Culture Vault: Kathleen Bu on Her Honest Take On Filmmaking & Making The Audience Feel Something

PUBLISHED July 22nd, 2023 06:00 am | UPDATED August 9th, 2023 12:37 pm

Lights, camera, action! Beyond Singapore’s bustling entertainment and events scene lies a burgeoning film industry that is yearning to captivate the hearts of both locals and international film buffs. Just like any other industry in Singapore, it’s no doubt that our film industry is rather small. Yet in recent years, it has also punched above its weight with a number of critically acclaimed films like ‘Ilo Ilo’, and ‘Apprentice’, encouraging many budding filmmakers in the nation to pursue their dreams and put Singapore’s name on the creative realm of filmmaking.

One such filmmaker is Kathleen Bu, participant of NYFA Film Facilitation Programme 2021 Edition and National Youth Film Awards 2020 Winner of – Best Director (Student Category); Best Live Action (Student Category); and Best Editing (Student Category).

Having first developed the knack for storytelling in her schooling years, Kathleen Bu got her start in theatre through her drama teacher who taught her the complexity of a line or even the power of silence. Now, the filmmaker and scriptwriter has risen as a leading voice in Singapore’s filmmaking industry with her works making their debut in major film festivals around the work including Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival 2022, Final Girls Berlin Film Festival 2023 and the Minikino Film Week 2022.

One of Kathleen’s most remarkable achievements came with her short film ‘Lady E’s Wedding Revenge Plan’, inspired by her relationship with her elder sister and her own ‘horrendous, heart-wrenching experience of being a teenager’. An honest endeavour into a teenager’s heart, the narrative of the story came about when the filmmaker revisited her old diaries in search for a character that said a lot in her head, but not much out loud. To her, it was almost a therapeutic analysing of all the complex emotions she had been holding inside of her since the age of 15. To this day, Kathleen believes it is the most honest film she’s ever made. No wonder it has garnered several accolades at *SCAPE’s National Youth Film Awards in 2020.

“The voice over lines were largely lifted from my own personal diary, and the emotions Lady E felt were also felt by me at one point or another. I knew that this was the selling point of my film, and it taught me an important lesson in filmmaking – If you are honest with yourself, people will see your honesty and they will see your heart for what it is.”

But it’s not always smooth sailing. In the first few years of working in the industry, it was extremely difficult for Kathleen to be confident of her decisions with self-doubt claiming another youngling into its deadly grasp. But her passion and love for filmmaking came out stronger, allowing her to fight for what’s best for her films and gain confidence in her decisions. Though she may still have her doubtful moments, Kathleen now takes them as a lesson that most of the time, growth cannot be perceived from such a close distance.

Since her big win at NYFA 2020, *SCAPE continued to invest in and support Kathleen with the Film Facilitation Programme (FFP) to produce her first horror short film ‘You Will See’. Under the mentorship of award-winning Malaysian filmmaker, Bradley Liew, Kathleen’s recent success made it all the way to Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN) in 2022 marking a significant milestone in her career.

“Organisations like *SCAPE really invests in youth filmmakers and give us the opportunities to showcase our work. This is important because we must plant the seed of belief in people from a young age so we don’t lose out on so much pure and genuine talent that can push our country into new horizons.”

For aspiring filmmakers embarking on their creative journey, Kathleen’s advice is simple—never let the dread of filmmaking overshadow the joy of it. Whilst for the rest of society, she hopes for us to give local films a try, and teach children to appreciate arts from a young age. “My first love was Asian Cinema! Our stories have a certain juxtaposition between complexity and simplicity in them.” If you need some recommendations to get started, here are some of Kathleen’s picks:

• Eating Air by Jasmine Ng & Kelvin Tong. I caught this film recently. It is a ‘motorcycle kungfu love story’, and that’s all you need to know. It’s fun, trust me!
• Shirkers by Sandi Tan. The most stylish documentary ever made. Was there at the Singapore premiere as a film student. Starstruck and proud to call this a Singaporean film.
• A Land Imagined by Yeo Siew Hua. I watched this film when I was still a film student and it blew my mind. I never thought a ‘Singaporean Film’ could look like this! It was something different and mesmerising to watch.

Whilst she her top 4 films on Letterboxd are Mother by Bong Joon Ho, Laurence Anyways by Xavier Dolan, Hit The Road by Panah Panahi and Everything Everywhere by The Daniels.

Providing us with a sneak peek into her recent work, Kathleen has shared the working title of her new project called ‘Bleeding Milk’. The film will handle the sensitive subject of adolescence, sexuality and sexual assault, containing elements of Drama, Horror and Thriller. Be it her heartfelt passion for film, or her honest creations, we here at City Nomads are eagerly awaiting the next chapters of her filmmaking odyssey.

Keep up with Kathleen Bu on LinkedIn or her socials. 

All images courtesy of Kathleen Bu.