Tisch School of the Arts Asia

A number of Southeast Asian films will screen at the Toronto International Film Festival, which begins today and runs until September 19th. Above is a still from Letter to Uncle Boonmee, an experimental work by world cinema favorite Apichatpong Weerasethakul from Thailand.

These films include:

Adrift (Choi Voi) - Bui Thac Chuyen

At the End of Daybreak - Ho Yuhang

If I Knew What You Said - Dinig Sana Kita

Independencia - Raya Martin

Karaoke - Chris Chong Chan Fui

A Letter to Uncle Boonmee - Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Lumphini 2552 - Tomonari Nishikawa

Nymph (Nang Mai) - Pen-ek Ratanaruang

Ong Bak 2: The Beginning - Tony Jaa, Panna Rittikrai

Phantoms of Nabua - Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Sawasdee Bangkok (Wisit Sasanatieng) - Aditya Assarat, Kongdej Jaturanrasamee, Pen-ek Ratanaruang

Still from We, the real people of Singapore, 2009 / 16min / Ghazi Alqudcy

Singapore – 18 August 2009 – The 5th Singapore Short Film Festival, Singapore’s only international short film festival, returns from 13 – 21 September as an annual film festival. Featuring over 120 short films from all over the world including films from Belgium, France, Sweden, Australia, Russia, Spain and Singapore, the festival offers a spread of award-winning films that are as wide and varied as there are genres in film.

The international short films segment runs from 13 – 18 Sept with in-competition short films and curated programmes. The curated programmes explore dreamy Korean School Days, past animated French Animations to gritty US Documentaries, whimsical Italian Shorts and amazing encounters with shorts from the Encounters Film Festival. While the in-competition short film screenings showcases a more international selection of Midnight Cinema, Animations, Black Comedy, Dysfunctional Relationships and a variety of themes. At the in-competition short film screenings, audiences will vote for their favorite international and local short films and the top three from each category will be given a Voice Award. Many of the in-competition films are award-winners, including short films that have participated at the world’s most celebrated film festivals such as Cannes, Sundance, Berlin, Toronto and Singapore film festivals.

Something cool to look at. Music video for Rymdreglage's song 8-Bit Trip with incredible lego stop-motion. Visit their YouTube page for more information about the band and the video.

Have a film in a major festival? Won an award? Have any other news or information about Tisch Asia student events or happenings? Let us know so we can feature your story on our blog and website.

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From The Guardian Film Blog:

One of the things about Duncan Jones's science fiction film Moon that most delighted critics and audiences alike was the use of good, old-fashioned, miniature model work. In keeping with the movie's updated retro philosophy, the simple shots of models being dragged across the lunar surface were augmented with CGI, which removed wirework, added lens flares, dust plumes, extended the horizon and so forth. All this contributed to imbuing the effects work with a style that they wouldn't have if they'd just employed CGI like so many other films these days.

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From The New York Times:

Last winter, when the art economy was looking especially dark, a group of Manhattan photography dealers got together and decided to put on a spirit-lifting show: “New York Photographs,” a summertime tribute to the greatest city on earth. Thirteen galleries agreed to mount exhibitions — some dedicated to individual artists, some to subjects like sex or music — of which six are currently up. Together they offer a tantalizing series of glimpses, a dreamy tour of the town from the Statue of Liberty to the streets of Spanish Harlem and from the hurly-burly of Times Square to the furtive sexual encounters of the old West Side piers. They are a reminder, for anyone who needs it, of the endless churn of dark and light, innocence and experience that surrounds all of us in the city at every moment.

VALENTINE WILLIE FINE ART
ARTSPACE @ Helutrans, 39 Keppel Road, Tanjong Pagar Distripark
August 5–August 30

Borrowing its title from a book by sociologist Cherian George, who describes Singapore as a climate-controlled city-state of obsessively micromanaged environments, this survey of sixteen contemporary Singaporean artists coincides uneasily with the jubilant celebrations for the country’s National Day on August 9. Mirroring the global economic predicament, many of the works have an air of sheepish self-defeat about them and offer visitors an ironic tour of the Garden City’s neuroses and defeated certainties as it faces a depressed future.

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From the Hollywood Reporter:

MPAA chief sees 'major victory' for film industry

By Georg Szalai and Patrick Frater

Aug 12, 2009
Hollywood seems to get a chance to broaden and ease access to the big Chinese market.

The World Trade Organization released a report Wednesday that in key points agreed with a U.S. complaint that China is forcing U.S. companies to sell copyright-protected products, such as films, music and books, through state-run or -approved businesses.

Chinese restrictions on the sale of such U.S. products violate global commerce rules, the WTO report said.

The WTO ruling came in June, and its result leaked, but the official report came out only Wednesday.

"The United States film industry won a major victory in its years-long battle to open the Chinese movie market today," MPAA chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said. "The decision points a way forward that will begin to even the playing field in this important market."

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