COST OF FINAL-YEAR SCHOOL PROJECT
$26,000 V $6,000
DIRECTOR: NTU student Cecilia Ang (middle) directing her short film Purple Light.
PICTURES: JASON QUAH
SUPPORTING ROLES: Ah Boys To Men's Maxi Lim (second from right) and Noah Yap (third from right) in the short film, Purple Light
NTU students hire Ah Boys To Men actors to be in short film
REPORTS: THEODORA D'CRUZ
THEY were willing to spend whatever it took to realise their passion for producing an impactful, quality short-film for their final-year project (FYP).
Even if it meant forking out close to $10,000 each from their pockets. Or, having to hire actors like Ah Boys to Men stars Maxi Lim and Noah Yap to play supporting roles.
Their 24-minute film focusing on relationships in the army cost a hefty $26,000.
The two undergraduates from Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWSCI) felt that every cent spent on actualising their film, Purple Light, was worth it.
They submitted their project yesterday and are waiting for it to be graded.
'Like giving birth'
Director Cecilia Ang, 23, said: "The experience is worth it. I think it's sort of like giving birth. When you see your baby at the end, it makes all the pain and hard work worthwhile."
Miss Ang said the bulk of the money went into hiring cast and their 20-strong film crew, most of whom were freelancers.
The money also covered expenses for wardrobe, transport, welfare and production supplies. She said although she was aware of the costs in making a film, she initially expected to fork out only about $5,000 of her own money.
To fund their exorbitant project, Miss Ang and team-mate Charlene Yiu, 24, took on various jobs and video competitions during the school semester, raising some $5,000.
Miss Yiu, who was also the producer and art director, said: "It was tiring, but I'm used to juggling work and study. It boils down to time management."
They also tried also getting public donations but were more successful raising about $1,600 in funding from two school grants.
Miss Ang and Miss Yiu's expenditure sheds light on the importance of FYPs, a necessary component in the academic curriculum of some undergraduate courses.
Usually worth more than the credits of a single module, it has the potential to affect their overall grade point average.
This is why some university and polytechnic final-year students-spend large amounts on their FYPs.
Ms Nikki Draper, a senior lecturer at WKWSCI's division of broadcast and cinema studies, said that while there is no cap on the amount students can spend, "there are loads of great ideas that don't cost a ton of money to execute".
She said: "Part of the FYP process is determining the execution of a feasible idea, given your resources. Everyone can probably think of some Hollywood big-budget movie flop.
"The mentality that a good idea needs a big budget ... is often a liability to producing work. People miss interesting opportunities that way."
Students can also apply for grants either from their schools or from outside organisations to help fund their work.
Monitoring student' spending
Some supervising professors also help ensure that students don't go overboard with spending.
Ngee Ann Polytechnic's FYP coordinator Andrew Millians said: "At Ngee Ann, we have to take into account the financial situation of all of our students when approving and supervising projects. We don't want one student with deep pockets to effectively write cheques that everyone in the group ends up having to cash."
He said he sees a trend where students are not spending as much money for their FYPs.
He added that the school does provide a budget for students to spend within guidelines.
But some will spend more than others, due to factors such as the nature of the course and the available funding or sponsorship, either from the school or external organisations.
Photography major Bryan Ho from NTU paid $1,300 to frame 35 photographs for his FYP.
The 25-year-old from the School of Art, Design & Media (ADM) said although framing was not part of the project assessment, it would be exhibited in the
annual ADM graduation showcase.
Mr Ho said: "Most of us were framing it up for the whole gallery experience. I don't usually spend this much on my projects, but it was the final push."
For Miss Felicia Pan, 23, an NUS engineering undergraduate, her FYP was free of money woes.
Working independently on a biological experiment, she researched on viruses in different water types and used the school's laboratory equipment. The project is being graded.
But Miss Vernice Thiam, 20, a design student from Singapore Polytechnic, spent $1,000 creating a full-scale, 2.5m tall metal swing, only to get a C+ grade for it.
Miss Thiam said she did not have enough money to properly finish her project.
Her swing cost $500 and transporting it from the workshop to school another $300. The rest was spent on materials and printing.
She could not afford to paint it so she presented an incomplete swing.
This was a huge pinch as she forked out most of the money herself, with $100 given by her parents.
The swing was scrapped after being exhibited and graded, but Miss Thiam said she has no emotional connection with it.
She said: "There was no point in keeping it. It would have just been a waste of space, and because it wasn't coated with paint, it would start rusting."
Her father, Mr Eric Thiam, 54, a logistics officer, said: "I was very surprised that she had to actually build the full-scale swing.
"Who's going to foot the bill? To me it's a waste of money and time and a very heavy burden for a working-class family like mine."
-Additional reporting by Celine Chen
FILM STUDENTS: The five Ngee Ann Poly students behind the short film Bird, including producer Tan Si En (extreme left) and director Kristen Ong (third from left).
PICTURE: RAAPOW.COM
Poly students borrow props, work to raise funds for film
FOR this group of student film-makers, it was crucial that they worked within the budget.
And money, or a lack of it, did not hinder them from producing a final-year project (FYP) deserving of an A grade.
The team of five from Ngee Ann Polytechnic's Film, Sound and Video course proved that money is not the-sole determinant of quality work.
Producer Tan Si En, 20, said: "To us, money doesn't make a film good. From the beginning, we gave ourselves a budget to work with."
Bird their 16-mlnute film, centres on unrequited love.
Shot in an abandoned house in eastern Singapore, it was Inspired by director Kristen Ong's earlier obession with sneaking into and photographing abandoned houses across the island after school.
lt also starred Suria actress Messa Anwar.
Despite spending close to $6,000, each team member only had fork out about $500 as the rest was subsidised by the school.
While they did not have to spend on location and prop, Miss Tan said they paid their actors a "nominal sum".
But this to them was reasonable amount. Miss Tan said: "We are one of the groups who probably spent the least producing our short film. The average cost ranges around $13,000 and last year's record was $20.000."
Resourceful
The team also took on several corporate work stints to help shoulder the financial burden and managed to raise $1,000.
Miss Ong, 20, is proud her team managed to remain resourceful.
"We had a lot of networking and tried to source for items instead of paying for them. We needed a tricycle to ferry some of our equipment and we managed to borrow one.
"I am genuinely proud of our work and it doesn't feel too much of a financial burden. Film requires a lot of equipment and resources, but the work you make can also be seen as an investment to be used in your portfolio, shown to future investors, sent to film festivals, et cetera."
Does spending more money mean better grades?
"I don't think so. At the end of the day, the concept, how you execute it and how you want to tell your story is more important than the budget.
- Mr Royston Tan, 36, film-maker. He spent $5,000 on a short film, Sons, which won more than 10 international awards
"Definitely not. The important thing is to focus on building the story and getting good subjects."
- Mr Pedro Shiu, 26, NTU graduate who spent less than $2,000 on his FYP documentary and scored an A-.
"I believe that there should be a limit to how much a student should spend because it also matters whether or not the family is financially sound."
- Madam Sally Ng, 50, a childcare teacher who has a daughter studying in a polytechnic
"Some people are not financially ready to come up with that kind of money and it won't be fair to them. The project should bring out the student's capabilities."
- Mrs Mary Anne Peroira, 49, a kindergarten teacher with two children in university
News, The New Paper, Tuesday, April 23 2013, Pg 2-3