Four Singapore directors making an anthology movie about love

Movie anthology 4 Love will be directed by four up-and-coming directors: Raihan Halim, Gilbert Chan, Sam Loh and Daniel Yam. PHOTO: MM2 ENTERTAINMENT

SINGAPORE - Following the resounding success of 7 Letters, Singapore will be seeing another anthology movie soon - this time, centred around the theme of love.

Titled 4 Love, the upcoming work will feature four separate stories by four up-and-coming directors: Raihan Halim, Gilbert Chan, Sam Loh and Daniel Yam.

Each segment in the $1-million anthology is said to represent a different stage in a romance.

Raihan's, for example, features Ah Boys To Men star Maxi Lim in a sweet, puppy love romance with Cheryl Wee.

Chan's is about a man who is about to propose to his longtime girlfriend.

Loh's segment will focus on a rocky marriage with a cheating wife (played by Oon Shu An) and Yam's will feature a couple (Joshua Tan and Hayley Woo) going through a divorce.

The movie is slated for release next year.

The idea for the project, says producer Gary Goh of mm2 Entertainment, came about when he wanted to do something that "could really celebrate the idea of love".

At a press conference on Monday morning (Oct 19), he says that it will be different from all the other films released this year. "We have seen many films this year which celebrate Singapore's achievement and progress, as it is SG50 year. So this project will be quite different. It's still a Singapore story, but it'll be a lighthearted one about love," he adds.

"It's been a while since Singapore has seen a romantic comedy story on the big screen like this. The last one may have been The Wedding Game (2009), but it's been years since that film came out."

Was the anthology format inspired by 7 Letters, which had featured seven directors helming seven separate stories?

Mr Goh, 36, says with a chuckle: "No, that's just a coincidence. What we did want was to work with this group of directors again, because we've worked with them before in other projects.

"They all have their own style and it'll be interesting to see how their works come together."

Raihan, 33, is known for his feature film Banting (2014), about a young Malay girl who secretly pursues her passion for professional wrestling.

Chan, 40, directed horror movies 23:59 (2011) and Ghost Child (2013).

Loh, 48, helmed erotic thriller Lang Tong (2014) and Yam, 41, is behind short films including Gift (2013) and Promise (2014).

Each director came up with the stories for their segments in 4 Love on their own, after they were given general guidelines on the theme.

Mr Goh says: "Hopefully, when people watch the film, they will feel the buzz of falling in love all over again. But as you know, there's pain in love too, so they may shed some tears. The film will cover all aspects of love and I think it will touch audiences."

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