SGIFF Film Fund
SGIFF offers two film grants for Southeast Asian film projects. These grants are dedicated to supporting filmmakers with compelling stories to tell across both fiction and non-fiction genres.
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The Tan Ean Kiam Foundation-SGIFF Southeast Asian Documentary (SEA-DOC) Grant
The Tan Ean Kiam Foundation-SGIFF Southeast Asian Documentary (SEA-DOC) Grant supports the production and post-production of documentaries in Southeast Asia which tell engaging, urgent stories.
The grant supports four production projects annually with production projects each receiving S$30,000 in cash, and post-production projects receiving S$20,000 in cash.
The grant has been made possible by the support of the Tan Ean Kiam Foundation since 2018.
The SEA-DOC Grant is supported by:
The Tan Ean Kiam Foundation-SGIFF Southeast Asian Documentary (SEA-DOC) Grant Recipients
The Itinerant by Ukrit Sa-nguanhai, Thailand
1966, in the middle of a long trip for an anti-communist itinerant film screening in rural Thailand. The itinerant film troupe finds a mutilated dead body in the Mekong River that resembles a dead body found in the present day but has gone missing.
Invisible Labour by Joanne Cesario, Philippines
The return of the Marcos family to the presidential palace amid the economic crisis, the documentary looks at the importance of preserving the history of massive labour struggles that fought for democratic rights and led to the downfall of Martial Law and its continuing relevance to the present struggle of Filipino workers.
Baby Jackfruit Baby Guava by Nong Nhat Quang from (Vietnam)
When an unplanned baby enters the lives of a conservative mother, mentally ill daughter, and detached gay son, the dysfunctional trio travels back in time through their diaries to mend ruptured bonds, rewrite memories, and prepare for a new cycle of motherhood. A creative documentary exploring the cycle of motherhood, plotted by the present with stories and sounds of the past.
Under the Moonlight by Tonny Trimarsanto from (Indonesia)
Nur (40 years old) is a transgender who works as a cook in an Islamic School Al Fatah in Kota Gede, Yogyakarta. This school is a bit unique as all the students are Transgenders.
Selection Committee | The Tan Ean Kiam Foundation-SGIFF Southeast Asian Documentary (SEA-DOC) Grant
Arleen Cuevas
Film Producer, Philippines / Netherlands
Arleen Cuevas is the owner and producer for Cinematografica Films, a production company based in Manila that she co-founded with Raya Martin and Armi Cacanindin. She has produced over 15 feature films and documentaries which have screened and won awards in different international film festivals such as Cannes, Locarno, Rotterdam, IDFA, and Busan, among others. Her production company, Cinematografica, has produced the documentary, Aswang (dir: Alyx Arumpac), which won the FIPRESCI award at the 2019 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. She also co-produces with Rein Entertainment and recently premiered the film, A Silent Night (dir. Shugo Praico) at the Metro Manila Film Festival in December 2022.
She splits her time between the Philippines and the Netherlands and is also a production lecturer for the Academy of AI, Games and Media at Breda University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands.
María Palacios Cruz
Director of Open City Documentary Festival, UK / Spain
María Palacios Cruz is a film curator, writer and educator. She is currently the director of the Open City Documentary Festival in London and has been a programmer for the Courtisane Festival since 2008. Between 2017 and 2021 she helped to conceive and lead the Film Curating course at Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola in San Sebastian (Spain), and was Deputy Director of LUX, the UK agency for artists’ moving image, from 2015 to 2020. María writes regularly on artists’ moving images and avant-garde cinema and is a co-founder of The Visible Press.
Wiwat Lertwiwatwongsa
Film Critic and Writer, Thailand
Wiwat Lertwiwatwongsa is a cinephile, film critic, writer, and editorial team member of Film Club Thailand. He is also the founder of Wildtype, a loose group of Thai cinephiles that organises film screenings, and seminars, and publishes film books in Thailand. Since 2008, Wiwat has curated and organised a series of Thai short film screenings called Filmvirs Wildtype, which focuses on overlooked Thai short films. Since 2018, he has collaborated with the Documentary Club to program film events and organise documentary film festivals.
The SGIFF Southeast Asian-Short Film (SEA-SHORTS) Grant
The SGIFF Southeast Asian-Short Film (SEA-SHORTS) Grant aims to be a launchpad for the brightest upcoming names in filmmaking from the region.
The grant supports four short films annually, each with a cash amount of S$4,000 and post-production support worth S$4,000.
The SEA-SHORTS Grant is supported by:
The SGIFF Southeast Asian Short Film (SEA-SHORTS) Grant Recipients
Vox Humana by Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan from the Philippines
In the middle of a tropical jungle, a dreary sight unfolds: in a state of limbo and uncertainty tend to their gear, amuse themselves with twigs, and engage in a surreal exchange of animal sounds towards each other - lost in translation as they crawl and claw at each other.
Termite Life by Chonchanok Thanatteepwong from Thailand
An island woman comes to a town, full of mayflies to meet old friends in the rainy season, starting to cross between the dream and the reality.
Children's Day by Giselle Lin from Singapore
With Children's Day fast approaching, eight-year-old Xuan contemplates what to wear on that day, all the while navigating her place in school and at home.
The Storytellers by Taufiqurrahman Kifu from (Indonesia)
With Children's Day fast approaching, eight-year-old Xuan contemplates what to wear on that day, all the while navigating her place in school and at home.
Selection Committee | SGIFF Southeast Asian-Short Film (SEA-SHORTS) Grant
Thong Kay Wee
SGIFF Programme Director
Thong Kay Wee is a cultural worker and moving image curator based in Singapore. He is currently the Programme Director at the Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), where he is responsible for the festival’s overall programming strategy. He was previously the Programmes and Outreach Officer at the Asian Film Archive (AFA) from 2014 to 2021. Aside from overseeing partnerships and promotions, he was responsible for establishing the AFA’s regular film programmes at its new dedicated cinematheque in 2019, with a focus on both contemporary and classic Asian film selections.
Maike Mia Höhne
Artistic Director of Hamburg Short Film Festival, Germany
Since March 2019, Maike Mia Höhne has been the artistic director of the Hamburg Short Film Festival since March 2019. She is a multi-award-winning filmmaker who has also participated in jury selections, committees and as a curator for film events internationally. From 2007 to 2019, she was head of Berlinale Shorts of the Berlin International Film Festival. Höhne is a professor of film at the University of Applied Sciences Europe in Hamburg and also teaches Film theory and making at the University of Fine Arts in Hamburg.
Ifa Isfansyah
Filmmaker and Festival Director of Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival, Indonesia
Ifa Isfansyah is an Indonesian filmmaker. He co-founded Fourcolours Films in 2001 to produce and support Indonesian filmmakers. He has directed several short films and feature films, including Garuda di Dadaku (2009) which was a tremendous commercial success and The Dancer (2011), which won Best Director and Best Picture at the Indonesian Film Festival. He has also produced for Indonesian filmmakers such as Wicaksono Wisnu Legowo, Garin Nugroho and Kamila Andini. He is a co-founder and Festival Director of the JOGJA-NETPAC Asian Film Festival and a founder of the JOGJA FILM ACADEMY, which was established in 2014. He is currently working on the Netflix series Cigarette Girl.