The 35th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) has announced a programme of contemporary premieres and restored classics, focusing on themes of displacement, migration and the effects of artificial intelligence and technological transformation.
Mr Jeremy Chua, general manager of SGIFF, says that in recent years, filmmakers have been influenced by global trends such as "doom scrolling", the fixation on negative news by social media users.
"Doom scrolling is part of our culture now, and the idea that people are being left behind by technological and economic change," he adds.
He was speaking to The Straits Times on the sidelines of the Singapore Media Festival (SMF) press event on Oct 28, held at the offices of the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).
Citing films from 2024's SGIFF programme illustrating its themes, Mr Chua includes the drama Mongrel by Taiwan-based Singapore filmmaker Chiang Wei-liang and Taiwanese filmmaker Yin You-qiao. The film deals with the plight of exploited migrant workers in Taiwan.
Meanwhile, Singapore filmmaker Yeo Siew Hua's mystery thriller Stranger Eyes deals with the anxieties of living in an age of surveillance.
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