Film Directors Workshop

Recorded in late 2023, I had the privilege to talk to Djinn in a noisy cafe in Sim Lim Square, before she rushed off flying back to LA- hence the aggressive background noise cancelling-sorry. We owe Djinn and all those involved with the Movie, Perth- for pioneering Singapore indie films in 2004, when it was a lot more difficult to write, produce, direct and distribute a feature film. A great person to chat with. Lots to share.

In this episode, we're diving deep into the world of Singaporean filmmaker Djinn Ong, best known for her film Perth. Djinn takes us on a journey through her unconventional path into filmmaking, starting with her work at the Economic Development Board (EDB) to her experiences in the Hong Kong film industry and eventually into directing. From casting actors off the street to balancing the constraints of low-budget filmmaking, Djinn shares candid stories about working with actors like Sunny Pang, working with producer Juan Foo, her passion for telling authentic Singaporean stories, and the challenges of bringing independent films to life. Join us as Djinn reflects on her creative process, the evolving landscape of local cinema, and her thoughts on the future of filmmaking in Singapore and beyond. This episode is a must-listen for aspiring filmmakers and anyone interested in the intricacies of storytelling through film.

[00:00:17] How Djinn found the female lead for Perth

[00:01:56] Casting Sunny Pang

[00:04:28] Creating the Film 'Perth'

[00:05:51] Journey into Film Directing

[00:06:55] Djinn began in early EDB promoting Creative Industries i.e Film

[00:10:34] Writing a paper for the establishment of a Singapore Film Commission

[00:11:31] Djinn tries an Indiana Jones type job

[00:11:47] How Djinn got involved with Yonfan’s Bugis Street

[00:13:20] Transition to the US and Short Films

[00:17:29] Working in HongKong Film Industry

what's the last thing you did, like

[00:18:52] Not directing for a while

[00:19:33] Reflections on Directing and Storytelling

[00:20:53] Balancing Local and Global Storytelling

[00:22:57] Returning Home: Reconnecting with Local Cinema

[00:23:32] Character Development and Inspiration

[00:24:35] The Joys and Struggles of Low-Budget Filmmaking

[00:27:07] What Djinn looks for from a DP

[00:31:02] Casting Authentic Characters

[00:37:27] The Importance of a Good Production Team

[00:41:33] Impactful Small Sequences

[00:42:42] Exploring Global Cinema

[00:43:41] Asian American Productions 

[00:48:16] Challenges in Production

[00:54:46] Directing and Actor Performance

[01:05:22] Encouragement for Independent Filmmakers

I had the pleasure of talking to James Lee late last year, and this long podcast episode is the result. I can't tell you how much I learned in these 1.6 hours. James Lee is such a filmmaking dynamo. He's precise, generous in sharing and loaded with filmmaking stories and anecdotes.  I don't want to swing the overused word 'masterclass" here but  I can’t tell you how much I learned in these 1.6 hours.

James Lee, an esteemed filmmaker originating from Malaysia, made his mark in the world of theater before transitioning seamlessly into the forefront of indie digital video filmmaking.

Proficient in directing, producing, and acting, he has garnered international acclaim with awards at prominent film festivals in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Philippines, and Singapore. James became a focal point at the 9th Deauville Asian Film Festival in France, solidifying his status as a pioneer in digital filmmaking.

Noteworthy accolades include the prestigious Cannes Silver Lion Award in 2016 for his compelling work on "Last Day of School."

James Lee's influence extends beyond the screen, evident in his role as a speaker at TEDxKL in 2015, where he shared valuable insights into the evolving narrative landscape.

FDW is back!!! Huge apologies. But FDW will be back as regular as I can keep this up. A nice slate of new activities planned and new energy an vigour. Let me clear the backlogue first. I was worried that these were recorded some time back that its not relevant coz the subjects have went on to great things BUT I found the conversation still very interesting and even more so with some hindsight. Kindly enjoy Sunny when he just came back from hobnobbing with Forest Whitaker and Tom Hardy on the set of Havoc. 

