Singapore — Precious Is The Night is a thriller in Mandarin that the Singapore Film Commission has chosen as the Republic’s entry to the 2022 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category.
Released in cinemas in April, it features Singaporean actor and model Chuando Tan. The film also stars veteran actress Xiang Yun, her daughter Tan Yi Xin and actor Tay Ping Hui, all from Singapore. The cast also includes Taiwanese actresses Nanyeli and Chang Tzulei.
Set in the 1960s, the film stars Tan as a 30-something playboy doctor who makes house calls to a tycoon’s home; his patient is the tycoon’s wife. A risky game of seduction and betrayal plays out behind closed doors.
Wayne Peng, a Taiwanese documentary and music video creator and producer, and Singaporean Lim Sau Hoong are responsible for the Taiwan-Singapore project. This husband-and-wife team also made the documentary, Burning Dreams (2003), about a dance troupe in China, which was nominated for three Golden Horse Awards.
Precious Is The Night is their first feature film. It was shot at several Singapore locations, with a bungalow in Katong becoming a focal point.
Singapore Film Commission director Joachim Ng said: “The 1960s Singapore setting brings forth a sense of nostalgia and cultural richness that complements the plot beautifully. We are truly proud of our dedicated and passionate homegrown filmmakers and will continue to work with them to co-create Made-with-Singapore content to reach a global audience.”
According to The Straits Times, no Singapore film has ever made it to the shortlist of the Oscars in this category, which was previously known as Best Foreign Language Film.
Singapore’s submissions in previous years include the drama Wet Season (2019), mystery thriller A Land Imagined (2018) and a road movie set in Thailand called Pop Aye (2017).
Chuando Tan (born March 3, 1966), is a public figure known for his modelling and photography work in the fashion industry. He also founded the international modelling agency, AVE Management. He has well over a million followers on his Instagram account, which was set up in February 2015./TISG