25 Oct – With its opening date slowly arriving, the 28th edition of Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) wastes no time in unveiling its full lineup. A total of 112 films spanning across various genres and presentations has been selected for the 11-day festival which includes 18 world premieres, 17 international premieres, and six Asian premieres. As reported previously, this year's SGIFF will open with Chinese director Vivian Qu's "Angels Wear White", which recently competed at the Venice International Film Festival. Its Special Presentation section will see a gala showcase treatment for three movies namely Indian director Anup Singh's "The Song of Scorpions", "The White Girl" from newcomer Jenny Suen and renowned cinematographer Christopher Doyle, and Atsuko Hiranayagi's debut feature "Oh Lucy!" starring Josh Hartnett.
Gavin Lim's "Diamond Dogs" and Chew Tze Chuan's "Shadows of Fiendish Ancestress and Occasionally Parajanov on Durian Cialis" will make their world premieres through the anticipated Singapore Panorama segment, alongside Kan Lume's "hUSh" and Wesley Leon Aroozoo's "I Want to Go Home". The festival will also be honouring two Asian cinema veterans, award-winning Indonesian filmmaker Garin Nugroho and Japan's leading actor Koji Yakusho, with the Honorary Award and the Cinema Legend Award, respectively. Making its debut this year, the Southeast Asian Producer's Network will bring together 11 regional commissioners and producers to chart the future of collaborative filmmaking in the region. "Filmmakers and producers are producing great content that are played across multiple screens from cinemas to television to online platforms, in search of that space that allow our stories from Asia to shine and find its audience," SGIFF Executive Director Yuni Hadi said in a statement. "It is an important time for us to reflect how and where the stories from our region can be told, and the Southeast Asian Producer's Network creates that conversation and challenges the industry to think out of the box." SGIFF 2017 will take place from 23 November till 3 December across various venues such as Marina Bay Sands, Shaw Theatres Lido, National Gallery Singapore and The Arts House.