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Annual Report Asian Film Archive ANNUAL REPORT AFA AFA 2016 AFA AFA ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE T: +65 6777 3243 NATIONAL LIBRARY BUILDING, LEVEL 4 F: +65 6694 5264 100 VICTORIA STREET E: [email protected] SINGAPORE 188064 ASIANFILMARCHIVE.ORG AFA ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE AFA ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 1 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT The Asian Film Archive (AFA) preserves the rich film heritage of Asian Cinema, encourages scholarly research on film, and promotes a wider critical appreciation of this art form. 2 CONTENTS Page 5 - 8 Page 17 - 24 Chair’s Message Outreach & Education ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 1 4 Page 9 - 12 Page 25 - 26 CONTENTS 2 Highlights of 2016 5 Volunteers of the Archive Page 13 - 16 Page 27 - 28 3 Collection 6 Corporate Governance 3 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT Page 29 - 30 7 Future Plans & Commitments CONTENTS Page 31 - 36 8 Financial Information Page 37 - 38 9 Acknowledgements CONTENTS 4 CHAIR’S ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT “This will be my final message as Chair of AFA’s Board of Directors.” ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR KENNETH PAUL TAN CHAIR, ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE CHAIR’S MESSAGE 5 MESSAGE ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT Last year, the Asian Film Archive (AFA) entered its and creative drive, producing outcomes that were 11th year with a sense of pride for all that we had disproportionate to the lean and resource-poor accomplished over a short period of time and a sense organisation that we were in reality. of optimism for a new phase in our development. Meanwhile, the collection grew very quickly. We 1Thinking back, the early years were quite exhilarating. had good partners, such as the National Archives We were the new kid on the block and what we had of Singapore, the National Library Board (NLB), and to offer was valuable and exciting to filmmakers, film the Singapore Film Commission. We were able to scholars, professional archivists, and audiences keen enlist the passion and energy of a large number of to have access to the Asian cinematic treasure that volunteers and interns, whose contribution to growing CHAIR’S MESSAGE was still relatively inaccessible to most. Educators the collection has been invaluable. and students also took a great interest in what we had to offer. And very soon, so much of our energy We formed strong and abiding partnerships with was directed towards education and outreach. We filmmakers, archivists, and professional associations pioneered programmes that went far beyond the around the world. They were impressed by the work narrowly cinematic objectives at the heart of our that AFA was doing. AFA seemed to be unique as an mission. Being small, nimble, and somewhat naïve, independent non-government organisation, with a we could act upon our entrepreneurial instincts scope that was regional rather than national. 6 CHAIR’S But just as AFA’s independence was an asset, it very soon became a constraint that was difficult to surmount as far as capacity was concerned. There was so much more we wanted to do, but the lack of funding and other resources held us back. In 2014, we became a subsidiary of NLB, an arrangement that would ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT allow us to preserve creative autonomy, while freeing us from having to focus on raising funds to pay salaries, finance our projects and programmes, and improve facilities and equipment. More than that, we could tap on NLB’s vast networks, facilities, and programmes to advance our own activities and reach a larger audience. This has been a significant milestone in the history of AFA. Since then, we have blossomed once again. In this report, you will read about several examples of new and innovative programmes, projects, and collaborations launched in 2016. You will read about how the collection has been growing, not just quantitatively, but qualitatively. You will read about how AFA has been contributing to film CHAIR’S MESSAGE archival scholarship. And you will also read about how AFA is strengthening the training and professional development of its staff. KENNETH PAUL TAN 7 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT This will be my final message as Chair of AFA’s Board of Directors. In September 2017, I will be stepping down. The new Chair will be Glen Goei. Glen has been a Board Member since 2011. He is no stranger to the arts and film communities. I have every confidence that he will provide excellent leadership, helping to direct AFA into the very exciting next phase of its development. I would like to take the opportunity to thank my wonderful Board Members, past and present. I want to thank our passionate staff at AFA, past and CHAIR’S