When we got a call from Objectifs notifying us of this year's Fly By Night theme, we were really surprised. We heard that it would be an interesting theme for this year's competition and it lived up to the hype. The theme was History. It was interesting because it was boring. How do you show history? How do you tell a weave story around a word which by first instincts connates something that is not new?

We were all out on a shoot and by the time we returned to the studio after a long day at work, we were exhausted. We spent the first couple of hours coming up with ideas before surrendering ourselves to chicken wings, ice teh-o limau and finally the ZZZ monster. We took turns on the chair-bed (made up with 3 chairs lined in a row), the table bed (which was really just placing the head on the tabletop), the newspaper bed (body on hard concrete floor, head on pile of old newspapers) and our red couch. The next morning we had breakfast at ECP's MacDonalds because Dennis Chew and Uncle David offered to drop by and give some inspiration. And we finally agreed on an idea amid the breakfast crowd!

It would be a word play on the word "History". We knew many people would try to break the word up into "Hi(s)tory" (His+Story) so we didn't want to go there. Besides, it will show that we have a spelling disability (Where is the missing S???). Even as we decided to interpret the word as Hi-story, we still wanted our film to use the word "history" as it is. Our inspiration stem from the lame-ness of Dennis' idea. Basically, someone meets someone, says Hi and the story will end.

We further adapted it to make it even more meaningful. So we have boy meets girls instead. The end result, though short and sweet, has a moral behind it. All it takes sometimes, as we struggle to approach someone we like, is a simple Hi to even open the doors. The rest of the sweet story will only happen with the Hi. History, as they seldom say, can be sweet as well. Enjoy!



more more: To perfect a film, a 36 hour limit is never enough. Fly By Night is an outlet for us to have fun and at the same time challenge ourselves. To be awarded a prize is a bonus. We will use it for a sumptuous dinner with all the people who joined in our fun and misery!

When I was much younger, I used to submit poems instead of essays for the Chinese composition enrichment classes that my parents put me through at the community centre. Sometimes, I would write them to the tunes of songs I remember. Poems are much shorter and take much less time to compose than an essay. It was an easy way out of spending too much time on the homework.

Thankfully, the teacher, 洪老师, who I remember was from one of the Chinese newspaper, did not oppose this way of doing things. He encouraged me by marking the poems I submitted and never insisted that I had to do things the "right" way. Most of the poems I write were 打油诗 (something like a limerick - a short humorous rhyme).

Working recently on the music videos with 插班生, who write and compose most of their own songs, has reminded myself of the days when I would enjoy writing rhymes. This piece is dedicated to the soccer friends I grew up with at the void decks.

這一段無曲的歌詞是獻給和我一起成長的踢球朋友，沒有你們就沒有今天的我。

足球黨

兩點半 開始想 何時才能到外玩
電話响 來催赶 溜出家別往後看
父母忙 沒人管 一群男孩天下闖
布鞋燣 衣著凡  不能阻擋少年強

我們都是 一群不怕世界的足球黨
英雄想當 是每個男兒都有的夢想
路還很長 還有好多事情 等著我們各別去管去煩
不同方向 即使命運不同 但我門還是能一起成長

一二三 伸手掌 黑黑白白分組玩
球一發 敵隊擋 世界縮到球場上
半場完 超市赶 便宜飲料好渴望
一毛錢 買冰棒 破成一半兩人享

我們都是 一群不怕世界的足球黨
英雄想當 是每個男兒都有的夢想
路還很長 還有好多事情 等著我們各別去管去煩
不同方向 即使命運不同 但我門還是能一起成長

盡情玩 大声喊 踢球不愁要得奬
向前攻 踢到晚 哪怕功課做不完
把煩惱 放一旁 簡單日子沒欲望
滿身汗 腳底髒 就是我們的奬狀

我們都是 一群不怕世界的足球黨
英雄想當 是每個男兒都有的夢想
路還很長 還有好多事情 等著我們各別去管去煩
不同方向 即使命運不同 但我門還是能一起成長

小小瘋狂 小囂張 美好回憶別遺忘
未來降 大家忙 何時再能球一場？

This is the music video for the upcoming (and very promising) singing duo - 插班生 (Freshman) that we have co-directed and shot. Diya and Carrie are two super fun-loving, cute and talented starlets and it was a totally enjoyable process from start till end.  The shoot was done at Nanyang Girls High School over 1 and a half days. This song expresses the spirit of being students once again and the re-living of that experimental phase of life. So NYGH, being their alma mater, became the undisputed location of choice. Most of the cast in this MV are also personal friends who have helped the duo throughout the making of their first album.



And for some behind-the-scenes...



Stay tuned for the second MV! It will be ready by month-end..!

In June this year, we were invited by Jean Loo Qingwen, a good friend and well-known Singaporean photojournalist, to collaborate on the Children of Mekong project, a commission by the Lien Aid Foundation to document water and sanitation problems in Asia. Our involvement was to help with the editing the raw materials that the documentary team brought back from their field trips to selected regions in China, Cambodia and Vietnam. The project will be opening on 19 November at Objectifs from 6:30pm to 9:30pm. Do support the project by either visiting the show or checking out the website!

Since the advent of the HD-SLRs of late, many budding film makers now have the opportunity and resources to make films that have that "Hollywood" filmic look. However, those who have tried would know that it is not as easy as it sounds. Yes, HD-SLRs have large sensors and are able to pick up low light shots well, but you'll soon realise that it is also BECAUSE of this large sensor, that you would need to light the scene more. What I'm saying here might be sound paradoxical but from my experience, HD-SLRs do provide good quality images with shallow depth of fields, but lighting is still necessary to bring out the emotions, highlight certain details, or even creating the mood on camera. With more light falling onto the sensor, you'll now need to light more stuff, to ensure that the quality of light that's falling onto the sensors is what you want.

DT