SINGAPORE — A film about lion dance performers danced its way to two prizes at the inaugural Singapore Heritage Short Film Competition (HSFC). The Passion Of Lion Dancers by G Cube Productions took home the top prize as well as the Best Technical Prize. Second place went to Lion City Dreamers, a documentary about a group of people involved in a performance art group; while WXYZ Productions’ Chinese Opera Dreaming came in third for its documentary about four local Chinese opera groups.

Organised by the Singapore Film Society (SFS) with the support of the National Heritage Board and Lee Foundation, this short film competition aimed to seek out young talent who approached Singapore heritage with a new perspective. As a nod to Singapore’s golden anniversary next year, the competition theme was focused on the nation’s many associations, clubs and societies that have been around for 50 years or more.

The HSFC submission process was a tad more rigorous than other competitions, requiring an initial paper proposal to be presented before being shortlisted to go into production. All submitted films were judged by a panel that included heritage experts associate professor Lai Chee Kien and Imran bin Tajudeen, as well as film-makers Jasmine Ng and Sherman Ong.

Seven finalists, including the top three winners, have been compiled into a travelling showcase, which will be screened for free at various locations starting from National Day this year until January next year. Genevieve Loh

WHERE TO WATCH THE SINGAPORE HERITAGE SHORT FILM COMPETITION SELECTION

Aug 9: 2pm, Latent Space @ Haw Par Villa

Sept 12: 7.30pm, Post Museum @ Centre for Contemporary Art, Singapore @ Gillman Barracks

Sept 14: 7pm, Block 115 Bukit Merah View Square

Oct 12: 3pm, Peranakan Museum

Oct 24: Time to be confirmed, Library@Esplanade

Nov 15: 4pm, Chinatown Library

Dec 13: 4pm, Queenstown Library

Jan 17, 2015: 4pm, Toa Payoh Library

For more details, visit www.sfs.org.sg/shsfc, www.facebook.com/sghsfc and https://twitter.com/SGHeritageSFC