'The Wasteland' to enter Singapore Int’l filmfest

Iranian feature 'The Wasteland' has been scheduled to enter the competition program of the 2020 annual Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF).

Ahmad Bahrami's second directorial experience will be screened at the 31st edition of the SGIFF, which will run in a hybrid format with movie theater and online screenings from November 26 to December 6, 2020.

The organizers of the festival have announced that a total of 70 films will be screened during the 11-day event, which is less than the usual number of films screening at the festival. This happened due to the coronavirus pandemic which has hit the film industry hard.

‘The Wasteland’ tells the story of a lonely man who works as a supervisor in a bricklaying factory as a go-between. The owner of the factory once brings together all the workers and tells them something that changes their lives.

The flick has recently been praised by film critics at the 77th Venice International Film Festival in Italy, where it received the FIPRESCI award of the event.

In October, the film made two festival entries at the 65th Valladolid International Film Festival (Seminci) in Spain as well as the 11th Middle East Now (Festival of Cinema and Contemporary Culture on the Middle East) in Italy.

‘The Wasteland’ is currently on screen at the 2020 annual Tokyo International Film Festival in Japan, running until November 9, 2020. 

Established in 1987, the SGIFF is the largest and longest-running film event in Singapore.

The festival has a focus on showcasing international films and providing a global platform for the best of Singapore, Southeast Asian and East Asian cinema.

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