The National Youth Film Awards (NYFA) is a programme hosted by *SCAPE that celebrates excellence among youth talents who are highly adept in their respective fields across the various aspects of filmmaking in Singapore. An integral part of this programme is the NYFA Conference that aims to equip young filmmakers with the networks and skills that they can apply for their next film submission into NYFA. Youths are connected and get to learn invaluable industry knowledge and insights from industry experts.

This year, NYFA Conference went digital! The sessions are all now available for you to catch up on!

Session 1 – Stories For The People By The People

Crowd-sourcing started as a trend induced through the internet and has become a norm for knowledge sharing and decision-making. It has since evolved into directing and dictating major decisions satisfying consumer appetites. In Singapore, Mediacorp is partnering with Wattpad to adapt Wattpad’s hit romantic story “Slow Dancing” by Singaporean writer Noelle (@Hepburnettes) as a six-part series. “Slow Dancing” has garnered over 9.5 million reads to date and nearly 400,000 votes from fans.

With crowd-sourcing used for commercial such as content production, join the panel as they discuss how data drives decisions in storytelling if this is a way forward or has this been the norm all along and how writers and filmmakers should navigate in this evolving landscape.

Panellists:

1. Dexter Ong, Head of Asia, Wattpad
2. Kane Wheatley-Holder, Vice President, Screenwriters Association (Singapore)
3. Kevin Ho, Assistant lead (English Audience), Mediacorp
4. William Phuan, Executive Director, Singapore Book Council

Session 2 – Crystal-Balling The Next Wave: Trendspotting Content

In this joint effort, we will hear from key industry organisations who are in the content sphere developing, commissioning and owning media content. Together we will hope to scope out a list of some of the key trends impacting content from creation to consumption.

From a youth perspective, this crystal-balling session would be insightful to the paths trodden and roads opened from predecessors. Will young filmmakers break traditions to ride trends or future-scape their paths using age known tactics?

Panellists:

1. Doreen Neo, Chief Content Officer, Mediacorp
2. Josiah Ng, Head of Film and Social Content, DDB
3. Kenny Tan, Executive Producer – Head of Studios, Viddsee
4. Kenneth Goh, Executive Director, Association of Independent Producers Singapore (AIPRO)
5. Kimberly James, VP of Production, Original Productions Department, HBO Asia

https://youtu.be/Rva0EdvSBdU

Session 3 – Media Scholarships: Possibilities & Probabilities

Each year, under the Singapore Digital (SG:D) Scholarship, selected students are sent out to study and read subjects across the media and film education. With IMDA and some returning scholars, this session intends to shed light on the application process and perhaps share some tips and tricks towards being selected.

Panellists:

1. Dorcas Tan, Director (Human Capital Development), IMDA
2. Ivan Tan, Writer-Director (SG:D Media Scholar)
3. Jonathan Choo, Director (SG:D Media Scholar)
4. Low Ser En, Independent Producer (SG:D Media Scholar)

Session 4 – Getting The Right Screens For Your Short Film

A completed film is the end of the beginning. What lies beyond the film is a new life to navigate and find the best places to screen it and get recognised. In this session, we speak to a variety of film programmers to help you plan your festival strategy.

The panel will share some tips on film programming and the festival circuit, relating to experiences in selection, packaging and targeting the correct audience for your films. Rather than promote a one-size-fits-all short film, which is rare, discussions will be about how filmmakers can begin considering their target audience and eventual destinations before they submit their short films.

Panellists:

1. Huang Ruilin, Media Development Consultant, Honour SG
2. Ming-Jung Kuo, Programming Director, SGIFF
3. Nikki Loke, Digital Content Lead, Viddsee
4. Prashant Somosundram, General Manager, The Projector

Session 5 – Young Filmmakers Going International

In recent years, there has been an increasing number of young local filmmakers who have been recognised on international stages. In this session, we will chat with past NYFA winners and Singapore filmmakers who have gone international with their works. They will share their experiences showcasing their stories to a foreign audience.

Panellists:

1. Jerrold Chong, director, ‘Piece of Meat’
2. Jonathan Choo, director, ‘Han’
3. Tan Wei Ting, director, ‘Cash’
4. Shoki Lin, director, ‘Adam’

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Above sessions, were moderated by Juan Foo, a film producer.