1. 00:00:00 Just back from shooting in a Gareth Edwards Hollywood movie "Havoc" in UK

2. 00:00:24 How did Sunny Pang get into the industry in 1993

3. 00:03:31 1999 Sunny felt that he wanted to act more than doing ONLY stunts but after a lot of rejection, he became a bouncer in clubs.

4. 00:04:20 Sunny gets casted in 'Perth: The Geylang Massacre"

5. 00:06:19 Working with Lim Kay Tong in 'Perth'

6.  00:10:06 How disappointments affect his career

7.  00:12:47 How Perth was not seen as a commercial success

8.  00:14:04 Working with James Lee - a prominent Malaysian Director/Producer

9. 00:14:20 Working with his Sifu ?Aleelb Said - a HK/Indonesian Martial Arts Master Action Director working in Asia.

10. 00:15:16 Working with James Lee on "Call if you need me"  (2009)

11.  00:17:16 Meeting Timo Tjahjanto the first time for "Night Come for Us"

12.  00:18:07 Meeting "The Raid" Gareth Evans too.

13. 00:18:25  Then "Night Come for us" production stalled during prepro training.

14. 00:18:38 Then he was approached by Timo for "Headshot" since "Night Come for Us" stalled

15. 00:20:37 Screening of "Headshot" in Toronto International Film Festival

16. 00:21:50  Sunny recalls the first day of shoot for "Headshot"

17. 00:24:30 Learning to hustle as an actor

18. 00:26:52 Importance of being independent in getting jobs

19. 00:32:44 On Singapore's potential in the international arena

20. 00:37:13 Shooting for TV in Singapore - everything is too sanitised 

21. 00:41:55 Shooting 'Gareth Evans international action flick "Havoc"

22. 00:43:52 What Forest Whitaker said to him after a take on 'Havoc'

23. 00:45:09 Whats next for Sunny Pang (Nov 21)

24. 00:46:52 Working with different directors

25.  00:49:47 Working on dramatic scenes requiring more focus for Sunny Pang 

26. 00:51:37 Working with Indonesian Directors like Timo and Gareth  

27. 00:52:42 An actor needs to understand the script well before shooting

28. 00:53:49 On rehearsals

29. 00:54:18 Rehearsal Process with Malaysian Director Zahir Omar

30. 00:55:35 Was there lots of rehearsals for 'Havoc'?

31. 00:56:59  Next projects (Nov 21)

32. 01:00:48 His experience working with Anri Okita a Japanese AV star

33. 01:04:47 His take on crying or emotional scenes

34.  01:01:08 On acting, no actinga nd over acting

35. 01:11:19 Sunny Pang on Inspector Han one of his memorable popular roles

36. 01:12:10 Sunny Pang's management style with Ronin Action Group

37. 01:15:23 About the 'Macho Man' in asian cinema

38. 01:22:16 About being open in the industry

39. 01:26:27 How was Craft Services on 'Havoc'?

Li Lin Wee

Director. Storyteller. 

Wee Li Lin (b. 1973) is one of the pioneer female filmmakers in Singapore. Her films have a signature humour, warmth, and whimsy to them. 

Li Lin has made numerous short films, two feature films, as well as several telemovies and commercials. She has won several awards locally and internationally, such as "Best Director" at the Singapore International Film Festival. In 2018, Li Lin was commissioned to direct Singapore’s National Day music video "We are Singapore". It was such a hit that it became the highest trending video on YouTube in Singapore that year.

Li Lin's films have screened at prestigious festivals around the world, such as the Tribeca Film Festival in New York, Short Shorts in Tokyo, the Udine Far East Film Festival in Italy, the Shanghai International Film Festival, the Hawaii International Film Festival, and many others. 

