Chai Yee Wei

Last updated
Chai Yee Wei
Born (1976-06-21) 21 June 1976 (age 46)
Education
Occupations
  • Film director
  • writer
  • producer
  • businessman
Known forFounder of Mocha Chai Laboratories and Hot Cider Films
SpouseDiane Chan
AwardsGrand Prix George Lucas Award
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 蔡於位
Simplified Chinese 蔡于位
Hanyu Pinyin Cài Yúweì
Website www.mochachailab.com
www.alittleseed.com

Chai Yee Wei (born 21 June 1976) is a Singaporean film director, writer and producer. He is also the founder of Mocha Chai Laboratories and A Little Seed, an authorised Apple iTunes aggregator. He also founded production company Hot Cider Films, Japanese curry specialty restaurant Curry Favor, as well as an IT company and wedding photography businesses. [1]

Contents

Career

Chai's debut feature film Blood Ties , which premiered on 10 September 2009, was funded under the Singapore Film Commission's New Feature Film Fund. Chai had also made countless comedy shorts, such as Loser, Lau Sai (Diarrhoea) and My Blue Heaven, amongst others.

Twisted, released in Malaysia in 2011, is Chai's second feature film. It won "Best Feature" at the 2012 Detroit Nightmare Film Festival and was selected for the 2012 Rhode Island International Horror Film Festival, 2012 Grimm Up North International Horror Film Festival, and 2012 Focus on Asia Fukuoka International Film Festival.

That Girl in Pinafore is Chai's third feature film released in 2013. Set in the 1990s, it is a comedy-musical starring Daren Tan, Julie Tan, Hayley Woo and Jayley Woo. The film premiered at the 2013 Shanghai International Film Festival and shown at the Festival Nits de Oriental, Taoyuan International Film Festival, and Focus on Asia Fukuoka International Film Festival.

The Voice of China producers watched That Girl in Pinafore in Shanghai and sought Chai to direct a music movie, Voice of China Turn You Around, with the singers from the first two seasons of The Voice of China. The film was pre-sold to the Fox TV Network and had a limited theatrical release in China in January 2014.

In June 2018, Chai was awarded the Grand Prix George Lucas Award at the 20th Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia for his short film Benjamin's Last Day At Katong Swimming Complex , a wistful, nostalgic story about a young boy's sexual awakening, as well as the impact on our heritage triggered by Singapore's rapid urban development. It premiered at the Singapore International Film Festival in November 2018. This award propelled Benjamin's Last Day At Katong Swimming Complex for eligibility for the 2019 Academy Awards. [2]

That same year, Chai was chosen to be one of 15 Directors to be part of "15 Shorts: Films For Good" organised by the National Volunteer and Philanthropic Centre. His film Sister is based on the friendship between Catholic nun Sister Gerard and convicted murderer Catherine Tan.

Personal life

Chai is married to Diane Chan. [3] He was educated at Catholic High School and Catholic Junior College. [4] He is a huge fan of Xinyao, and his interest in this influenced him to create the 2013 film That Girl in Pinafore . [4]

Filmography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Parade</span> Planning Area and HDB Estate in Central Region ----, Singapore

Marine Parade is a planning area and residential estate located in the Central Region of Singapore. Straddling the tip of the southeastern coast of Pulau Ujong, Marine Parade serves as a buffer between the Central and East regions of the city-state. Bordering it are the planning areas of Geylang to the north, Kallang to the northwest, Bedok to the northeast, Marina East to the southwest and the Singapore Straits to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinema of Singapore</span> Filmmaking industry in Singapore

Despite having a flourishing Chinese and Malay film industry in the 1950s and 1960s, Singapore's film industry declined after independence in 1965. Film production increased in the 1990s, which saw the first locally-produced feature-length films. There were a few films that featured Singaporean actors and were set in Singapore, including Saint Jack, They Call Her Cleopatra Wong and Crazy Rich Asians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royston Tan</span> Singaporean filmmaker

Royston Tan is a Singaporean filmmaker, director, screenwriter, producer and actor.

Xinyao is a genre of songs that is unique to Singapore. It is a contemporary Mandarin vocal genre that emerged and rose to fame in Singapore between the late 1970s to 1980s. Xinyao songs are composed and sung by Singaporeans and it is an outlet for them to express their thoughts and feelings around themes like friendships or love stories. Xinyao is a Chinese noun comprising two words: Xīn (新) which is an abbreviation for Singapore, and yáo (谣) for song. The extended form is Xīnjiāpō gēyáo (新加坡歌谣), which simply means "Singapore songs".

