Sing to the Dawn

Greetings everyone! As most of you that know me would know, I’m a Malaysian with an American mind, a Singaporean heart, and a home in Australia.

Well, back in the island country that is my ‘second homeland’, there is a new animated film that is about to arrive in theatres that is (hopefully) generating some buzz. Sing to the Dawn is Singapore’s first English-language animated feature, and will be Singapore’s third animated film to hit the silver screen after the abysmal Zodiac: The Race Begins (2006) and Legends of the Sea (2007). Based on the 1975 award-winning novel of the same name by Singaporean Ho Minfong, the film tells the story about a young Southeast Asian village girl, and the trials and tribulations faced in chasing her dream of studying in the city. The film is a co—production between Infinite Frameworks, the Media Development Authority of Singapore and MediaCorp Raintree Pictures (this being their first feature-length animation movie).

The last time I chatted with my parents, my mum (who knows I’m interested in this line of work) mentioned this picture’s impending release. I was aware that this film had been in ‘development hell’ for ages, and that it was coming out sometime this year (I saw it in a TV montage ad for Raintrees, and a couple of cinema posters on my last visit). I’m quite excited (and nervous) for this picture, as Singapore has a fledging movie (and by extension, animated film) industry. It’s mainly dominated by only a few directors (namely the ‘Three Kings’ as I call them, Jack Neo, Royston Tan and Eric Khoo). To create a home-grown animated flick is an achievement in itself, and I really hope this generates not only recognition for Singapore in Asia, but the rest of the world. The technology is not at Pixar’s level by any means, but I really hope they can pull of their storytelling abilities as well as their Western counterparts too. The sad thing about most Singaporean commercial films (especially Jack Neo of late), is that they try to ‘dumb down’ the material for the audience by inserting lame slapstick or infantile jokes, or make it too ‘Singaporean’, and obscuring its appeal to foreigners. What I hope this film would achieve is Singapore’s first decent (better yet, great) animated flick, that would be poignant, profound, and maintains its distinct Southeast Asian ‘flavour’ while telling a universal tale that can be understood by all.

The trailer showcases some beautiful backgrounds, but the character modeling looks a little ‘primitive’. Again, I hope that the story carries enough dramatic weight (I like the inclusion of Malayan elements like the mousedeer and shadow puppets or ‘wayang kulit’) and does not fall into the trap of mediocrity or oversimplification, so that the audience is able to overlook the technological or budget inadequacies and appreciate the story. I apparently heard the book is good, so I’m really praying the film does this justice.

Sorry about the long description and rant, but I’m considering Singapore as one of the places to work at once I graduate, and this is one of their chances to truly shine, so I hope they do it and do it well.

Here’s the official website (the background coincidentally looks like the Princess and the Frog), and a recent news article on its impending release this Thursday. What do you guys feel? Do you think Singapore has what it takes?

Heh, I can’t believe you actually posted this, thedriveintheater. You rock, dude. Singapore FTW!

Yeah, the trailer is really compelling. I actually felt like watching it when I was presented with the idea of following your dream, etc. It sounds great, the music was great, but then the other day, I came across a scene of it, and it just seemed like it should be titled, “High School Musical: To The Kampongs!”

I don’t know, it just seems kinda corny added with cheesy humor. But, that is not to say that there’s a lack of touching drama in there, or at least seems like there is. The trailer just gives me an impression that there will be some tearful moments in it, so, yeah, maybe (a very big maybe) I might just go watch it on the theaters (I don’t watch much movies on theaters nowadays, given their crappiness). I’ll have to wait for the reviews to come out, then we’ll see.

You do know that it will be up against HMS3 this weekend in Singapore, right? I hope Sing whoops Zac Effron’s butt. (Though I doubt so)
And I’m also crossing my fingers that it won’t be too lame and corny. Singapore, this is your big chance! Carpe diem!

That movie looks really intriguing. And it will be good to see another country other than the US releasing an animated film and having the story be influenced by the Singaporean way of life. I would have liked to have seen the story done in 2-D animation, since if you don’t have a lot of moolah, CGI can look a bit crappy. But I’m sure the story will hold up well, and I’ve only seen the poster to judge the CGI anyway. Hopefully this movie will do well at the box office.

rachelcakes1985: Yeah, I wished that they had gone the 2-D route too, but 3-D is all the rage nowadays…

I hope so too!

thanks for sharing this, thedriveintheatre! it looks really interesting and i really like the storyline. The director said he was going for a “non-photo realistic” look, so maybe the animation is meant to look a bit…“primitive”?

Do you know if it will be released outside Asia? It would be great to see other types of film come out from there, aside from the standard HK/Korean/etc fare! Here’s hoping it gets a good reception!

A Singapore production actually released in America? God, I’d love to see that.

It could happen!!! A lot of foreign films do make it over here…mainly in larger markets and in small, indie cinemas.

