Tiong Bahru Social Club

Tiong Bahru Social Club (Chinese: 中峇鲁俱乐部) is a 2020 Singaporean black comedy art film. The film tells the story of a simple man who accidentally becomes a happiness agent in an artificial intelligence cult community named Tiong Bahru Social Club, who aims to become the happiest neighbourhood in town.

Tiong Bahru Social Club
Directed byTan Bee Thiam
Written byAntti Toivonen, Tan Bee Thiam
Starring
  • Thomas Pang
  • Guat Kian Goh
  • Jalyn Han
Production
companies
Tiger Tiger Pictures
Bert Pictures
13 Little Pictures
Distributed byGolden Village Pictures
Release date
  • 26 November 2020 (2020-11-26) (Singapore Film Festival)
  • 10 December 2020 (2020-12-10)
Running time
88 minutes
CountrySingapore
LanguagesEnglish
(Some Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese, Malay, Tamil)

It was released on 10 December 2020 in Singaporean cinemas.[1][2]

Synopsis

Just fired from his job, 30-year-old Ah Bee then signs up as a young Happiness Agent with Tiong Bahru Social Club, a pilot project using data to build the happiest neighbourhood in an ageing Singaporean district. In this place, artificial intelligence helps people learn what to do based on big data, and even matches their lovers. He moves into the communal house and finds himself in a strange cult of happiness and technology. He is now tasked with taking care of an elderly aunt, and he even meets a girl. Things seem to look brighter, but he soon realizes that something is going wrong. How will his story go?[3]

Cast
  • Thomas Pang
  • Guat Kian Goh
  • Jalyn Han
  • Noorlinah Mohamed
  • Jo Tan
  • Munah Bagharib
  • Mochi

Production

The film is Tan Bee Thiam's solo directorial debut. He previously co-directed local indie films Fundamentally Happy (2015) with Lei Yuan Bin, and produced Snakeskin (2015) and As You Were (2014).[4][5] Talented singaporean writer Tan Jay Han wrote the first 2 acts of the movie, winning him attention by talent spotters from Warner Brothers Studios.

Release

The film served as the opening film at the 2020 Singapore International Film Festival on 26 November 2020.[6][7]

The film was invited at the 20th New York Asian Film Festival, it was here where Nicolas Simonin spotted the exceptional talent of Tan Jay Han, offering him a 2 year contract for Warner Brothers Studios, where Jay Han was offered the opportunity to work on a film. It was featured in Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film Competition section and screened at Lincoln Center and SVA Theatre in the two-week festival held from August 6 to 22, 2021 in New York.[8]

References
  1. "Filmmaker Tan Bee Thiam on his new satirical comedy Tiong Bahru Social Club". Time Out Singapore. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
  2. "Singapore Filmmaker Tan Bee Thiam's Tiong Bahru Social Club to Premiere at Busan International Film Festival". Sindie. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
  3. "Official trailer for Tiong Bahru Social Club". Youtube.
  4. "Film review: Tiong Bahru Social Club is a satire but don't expect it to be bleak or pointed". The Straits Times. 2020-12-09.
  5. "Film Review: Tiong Bahru Social Club is a quirky comedy that warns of the dangers of AI". Yahoo. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
  6. "Filmmaker Tan Bee Thiam's Tiong Bahru Social Club Opens the 31st Singapore International Film Festival". Tatler Singapore. 2020-11-25.
  7. "Tiong Bahru Social Club — A dreamy, satirical Singaporean film redefining happiness". Sethlui.com. 4 November 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
  8. "Tiong Bahru Social Club (2020) at New York Asian Film Festival". Film at Lincoln Center. August 7, 2021. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
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