Kelvin Sng is a Singaporean film director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tan Pin Pin</span> Singaporean filmmaker

Tan Pin Pin is a Singapore-based film director. She is best known for the documentary film Singapore GaGa (2005). It was the first Singaporean documentary to have a theatrical run. In 2014, her documentary To Singapore, With Love (2013) was denied for all ratings by the Media Development Authority, effectively banning it in Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rene Liu</span> Musical artist

Rene Liu Ruo-ying is a Taiwanese singer-songwriter, actress, director and writer. In the Sinophone world, Liu is widely known by her affectionate nickname "Milk Tea". Her music often focuses on love stories and has built an image around herself as a single woman. She is known for her mature, professional, urbane, single woman persona.

Kelvin Tong Weng Kian is a Singaporean film director, screenwriter and producer. He was a former film critic for the Straits Times.

Edmund Chen is a Singaporean former actor and artist. He began his career in 1987 and rose to become one of Singapore's most prominent and popular actors during the 1990s and early 2000s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serene Koong</span> Musical artist

Serene Koong is a Singaporean singer, songwriter and producer. She is a three time Global Chinese Golden Chart Award, three time Singapore Hit Awards, Singapore Star Awards winner, and Asian Academy Creative Awards National Winner.

Boo Junfeng is a Singaporean filmmaker. Boo's films, Sandcastle (2010) and Apprentice (2016) have been screen at the Cannes Film Festival, beginning with his debut, Sandcastle, which was an International Critics' Week nominee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Kwek</span> Singaporean filmmaker

Ken Kwek is a Singaporean screenwriter, director, playwright and author. His short film compendium, Sex.Violence.FamilyValues, was banned by the Singapore and Malaysian governments in 2012. His first feature film Unlucky Plaza premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2014. His second feature #LookAtMe premiered at the New York Asian Film Festival in 2022, to critical acclaim. He has written several full-length plays, including the #MeToo drama, This Is What Happens To Pretty Girls, which premiered in Singapore in 2019. He is also the author of several best-selling children’s books including Kelly and the Krumps, which won the Hedwig Anuar Book Award in 2020.

<i>That Girl in Pinafore</i> 2013 Singaporean film

That Girl in Pinafore is a 2013 Singaporean comedy-musical film directed by Chai Yee Wei and starring Daren Tan, Julie Tan, Hayley Woo, Jayley Woo, Kenny Khoo, Seah Jiaqing and Kelvin Mun.

<i>Long Long Time Ago</i> 2016 Singaporean film


Long Long Time Ago is a 2016 Singaporean period film directed by Jack Neo. The film commemorates Singapore's 50th birthday and stars Aileen Tan, Mark Lee and Wang Lei as the main casts. It is released on 4 February 2016 in Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirsten Tan</span>

Kirsten Tan is a New York-based Singaporean film director and screenwriter. She is best known for her 2017 feature film debut, Pop Aye, which won the Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, and was Singapore's official submission to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenny Khoo</span> Singaporean singer-songwriter based in Taiwan

Qiu Fengze, born Kenny Khoo, is a Singaporean singer-songwriter based in Taiwan. Khoo gained popularity after appearing in a role-playing game on the Taiwanese variety show 100% Entertainment in 2019.

My Dog Dou Dou, is a 2012 Singaporean drama comedy film directed by Ng Say Yong.

The Big Day, initially known as A Simple Wedding, is a 2018 Singaporean romance comedy film directed by Lee Thean-jeen.

Wee Li Lin is a Singaporean director known for directing the feature films Gone Shopping and Forever, as well as several short films, such as Centrepoint KidZ.

References

  1. Lui, John (8 January 2014). "The Life! Interview with Chai Yee Wei: A life of fate, drama and irony". Singapore Press Holdings. The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 10 January 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  2. hermes (2018-06-19). "Singapore director Chai Yee Wei's first short film in 10 years wins big". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  3. Koh, Dan (8 June 2011). "POSKAD: Chai Yee Wei & Diane Chan". Studio Wong Huzir. POSKOD.SG. Archived from the original on 2014-09-05. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  4. 1 2 Sarah Loh, Genevieve (2013-07-31). "Salute to Singapore: Director Chai Yee Wei's homegrown gem". Today Online. Retrieved 2013-08-12.