Never Short On Talent

The European Film Festival at The Projector featured short films from emerging Singaporean student filmmakers. We speak to some of them about loss and finding a personal voice through their short films.

- Prashant Somosundram

ASSALAMUALAIKUM BY HAZMAN

WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO PURSUE FILMMAKING?

I’ve always watched films with my family since childhood, it was kind of our bonding activity. I’ve watched Bollywood films with my mom and my aunts, Hong Kong martial arts ones with my dad, and Korean dramas with my sisters. My fondest memory is that my whole family will lay out mattresses in the living room and go on a movie series marathon like Star Wars or Harry Potter. Naturally, I became interested in films and storytelling, and decided to pursue it as a career.

ARE THERE ANY SINGAPOREAN AND INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKERS WHO INSPIRE YOU?

I’d say that local filmmaker Jonathan Choo inspires me. He taught me a lot of things about filmmaking: how to approach writing, how to navigate Singapore’s film landscape, etc. I hope that I’d be as prominent as him in the industry one day.

‘ASSALAMUALAIKUM’ DEALS WITH THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BROTHERS AFTER THEIR FATHER’S DEATH DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. WHAT WAS YOUR INSPIRATION FOR CHOOSING THIS TOPIC?

There wasn’t a specific source for my inspiration as it was more of just an observation of the world around me. I was looking at the death toll from the pandemic and wondered what if that was someone I knew. My parents and siblings fought sometimes to be more stringent in safeguarding ourselves during the pandemic; these elements combined to form the basis of my story.

THE FILM ALSO SERVES AS VISUAL DOCUMENTATION OF A PARTICULAR PERIOD WHEN FRONTLINE WORKERS WERE SEPARATED FROM THEIR FAMILIES AND COMMUNICATION WAS CONFINED TO THE VIRTUAL DOMAIN. WHAT WERE YOUR THOUGHTS BEHIND THIS?