He Shuming’s debut feature film Ajoomma selected as Singapore’s Oscar entry

The Singapore Film Commission has selected filmmaker He Shuming’s debut feature film Ajoomma as Singapore’s entry for the Oscar’s Best International Feature Film category, according to a press release on Tuesday (Oct 4)

The comedy film revolves around a middle-aged widow obsessed with Korean pop culture, played by veteran Singaporean actress Hong Huifang,  and how she works towards self-discovery.

It is also produced by local film director Anthony Chen, who previously worked on films like Wet Season and Ilo Ilo – Singapore’s Oscar’s entries in 2020 and 2013 respectively. 

The film is supported by Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)’s New Director grant, and is the first ever Singapore-South Korea co-production. 

Ajoomma is set to make its world premiere in the New Currents competition of the Busan International Film Festival, which runs from Oct 5 to 14.

It has received four nominations at the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan, including Best New Director and Best Original Screenplay. Hong Huifang and Korean actor Jung Dong-hwa have also both won the Best Leading Actress and Best Supporting Actor awards respectively. 

The film will be released in Singapore cinemas on Oct 27, through Golden Village Pictures.