Freedom Film Festival SG 2024 - Why Not Freedom?

The 2024 edition returns with the theme of ‘Why Freedom?’, which aims to explore different perspectives on why freedom is important in all aspects of our lives. Why is freedom crucial for us to be fully human? And what happens to our environment and people around us when freedom is curtailed?

This year's human rights film festival features six thought-provoking segments, each exploring a different aspect of freedom.

• See below for film and panel details, more information will be added as we confirm speakers

• This year’s edition of FreedomFilmFest will once again be made free to attend.
• Please only book the seats you need and please show up 10 mins before screening time.
• Seats cannot be guaranteed if you come after the screening time. We ask for your understading, to be fair to the folks on wait list.

This documentary delves into the story behind the term "illegal assembly" that we often hear. Although Article 10 of the Federal Constitution guarantees the right of every Malaysian citizen to assemble peacefully, the reality is that this freedom is restricted by the authorities. How has the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012, purportedly aimed at providing guidelines, impacted peaceful assemblies? The documentary highlights the complexity between constitutional promises and realities on the ground. From legal restrictions to challenges faced by assembly organizers, this documentary look into the clash between individual rights and governmental power.

Runtime: 20 mins

Country: Malaysia

Film Language: Malay

Subtitle Language: English

Boong and Baipor are two activists from Thailand who got arrested for asking questions about the Thai monarchy. They are put in Pr*son and denied their right to bail. They have to embark on a hunger strike to confirm their innocence and demand their release.

Runtime: 29 mins

Country: Thailand

Film Language: Thai, English

Subtitle Language: English

Awards & Festivals: Best Short Documentary: FreedomFilmFest 2024

Following the screening of Perhimpunan Haram? and Hungry for Freedom, this panel will delve into the complexities of public assemblies. We willl discuss the intersection of legal rights, governmental power, and community action. The conversation will also cover creative approaches to speaking up and the impact of such movements on broader social change.

"Sotong" follows four fierce local drag queens who were part of the 2022 Halloween party raided by the authorities. One of them, Juan, was arrested for 'a man dressing up as a woman'. Two years later, they revisit on the fallout of that night as they continue to perform underground and nurture the Malaysian drag scene in all its beauty, joy, and pain.

Runtime: 25 mins

Country: Malaysia

Film Language: English

Subtitle Language: English, Malay

After Sotong (2022) provides a look into the world of drag in Malaysia, this panel will explore the challenges faced by drag performers in a society that imposes legal and cultural restrictions on their expression. Our panellists, including a Malaysian drag artist, will discuss their experiences navigating moral laws and social stigma. The conversation will address how drag artists use creativity to reclaim their identities and create a sense of community in a climate that often marginalizes them.

Nothing Gentle in the Shadows tackles the stigma and silence surrounding sexual violence against men and how their masculinity is questioned by authorities and society when it is brought to light. This documentary details three male sexual assault survivors from diverse backgrounds who share their harrowing experiences of what they went through, emphasising that sexual violence can happen to anyone, regardless of race, gender, or age. Through their stories and the use of symbolic imagery, the documentary revisits spaces that allows the viewers to delve into the lives of the survivors.

Runtime: 20 mins

Country: Malaysia

Film Language: Malay, English

Subtitle Language: Malay, English Awards: Best FFF Film Grantee: FreedomFilmFest 2024

his panel follows the screening of Nothing Gentle in the Shadows (2024), which shares the stories of three male survivors of sexual abuse. Panelists will discuss the unique challenges faced by male survivors, the stigma they endure, and how trauma manifests and can be addressed. This session aims to break the silence surrounding male victimization and foster a supportive environment for healing.

Two women are estranged as mother and daughter, but their lives are interwoven by an invisible thread. The old mother seeks a home with one of her 4 daughters in a world that no longer wants her. The young mom, shattered from recent divorce, has to piece together a broken home. Looking to their past to try and find answers for an uncertain future, their search eventually brings the mother and daughter together.

Runtime: 88 mins

Country: Singapore, Malaysia

Film Language: English, Mandarin, Bahasa Indonesia

Subtitle Language: English

Following Home Sweet Home (2024), this chat brings together the filmmaker and a fellow creative working mother, to discuss the impact of generational trauma and societal expectations on family relationships. The conversation will explore how cultural identity and family history shape our connections, as well as the struggle for belonging and understanding. Through their creative pursuits, the panelists will reflect on the emotional journey of healing within families.

The Face is a documentary that explores the hardships of being a female boxer in Singapore and a boxer's quest to return to her former glory.

Runtime: 13 mins

Country: Singapore

Film Language: English

Subtitle Language: English

Awards & Festivals: Best Student Film: FreedomFilmFest 2024

A retired hawker, suffering from stage four cancer, passes on his family roast duck recipe to his first-born grandson

Runtime: 14 mins

Country: Singapore

Film Language: English

Subtitle Language: English

Hardcore: Amplifying the Unheard” is a short documentary that follows Dee – a bakery owner by day, and hardcore band "Spitting Blood" frontman by night. Through candid interviews with Dee and his parents, electrifying band performances, and intimate behind-the-scenes moments, we experience the reality of life in the Malaysian underground music scene. This short documentary exposes the daily hardships and stigma faced by those involved in the scene, aiming to break the “violent” or “delinquent” stereotypes commonly associated with them – revealing the humanity within.

After showcasing The Face, The Recipe, and Hardcore: Amplifying the Unheard, each filmmaker or film representative will join us for a short interview. These conversations will explore the inspirations behind their stories, the challenges of documenting resilience and legacy, and the creative processes that brought these narratives to life. This segment celebrates the voices of young filmmakers and their efforts to shed light on personal stories of strength and cultural heritage.

Shot over several days in September 2006, when Singapore hosted the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Annual Meetings, Speakers Cornered captures the thwarted attempts of nonviolence activists to protest peacefully at Speakers' Corner, a park designated for those with the urge to mount their soapboxes - though, as per the Singaporean way, not without first securing police blessing. In Martyn See's latest film, the park's legendary status as a white elephant without clothes is cast in cold hard stone.

Living up to its title, its seventeen chapters reveal that to be shackled in Singapore is no metaphor. Stunning and yet strangely amusing, the litany of oppressions catalogued in Speakers Cornered are nothing if not an embarrassment to Singapore. Singapore's authorities have seen the events that unfolded that week. Why shouldn't anyone else?

Runtime: 27 mins

Country: Singapore

Film Language: English, Mandarin

Subtitle Language: English

After the screening of Speakers Cornered (2006), a panel will examine the role of public spaces in political discourse. By highlighting the paradox of designated free speech zones being heavily regulated, the panel will discuss how these spaces can either foster or restrict political dialogue. We will explore the broader implications for freedom of expression in Singapore and how public spaces might evolve to be platforms for finding our voice. This segment is to be confirmed.

Host or Publisher Function 8