30
July
2015
|
00:16
Asia/Singapore

Short film, big award

The team filming near Seletar Reservoir

A team of NUS filmmakers has won second place and a cash prize of $12,000 at the Cathay Motion Picture Awards 2015 for their short film titled Seletar 这一秒,你好不好 (Seletar, How Are You Now?) on 3 July.

Arts and Social Sciences Year 4 students Yeo Zhi Qi and Jeremy Lau, and NUS alumni Filbert Tanuwijaya and Melinda Tan embarked on their first film collaboration ' conceptualising, filming and producing the movie based on the competition theme of "Memories on an 80-hour deadline. The 80-second film, which depicts the poignant tale of two school girls mourning the passing of a close friend, will be screened in Cathay cinemas at a later date.

film award-2

Zhi Qi (in floral dress), Melinda (behind Zhi Qi), Filbert (on Zhi Qi's left) and Jeremy (2nd from right) on stage after receiving their award

The members offered different reasons for venturing into filmmaking. Photography enthusiasts Filbert and Jeremy were attracted to the art of cinematography, while Zhi Qi, who produced and acted in the film, was fascinated with the ability to produce something out of nothing. "All of us have different strengths and we are able to maximise our capabilities when we work together. It was a refreshing experience, said Zhi Qi.

The foursome are no strangers to filmmaking. Jeremy and Zhi Qi have created a horror short film called The Lift, which was recently nominated for Best Editing and Best Sound Editing at the National Youth Film Awards 2015. Separately, Melinda and Zhi Qi have made a short film titled Singer. Later this year, all four of them will once again collaborate to produce another short film.

The team is actively involved with nuSTUDIOS Film Productions, a campus film production house under the NUS Centre For the Arts. Since its inception in 2000, nuSTUDIOS has, under the mentorship of local film veteran Juan Foo, offered students a range of activities and training programmes including masterclasses by industry professionals.

By NUS Centre For the Arts