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SINGAPORE : It's been called a love story, a philosophical head trip and a film about a film. “HERE” by Singapore director and visual artist Ho Tzu Nyen tells the story of a man coming to terms with his murdered wife at a mental asylum.
Played by art historian and visual artist John Low, he is selected to undergo a radical treatment programme called ‘videocure’, which forces him to confront the devastating truth behind his past, present, and future.
Ho’s fascination with mental asylums started ten years ago when he visited a close friend who had been involuntarily incarcerated in a facility.
“I was curious about the patients but there was a moment when I realised that the other patients were also observing me… It’s a very strange sensation. Ever since then, I’ve been very fascinated with mental asylums,” said Ho.
The feature film, a first for the director, was shot entirely in a former mental hospital in just 11 days. A feat, considering the actors are mostly inexperienced.
“Well it’s out of necessity that it’s 11 days,” said Ho. “Charlie Chaplin takes like 365 days to shoot the film, [and] I wish I had that luxury but I think that for independent films, we have to find a different way of making films.”
Ho sure has some unconventional methods up his sleeve. He constantly kept the cast in suspense, only giving them access to their own lines.
“I think this is actually a more realistic way of making a film. It’s more like real life. You are trapped in the present, you have no idea if your actions have any meaning, or what you do today has any implications on what happens tomorrow. And I think the process of making a film should be like that,” he said
“It’s a game that you play with the actors, so that they are constantly wondering about what’s happening.”
And unlike other films, a lot effort was put into the film’s sound design to create “a total sensorial experience”.
“I tried to do something interesting with the sound and I would say one of the main characteristics is we employ very high and very low frequencies.
“Very high frequencies makes the listener strain to hear a sound… they also become aware that they are listening. We also employ a lot of very low frequencies… these are not sounds that you hear but you feel, like your entire body vibrates,” he explained.
“I want to create a sensation for all the spectators that they are here in the cinema and acknowledging the presence of the spectators is something important because to acknowledge somebody’s presence is the first step to loving someone.”
Well it sure worked. “HERE” was selected for screening at the prestigious Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes, a breakaway festival to the Cannes Film Festival that's recognised as edgier and more independent. The film is now showing at The Picturehouse until July 1.
- CNA/il
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