Kelvin Tong
Kelvin Tong | ||
---|---|---|
Born | 1971 or 1972 (age 51–52) Hanyu Pinyin Táng Yǒngjiàn | |
Kelvin Tong Weng Kian (born in 1971 or 1972) is a Singaporean film director, screenwriter and producer. He was a former film critic for The Straits Times.
Career
Kelvin's passion for theatre and filmmaking began in his secondary school days in
His next film,
He next directed
In 2007, he directed the horror-comedy Men in White, about four ghosts struggling to survive in Singapore, and which examined the Singaporean obsession with superstitions.[7] It was produced by Innoform Media.
In 2008, he directed the crime thriller, Rule No. 1, produced by Hong Kong-based Fortune Star. He also plans to direct a film called Bed, a comedy drama set in 1960s Singapore when the city-state's education system switched from Chinese language to English.[4]
Tong says his influences range "from Lars von Trier to Stephen Chow".[4]
With his brother, producer Leon Tong, Kelvin has his own production company, Boku Films, enabling him to independently develop his film projects.[3][4]
In a 2007 interview, Kelvin Tong said he is still learning his craft: "It is one thing to talk about films as a journalist, but it is fascinating that many of the decisions that make a difference between a good and a bad film are made in front of a monitor, often in a fraction of a second."[4]
In June 2010, Tong was part of a group of Singapore filmmakers to protest the Asian Film Archive's head Tan Bee Thiam's supposed conflict of interest. Their letter led to Tan's resignation as executive director in September.[8]
In 2014, Tong became the first Singaporean director to helm a Hollywood film when he started shooting The Faith of Anna Waters (2016), a horror film starring Elizabeth Rice, Matthew Settle and Adrian Pang.[9][10] He also shot a short film as part of the 7 Letters omnibus to celebrate Singapore's 50th anniversary in 2015.[11]
Filmography
Year | Title | Notes |
---|---|---|
1996 | Moveable Feast | Short film; co-director and writer |
1999 | Eating Air | Co-director and writer |
2005 | The Maid | |
2006 | Love Story | |
2007 | Men in White | |
2008 | Rule No. 1 | |
2010 | Kidnapper
|
|
2011 | It's a Great, Great World | |
2012 | Dance Dance Dragon | Producer and writer |
2015 | 7 Letters | Segment "Grandma Positioning System" |
2016 | The Faith of Anna Waters | |
2018 | Republic of Food | |
2023 | Trapped | Short film |
Confinement | ||
A Year of No Significance |
References
- ^ "Defying Definition – book profile from the WritersNet books and publications directory". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2009.
- ^ "Lifestyle". v1.lawgazette.com.sg. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- ^ a b Bed, Hong Kong Asia Film Financing Forum; retrieved 26 November 2007
- ^ a b c d e f Kelvin Tong remains hard to predict Archived 21 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Patrick Frater, Variety; retrieved 26 November 2007
- ^ ""Moveable Feast" in Yamagata International Film Festival catalogue". Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival '97.
- ^ Elley, Derek. "Review: 'Eating Air', in competition Rotterdam International Film Festival Young Tiger Awards". Retrieved 26 November 2007.
- ^ a b Kelvin Tong's new film to touch on superstitious side of S'pore society, Valarie Tan, Channel NewsAsia, 16 October 2006; retrieved 26 November 2007
- ^ Frater, Patrick. "Filmmaker protest movement leads to Tan's AFA departure". Film Business Asia. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2016.
- ^ Loh, Genevieve Sarah (2 September 2014). "Hollywood horror flick to be shot in Singapore by Kelvin Tong". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 11 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
- ^ Yip, Wai Yee (22 September 2014). "Director Kelvin Tong's Hollywood horror film will showcase taste of Singapore". Singapore Press Holdings. The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 22 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
- ^ Chan, Boon (21 August 2014). "7 directors, one film for Singapore's 50th". Singapore Press Holdings. The Straits Times. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
External links
- Kelvin Tong at IMDb
- Boku Films, Kelvin Tong's independent production company
- Interview at Making it Work
- Joint interview with Royston Tan at MovieXclusive