MESSAGE present, and the current Executive Director Karen Chan, who has led the team, with equanimity and grace, through AFA’s many ups and downs. I want to thank all partners, supporters, and friends of AFA over the many years. You have kept us buoyant and resilient. Finally, I want to thank Tan Bee Thiam, the founding Executive Director of AFA, who inspired me with his passion for film and gave me the opportunity to serve as founding Chair, though I had no idea at that time that I would do so for 12 years. MESSAGE 8 A BETTER TOMORROW | 1986 DIRECTED BY | JOHN WOO HIGHLIGHTS ASIAN FILM ARCHIEVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIEVE | ANNUAL REPORT DRAGON INN | 1967 DIRECTED BY | KING HU HIGHLIGHTS More than 2000 audience members were enthralled by the action of martial arts and gangster films, entertaining musicals, and dramatic tragedies. ASIAN RESTORED CLASSICS GADO GADO | 1961 HIGHLIGHTS 9 DIRECTED BY | S. ROOMAI NOOR ASIAN FILM ARCHIEVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIEVE | ANNUAL REPORT HIGHLIGHTS AFA organised its first Asian Restored Classics (ARC) with a four-day (25-28 August) specially curated programme at the Capitol Theatre. ARC was conceived as a platform where people could catch screenings of restored Asian films. These films could be enjoyed 2once again because they have been preserved, without which, restoration would not have been possible. More than 2000 audience members were enthralled by the action of martial arts and gangster films, HIGHLIGHTS entertaining musicals, and dramatic tragedies. The films screened included the restored versions of classics such as the blockbuster A Better Tomorrow (John Woo, 1986) with Chow Yun-Fat and Leslie Cheung, Charulata (Satyajit Ray, 1964), Dragon Inn (King Hu, 1967) Gado Gado (S. Roomai Noor, 1961), Kakabakaba Ka Ba? (Mike de Leon, 1980), Ran (Akira Kurosawa, 1985), and Tosuni (Park Sang-ho, 1963). HIGHLIGHTS 10 In October, AFA launched #SAVEOURFILM, a film preservation campaign, in conjunction with the commemoration of the UNESCO World Day for Audiovisual Heritage. The campaign aimed to raise awareness on the urgency and importance of preserving cinematic heritage, highlighting how easy it is to lose valuable material. wqw - Additionally, a recorded video appeal by various acclaimed wt Southeast Asian filmmakers such as Anthony Chen, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Eric Khoo, Kirsten Tan and Lav Diaz was released. The filmmakers advocated for fellow filmmakers to regard the archiving of their films as a priority. ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT An online application was launched to streamline the process of film submissions. This was created with help from TechLadies (http://www.techladies.co/), a community for women in Asia to advance as programmers in the tech industry. HIGHLIGHTS #SAVEOURFILM #SAVEOURFILM 11 #SAVEOURFILM STATE OF 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT wqw - wt HIGHLIGHTS THROUGH STRANGER EYES Participating in the Singapore Art Week for the second time, and Ring of Fury (Tony Yeow & James Sebastian, 1973), AFA developed the State of Motion: Through Stranger Eyes Singapore’s only martial arts film. These films delved into (SOM) programme. Comprised of an exhibition cum art the history of Singapore cinema, exploring locations such as installation at the National Library Building, AFA conducted Labrador Park and Far East Plaza. 48 bus tours and organised 20 accompanying talks and film screenings. The guided tours brought participants to Local artists Amanda Lee Koe, Jeremy Sharma, Joo Choon five filming locations that were used in iconic films made in Lin, Mark Wong, and Hilmi Johandi were commissioned to Singapore between the 1970s and the 1980s. produce an artwork each, responding to the film and the site. Berlin based visual artist, Ming Wong, also had a piece Screenings included the featured films in the programme of his work incorporated into the exhibition. Local band, The such as Ricochet (Gerry Troyna, 1984) starring David Bowie, Observatory, provided re-interpreted renditions of music Saint Jack (Peter Bogdanovich, 1979), from the films, adding to the atmosphere of the night tours. MOTION 12 COLLECTION BIG FATHER, SMALL FATHER AND OTHER STORIES | 2015 DIRECTED BY | PHAN DANG DI ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT BUNOHAN | 2011 DIRECTED BY | DAIN SAID COLLECTION Developing and preserving the collection is the core business of the AFA. 13 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT 2016 2016 ASIAN FILM ARCHIVE | ANNUAL REPORT ACQUISITIONS As at 31 March 2017, the AFA Collection comprised of 1,969 film titles. Amongst its new acquisitions were works by award-winning filmmakers Dain Said with Bunohan (2011), Big Father, Small Father and Other Stories (2015) by Phan Dang Di, Golden Slumbers (2012) by Davy 3Chou and Tatsumi (2011) by Eric Khoo.
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