LAB: Say Goodbye to the Old
German Film Festival x KinoFest | 17.10.-03.11.2024

LAB: Say Goodbye to the Old

Runtime 71 min
Rating NC16
Curated by Leong Puiyee, Objectifs

What are some of the images that pop into our heads when we think about cleaning up? Do the actions of scrubbing away dirt, the labour of cleaners cleaning the streets, and people washing dishes come to mind? The cultural practice of keeping and maintaining cleanliness is so imbued in our lives and surroundings that most of the time, we do not think twice about cleaning up. But life is hardly ever tidy and clean.

How do we clean up the trauma, stereotypes, memories, and expectations around and within us? From struggling to belong, to reminiscing about a cherished loved one, these seven short films ponder what it means to cleanse one’s self.

Gakjil (Persona)
Moon Sujin, South Korea

The process of being encroached by the persona.

Things
Giselle Lin, Singapore

Using the imagery of gossamer threads and their fragility, I reflect on the things that have scarred me, the things that have hurt me, and the things that have made me.

Dinner’s Ready
EXYL, Singapore

Why should I make dinner if we are both in love? A story of gendered roles and the ethics of care.

Blinded by the Light
Chanasorn Chaikitiporn, Thailand

Blinded by the Light is a two-channel video installation commissioned by Thai Film Archive in celebration of the 124th anniversary of the birth of Thai cinema. The film aims to interrogate double-sided effects of how cinema itself has changed and developed through time, and how it affected both workers in film productions and its audiences along its journey.

Dust Kid
Joung Yumi, South Korea

Eujin found a small dust kid on her bed and decided to cleaning her room for a long time. Cleaning every corner of her room, she keep finding other dust kids here and there and start putting each dust kid away.

Flowers for my mother and father
Grace Song, Singapore

Flowers for my mother and father’ follows the artist's tender ritual of layering on ‘flowers’ in its different forms, in tandem. Bright plastic flowers in one frame, to adorn an afterlife; and flowered sheets in the other, to swaddle, to soothe and to hold. Reminders of how love manifests in different forms following profound loss, changing shape to fit the ones that continue to love and be loved.