Li Lin did her undergrad at Brown University and her graduate studies at NYU-Tisch Asia where she studied dramatic writing under an IMDA scholarship. She also teaches film-related studies at various tertiary institutions around Singapore on a part-time basis. Li Lin enjoys photography, audio books, and going to the cinema whenever she can.

Yuni Hadi is a film curator and producer specializing in the management of film and media projects. She has spent a large part of her career promoting Singapore and Southeast Asian cinema.

Hadi headed the Singapore International Film Festival in 2009, and 2014-2019 as its Executive Director covering its 25th to 30th edition. In 2017, she co-curated a cross-disciplinary exhibition In the Garden with artist Adeline Kueh, which saw 6 artists respond to physical spaces within the home and its perimeters. In 2013, Hadi published and edited the book Behind the Camera and co-produced the film Ilo Ilo, the first Singapore film to win the Camera d’Or Award at the 66th Cannes Film Festival and Best Feature Film at 50th Golden Horse Awards.

Hadi was awarded the Eisenhower Fellowship and the United Technologies Corporation Fellowship in 2016. In 2015, Hadi received the Honorary Award from the Singapore Short Film Awards in recognition for her contribution to the film industry. She was named one of Female Magazine’s “50 Most Inspiring Women” in 2010 and recognised as one of the Great Women of Our Time by Women's Weekly in 2014.

She was formerly Co-director at Objectifs Centre for Photography & Filmmaking and Programme Manager at The Substation Centre for the Arts, where she currently serves on the boards of.

Don Aravind has been consistently been straddling between film and television with integral relationships of both mediums, finding a balance that fuels his creative oeuvre. His award winning short films have been screened locally and internationally at film festivals.  In 2015, he was the pioneer batch of directors that worked on Singapore’s first English Daily Long Form “Tanglin”. He had directed 120 Episodes for the series. Don has also worked on a number of television shows for MediaCorp which have been well received. In 2018, he had created his first web-drama titled “DRIVE” under a new initiative funded by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDAI and produced by Viddsee Studios. The series eventually was in competition at Festival Series Mania and Marseille Web Festival in France. His short film titled “ANGEL” had also been screened at the 28th Singapore International Film Festival. In 2019, Don was part of the HBO Asia series titled Food Lore which he had directed an episode. 

Don Aravind has been consistently been straddling between film and television with integral relationships of both mediums, finding a balance that fuels his creative oeuvre. His award winning short films have been screened locally and internationally at film festivals.  In 2015, he was the pioneer batch of directors that worked on Singapore’s first English Daily Long Form “Tanglin”. He had directed 120 Episodes for the series. Don has also worked on a number of television shows for MediaCorp which have been well received. In 2018, he had created his first web-drama titled “DRIVE” under a new initiative funded by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDAI and produced by Viddsee Studios. The series eventually was in competition at Festival Series Mania and Marseille Web Festival in France. His short film titled “ANGEL” had also been screened at the 28th Singapore International Film Festival. In 2019, Don was part of the HBO Asia series titled Food Lore which he had directed an episode. 

A FDW CCB Spinoff. Here we talk to the other filmmaking departments. We did an 'Actors Talk Back' with Kheng Hua and now its 'DPs Talk back' with Amandi Wong. Amandi was the first DP i met nearly 15 years ago. In this episode, Amandi talks about working with directors Ho Tze Nyen, Chai Yee Wei, Jacen Tan and Jack Neo. He shares what his lighting and shooting philosophy is like nowadays and sheds some info about the SGSC, the SG association of Cinematography. Perhaps one of the Singapore's most prolific feature film DP. I'm so glad I manage to 'bottle' this convo.

Amandi Wong's first independent feature film as a Director of Photography was in 2006, ’Truth Be Told’ directed by Teo Eng Tiong. 

During his journey as a Cinematographer he has worked on 13 feature films.

His first independent feature film as a Director of Photography was in 2006, ’Truth Be Told’ directed by Teo Eng Tiong. 

During his journey as a Cinematographer he has worked on 13 feature films.