager Jeremy Chua and Programme Director Thong Kay Wee on the power and future of film

In a cultural landscape obsessed with certainties, guarantees, and KPIs, the Singapore International Film Festival is, in many ways, an act of defiance. Not loud, not rebellious, but simply the act of being utterly committed to the art of cinema and its continuity. As the festival prepares for its 36th edition, running for two weeks from 26th November to 7th December, the people behind it … Continue reading Film: An Interview with SGIFF General Manager Jeremy Chua and Programme Director Thong Kay Wee on the power and future of film

Kalaa Utsavam 2025: An Interview with directors Subramanian Ganesh and Karthikeyan Somasundaram on Agam Theatre Lab’s original work ‘Mission Malligapoo’

In 1942, Singapore was under the shadow of the Japanese Occupation. Amid fear, scarcity, and uncertainty, ordinary people performed extraordinary acts of courage. Now, Agam Theatre brings those untold stories to life in Mission Malligapoo, a riotous dark comedy that celebrates resilience, multiculturalism, and love in all its forms. Presented as part of the Esplanade’s Kalaa Utsavam – Indian Festival of Arts, and directed by … Continue reading Kalaa Utsavam 2025: An Interview with directors Subramanian Ganesh and Karthikeyan Somasundaram on Agam Theatre Lab’s original work ‘Mission Malligapoo’

Kalaa Utsavam 2025: An Interview with Pooja Nansi on what it takes to make spaces divine

We Make Spaces Divine ft. Dey began as a quiet idea in the wake of a pandemic and grew into a riot of sound, poetry, and cinematic memory. For poet and performer Pooja Nansi, the work was a way to finally launch a collection that had been waiting in the wings. “So much of my practice is performance,” she reflects. “I’d already performed every collection … Continue reading Kalaa Utsavam 2025: An Interview with Pooja Nansi on what it takes to make spaces divine