Yeah, a lot of ‘foreign’ films; not Singapore films. French films, Spanish films, I’ve seen them all made it to America. But a Singapore production? Heh, that will have to take some time.

If a Filipino and Thai films can do it, I have every faith a Singaporean one can too

Those made it to the US, too? But er, anyway, this just got me remembering about The Eye and how it made it to America. Heh heh. Ah, well, guess this one might, too, my mistake.

CoCoMeister: Thanks for the optimistic words of encouragement (although I know it’s not directed at me, but rather at the creators of Sing). I hope this breaks out of the local limited release and gets a chance overseas and especially in the crowded U.S. market.

WBoon: I’m also a cynic when it comes to most things in life, my across-the-causeway ‘bradder’. But this is an achievement for your country, so where’s the Singapore Spirit? Yes, I know it’s just a term cooked up by your politicians to instill some sense of patriotism in you guys, but y’all have it waaay better than us M’sians. The only things we’ve dabbled in terms of animation is a Bahasa Melayu dub for Tarzan, and two Malay films, ‘Silat Legenda’ and ‘Cicak Man’ (which is all action, no story). That’s Malaysian animation for you. You should be proud that your country has the tenacity to create not one, not two, but three feature-length animated flicks, and this is an English one! Yes, the characters are ugly and bland, but it’s a technological compromise, and the inspired jungle set design and beautiful theme song more than make up for it! I’m glad you realised in your last post that you guys have had at least one good export, so don’t lose hope. Ya gotta have faith, man!

Anyway, Sing opens today, and I really hope it gets Top Ten, better yet, Top Three at Box-Office. Though it’s wishful thinking that it can beat the horror film juggernaut that is High ‘Skull’ Musical Three.

Here’s some TV spots for you all to enjoy. I just hope they go easy on the ‘Timon and Pumbaa’-style animal comic relief slapstick action.

I’ve seen ads and articles for it in the Animation Magazine. I know the quality isn’t close to Pixar, but I like to keep an open mind when it comes to new animation companies or just companies I’ve never seen works from before. I hope it’s released here!

I hadn’t heard about this before, and I’m not sure if it’s actually going to be released here, but either way, it’s most certainly a positive step in the right direction for Singapore. I hope it does really well wherever it’s released, especially as although it’s a 3D animated film, and there are plenty of those being released in other countries, particularly from America, it’s always good to see animation with other origins because they tend to feel different and have a different viewpoint, which can be very refreshing.

Thanks for your kind words of support, FONY and lizardgirl. It’s great to meet fellow open-minded animation enthusiasts.

I am happy to announce that Sing has not only placed Top Ten, but nabbed the Fourth Spot, just after the war-comedy Tropic Thunder and above the horror sequel Saw V. Unfortunately, it couldn’t beat the dance and singalong sequel HSM3 and the Thai spookfest that nabbed first place; The Coffin (What? I’m surprised a Thai horror film could beat an American juggernaut. Must be the Halloween weekend I guess, and the Singaporeans’ fascination with Asian ghost stories).

But overall, this is an impressive achievement for such a small enterprise, and it’s nice to know that S’poreans are proud to support their own artistic endeavours. Ratings are hovering around 3 out of 5, which is not too shabby. Hopefully the island country can pull off a better effort in their future films. (I know I’ll be looking forward to Kung Fu Gecko next year ).

Check out the S’pore B.O. here.

Good to hear that it’s doing well, thedriveintheatre! It certainly seems to be batting off the opposition, and considering how few 3D animated films seem to be released from Singapore, the fourth spot is very respectable.

Yay, glad to hear it did pretty well at the box office! I hope it continues to do well and build buzz for the Singapore’s film industry.

Heh, I get your point. The Eye, The Grudge, The Ring etc, etc. American remakes had nothing on the originals!..I know a lot of (smaller) foreign films come to the US because I actually look out for them, but I guess for the average moviegoer, they might miss it. (Sorry for the late reply to that!)

Thanks for having an open mind, lizardgirl and CoCoMeister! I’m glad that there are people who don’t mind checking out animated films from other countries without instantly writing them off for not looking ‘professional’. Though they may look less ‘polished’ than the animation giants, I believe that as long as they have a good story, any small-time studio or country can overcome the cultural and technological boundaries and appeal to a worldwide crowd.

I’m not biased as to only appreciated Japanese anime (which is all the rage now), or traditional Chuck Jones toons, or new-fangled 3-D blockbusters, or artsy European shorts, as some of my more narrow-minded friends do. I believe in sampling a wide variety of animated genres (action, drama, comedy, or romance), and countries (be it Britain, Japan, France, Spain or Denmark) to see what there is on offer. It’s like eating a balanced diet, and you never know what you may discover.

I could keep talking about this, but I’ll stop now and leave it to another thread and day. Thanks once again, y’all!