• Food
  • Family
  • Beauty & Health
  • Style
  • Great Women
  • Events/Win
  • Domestic Diva Awards 2022
  • Food
    • Eating Out
    • Cooking Tips
    • Festive Food
    • Asian Recipes
    • Food
    • Celebrity Recipes
    • Dessert Recipes
    • Healthy Recipes
    • Quick & Easy Recipes
    • Western Recipes
  • Family
    • Family
    • Save Money
    • Parenting
    • Sex & Marriage
    • Travel
  • Beauty & Health
    • Beauty & Health
    • Skincare
    • Makeup
    • Hair
    • Awards
    • Diet & Nutrition
    • Fitness
    • Wellness
  • Style
  • Great Women
    • Career
    • Great Women of Our Time
    • Real Life
  • Entertainment
  • EVENTS/WIN
  • #SchoolForLife
  • Hair Awards
  • Great Escape
  • Explore Singapore
  • Also available at:
Privacy Menu
SPH Media

Copyright © 2023 SPH Media Limited. Co. Regn. No. 202120748H. All rights reserved.

  • Food
  • Family
  • Beauty & Health
  • Style
  • Great Women
  • Events/Win

Entertainment

We Bet You Didn’t Know About These Hidden Film Locations In Singapore

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Entertainment

We Bet You Didn’t Know About These Hidden Film Locations In Singapore

by Natalya Molok  /   January 17, 2018

If you’re a film buff then you already know that Singapore has slowly but steadily attracted the attention of foreign filmmakers who see the city-state’s towering skyscrapers and modernity as the perfect backdrop to their stories.

But we bet you didn’t realise that the Lion City has had a rich cultural filming history since the early 1950s and 1960s with studios like the Shaw Brother’s Malay Film Productions and Cathay-Keris churning out classic movies featuring bygone actors like P. Ramlee, Hong Kong’s Paul Chang and Singapore’s very own Saloma.

Want to know more? Get a comprehensive insight into Singapore’s past at State of Motion – the Asian Film Archive’s annual flagship film and visual arts series of programmes – held from 12 January to 11 February 2018. This year’s theme ‘Sejarahku’ (or ‘My History’) focuses on iconic Malay feature films that reflect the cultural and social ideologies of pre-independence Singapore.

Best of all, there will be guided tours to the locales where these films were shot! Check out some of these forgotten locations in our gallery below:

READ MORE:
12 Celebs Who Refuse To Do Nude Scenes & Their Empowering Reasons Why
8 Local Films That Celebrate The Singaporean Spirit
10 Celebrity Co-Stars Who Did Not Get Along On Set, Or Off

https://www.womensweekly.com.sg/gallery/entertainment/bet-didnt-know-hidden-film-locations-singapore/
We Bet You Didn't Know About These Hidden Film Locations In Singapore
Jalan Ampas
image

Film Location of Seniman Bujang Lapok (1961) and Mogok (1957)

The still-extant but abandoned film studio at No. 8 Jalan Ampas (off Balestier Road), is an endearing testament to the golden era of Malay film production in Singapore during the 1950s to 60s. The studio complex was owned and run by the Shaw Brothers. More than 150 feature movies were produced by the studio over a span of two decades.

Photo: stateofmotion.sg
Shaw’s Villa (440A Upper East Coast Road)
image

Film Location of Ibu Mertua Ku (1962)

The eastern shores of Singapore were known for their sandy beaches and picturesque views of the sea – a retreat away from the overcrowded urban core. It is small wonder that many of the affluent during the colonial era purchased land there to build sea-fronting bungalows for private use. One such bungalow belonged to film magnates Runme and Run Run Shaw. Built in the 1950s, it was one of the Shaw’s holiday villas and used regularly for hosting film celebrities such as Elizabeth Taylor.

Photo: stateofmotion.sg
Tanah Merah Besar
image

Film Location of Darah Muda (1963)

Situated on the east coast of Singapore between Bedok and Changi, Tanah Merah (‘red soil’ in Malay) was named after red lateritic cliffs along the former coastline in the area. It became a popular film location in Malay-language movies, especially when the narrative calls for a serene seaside location where encounters between loved ones or antagonists take place.

Photo: stateofmotion.sg
Punggol Point
image

Film Location of Isi Neraka (1960)

Remembered in recent times for its popular seafood restaurants and rural charm, Punggol Point and its vicinity had reportedly been populated by coastal fishing villages more than 200 years ago. Kampong Punggol was also most likely the coastal village where Isi Neraka was filmed. The background of film scenes shot at the coastlines is identified to consist of geographical landmarks such as the Johor Straits and Pasir Gudang.

Photo: stateofmotion.sg
Serangoon River
image

Film location of Sri Menanti (1958)

For a glimpse of the old Serangoon River and Kangkar village, one could refer to a beautiful portrait captured in the beginning of Sri Menanti, where the male protagonist is aboard a ‘tongkang’ on Sungei Serangoon, for a journey north to Sri Menanti in Peninsular Malaya.

Photo: stateofmotion.sg
Pulau Ubin & Pulau Sekudu
image

Film Location of Hang Tuah (1956) and Hang Jebat (1961)

1956’s Hang Tuah features a young, courageous warrior who leads his friends to these outcrop islands to ambush a gang of pirates. In 1961’s Hang Jebat, a revisionist response to Hang Tuah, the adult titular character (“returns” and) sits atop the rocks of Sekudu and contemplates a revenge for his maligned sworn brother Hang Tuah.

Photo: Flickr
  • TAGS:
  • Arts
  • asian film archive
  • Culture
  • Film
  • film locations
  • heritage
  • movies
  • singapore
SHARE THIS ON

What’s Hot

Entertainment

8 Asian Celebrities Who Have Admitted To...

Entertainment

How Fann Wong, Lee Nanxing, Sharon Au An...

Entertainment

All The Celebs Expecting Babies In 2023

Entertainment

What Fann Wong, Joanne Peh, Tay ...

Entertainment

Single's Inferno S2: What To Know About ...

Entertainment

Hannah Quinlivan Posts Picture Of Baby D...

Entertainment

10 Things To Know About Actress And Busi...

Entertainment

Socialite Kim Lim Confirms Marriage Spli...

Entertainment

All You Need To Know About Celeb Twins J...

Entertainment

A Sneak Peak Into Influencer's Naomi Neo...

Entertainment

10 Things To Know About Hong Kong Actres...

Entertainment

10 Things To Know About Chinese Actress ...

Editor’s Picks
  • Entertainment 8 Asian Celebrities Who Have Admitted To Getting Work Done
  • Entertainment How Fann Wong, Lee Nanxing, Sharon Au And More Celebrated 2023
  • Entertainment All The Celebs Expecting Babies In 2023
  • Parenting 11 Celebrities Who Are Pregnant Or Have Given Birth In 2022
  • Sex & Marriage Inside Rebecca Lim's Star-Studded Wedding At The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singa...
  • Entertainment What Fann Wong, Joanne Peh, Tay Kewei & Other Celebs Did For Luna...
Don't Miss Out Ever Again!
Tips & tricks to stay sane + win invites to our events!

By signing up, you indicate that you have read and agreed with our Privacy Statement
Footer Menu
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Conditions of Access
  • PDPA
  • Privacy Policy
?>">
SPH Magazine

Copyright © 2023 SPH Media Limited. Co. Regn. No. 202120748H. All rights reserved.