Taking place from August 17 to 18 at the Red Carpet Cinema, this year’s Tingin Film Festival is the only event in the Philippines dedicated exclusively to Southeast Asian filmmakers. The festival’s theme, “Enchantments for a Fragile World,” highlights the region’s unique storytelling traditions and their relevance in today’s rapidly changing world. With a curated lineup of celebrated films, Tingin offers a cinematic journey through the myths, rituals, and histories that continue to shape Southeast Asian identities.
Opening Night: A Journey Through Time and Grief
The festival opens with The Long Walk, a genre-bending feature by Mattie Do, Laos’ first female filmmaker. Premiering in 2019, this film delves into themes of grief, guilt, and responsibility. It follows an old hermit who discovers that a ghost can transport him back in time to his mother’s painful death, offering a poignant exploration of loss and the desire to alter the past.
Myanmar’s Lin Htet Aung brings a unique perspective with his 2023 experimental short film Once Upon a Time, There Was a Mom. Shot in black-and-white, the film tells the story of a man’s transformation after his wife’s death, drawing parallels with Myanmar’s complex history and the classic Buddhist tale Vessantara Jātaka. Continuing the exploration of grief is Memoryland, a 2021 film by Kim Quy Bui, which weaves together the stories of a grieving son, a young construction worker’s widow, and a widowed painter, all set against the backdrop of Vietnamese death rituals.
Intersecting Myths and Modern Realities
The festival also features films that blend mythic traditions with poignant drama, depicting both current and historical events. Golden Dragon, a 2023 debut short film by Cambodian director Boren Chhith, follows an injured man haunted by his past as he grapples with national and personal traumas in a hospital. In Snow in Midsummer, a 2023 historical drama by Malaysian director Chong Keat Aun, a young woman seeks refuge in an opera troupe during Malaysia’s deadly racial riots of 1969. Forty-nine years later, she confronts the loss that has shaped her life, offering a powerful reflection on memory and survival.
Southeast Asian rituals and beliefs take center stage in the 2021 Thai documentary Worship by Uruphong Raksasad, which immerses viewers in the ritualized power of faith and its impact on people’s lives. Indonesia’s Natasha Tontey explores ancestral ceremonies through a speculative lens in her 2023 short film Of Other Tomorrows Never Known, blending mystical beliefs with themes of care and intergenerational dialogue.
Themes of Family and Friendship
The festival also explores themes of family and friendship. Singapore’s Dreaming and Dying, a 2023 experimental fantasy drama by Nelson Yeo, tells the story of three middle-aged friends reuniting after years apart, only to have long-repressed emotions and memories resurface. In Brunei’s 2022 short film Part of Me by Hazrul Aizan, the conflict between personal dreams and familial expectations is explored through the story of an aspiring singer torn between his passion for music and his family’s desire for him to pursue a stable career.
Closing Night: A Gripping Tale of Horror
Tingin concludes with the Philippines’ In My Mother’s Skin, a 2023 psychological horror film directed by Kenneth Dagatan. Set during the final days of World War II, the film follows a young girl who must protect her mother while being lured by a flesh-eating fairy. Starring Beauty Gonzalez, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, and Felicity Kyle Napuli, this tense and terrifying story is sure to leave audiences on the edge of their seats.
Don’t miss the opportunity to experience the enchanting and mystical tales of Southeast Asia at the 7th Tingin Southeast Asian Film Festival on August 17 and 18 at Shangri-La Plaza. For updates and inquiries, follow Shangri-La Plaza on Facebook and on Instagram @shangrilaplazaofficial.
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