PURIN PICTURES ANNOUNCES
GRANT RECIPIENTS FOR SPRING 2021

May 1, 2021 - Bangkok

Bangkok-based film fund Purin Pictures has finalized the grantees for the Spring 2021 session.  After evaluation and discussion of the submissions, the reading committee chose two fiction projects and two documentary projects to support.  A total of 105,000 USD will be given out this session to the following projects:

Production Grants (30,000 USD in cash for fiction, 15,000 USD in cash for documentary)

MONISME (Indonesia)
Director: Riar Rizaldi, Producer: B. M. Anggana, Production Company: New Pessimism
An experimental documentary that observes the human-nature relationship around Mount Merapi, Java, from the perspectives of a mystic, volcanologist, and sand miner.

OASIS OF NOW (Malaysia)
Director: Chia Chee Sum, Producer: Lee Yve Vonn, Production Company: Afternoon Pictures
A drama about Hanh, an undocumented Vietnamese helper in Kuala Lumpur, and her relationship with her neighbors during an immigration raid.

PIERCE (Singapore, Taiwan, Poland)
Director: Nelicia Low, Producer: Jeremy Chua, Sam Chua, Patrick Mao Huang, Production Company: Potocol
A drama about Jie, a high-school fencer, who tries to rekindle his relationship with his ex-con older brother against the wishes of their mother.

Post-production Grants (50,000 USD in services for fiction, 30,000 USD in services for documentary)

CHILDREN OF THE MIST (Vietnam)
Director: Ha Le Diem, Producer: Thao Tran Phuong, Production Company: Varan Vietnam
A documentary about Di, a 13-year old Hmong girl in the misty mountains of north Vietnam, who walks a thin line between childhood and becoming an adult.

This Spring 2021 session was the third granting session to be held amidst the on-going Covid-19 pandemic that began early last year.  Despite the world-wide disruption to the film ecosystem, Southeast Asian filmmakers continued to push forward with their work.  After deliberation of the submissions, the reading committee chose one Indonesian, one Malaysian, one Singaporean, and one Vietnamese project to receive grants.  Says Purin Pictures co-director Aditya Assarat, “We were surprised to find that all four projects were first features by their respective directors.  Even though the current environment is difficult for independent filmmakers, new voices will always emerge.” 

Despite being relatively new to the scene, these four filmmakers are building on solid foundations.  Oasis of Now, by Chia Chee Sum, is the most recent 2020 SEAFIC Award winner.  Riar Rizaldi, the director of Monisme, is the 2020 winner of the Singapore Film Festival’s (SGIFF) Southeast Asian Short Film Competition.  Pierce, by Nelicia Low, is already a three-country co-production between Singapore, Taiwan, and Poland.  And finally, Children of the Mist, by Ha Le Diem, was previously funded by Purin Pictures during the production phase and is again awarded a post-production grant to complete the film.