The comedy-drama Ajoomma has been selected as Singapore’s submission to the 2023 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category.
Directed by Singaporean film-maker He Shuming, it stars veteran actress Hong Huifang and opens in cinemas here on Oct 27.
His feature film debut received four nominations at the 59th Golden Horse Awards, which take place in Taiwan on Nov 19.
He has earned nods in the Best New Director and Best Original Screenplay categories, the latter shared with co-screenwriter Kris Ong. Hong gained a nod in the Best Leading Actress category, a first for a Singaporean, while South Korean actor Jung Dong-hwan was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
The film tells the story of Auntie, a widow obsessed with K-dramas. Played by Hong, Auntie travels to Seoul as a tourist and becomes caught in an adventure involving a security guard played by Jung and a young tour guide played by South Korean actor Kang Hyung-suk.
The Singapore-South Korean co-production has been made under film-maker Anthony Chen’s Giraffe Pictures label and is supported by a New Director grant from the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).
Chen is the film-maker behind the drama Ilo Ilo (2013), Singapore’s entry to the 2014 Oscar race and winner of the Camera d’Or award at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. It received six nominations at the Golden Horse Awards and won four, including for Best Film and Best New Director for Chen.