Mark Lee's Number 1 amongst a slate of Singapore-made movies to be released in 2020, mm2 announces post-Circuit Breaker film slate

[20 October 2020] Singapore’s leading media entertainment and content company mm2 Entertainment Pte Ltd (“mm2 Entertainment”, a wholly-owned subsidiary of mm2 Asia Ltd. “mm2 Asia”) is delighted to announce the release dates for a slate of Singapore films for 2020 and 2021.
 
“We are extremely excited to share this slate of Singapore-made movies, including the first local film to release in 2020. It has not been a good year for Singapore moviegoers, with the pandemic causing havoc to the releases to Hollywood and Asian movies. Every year there is a steady stream of new Singapore movies released in cinemas. This year, however, due to the pandemic and the circuit breaker, there has not been any local releases to date. We are therefore proud to be releasing this slate of Singapore films, for Singaporeans,” says Mr Ng Say Yong, Chief Content Officer of mm2 Asia.
 
“These films are uplifting stories that are certain to entertain moviegoers, and very relevant to our times. It is especially important in this time when we need to be socially distant, that we are still able to connect with the community through the shared cinematic experience. Laughing together, crying together - the group effect of watching a film together in a theatre: that is what cannot be replicated at home or on a mobile screen,” he continues.
 
Number 1 will be the first Singapore film to be released in 2020. The film portrays a man who gets retrenched and must take on an unorthodox job as a means of survival. The movie will resonate with moviegoers, in this current climate where the local jobless rate is the highest in more than a decade. Local funnyman Mark Lee delivers a career-defining performance in the challenging role of the film’s lead; and has been nominated for top acting honours at this year’s Golden Horse Awards in November.
 
Additionally, mm2 has announced an exciting slate of local films scheduled for release up to June 2021. The list of films includes comedies, dramas, horrors and thrillers - offering a wide variety of cinematic options guaranteed to please even the most discerning movie lover. Included in the list are Jack Neo’s The Diam Diam Era 1 & 2 slated for the year-end school holidays and Chinese New Year respectively, as well as Mark Lee’s directorial debut Running Ghost.

mm2 Entertainment October 2020 – June 2021 SG Film Releases
 

Number 1《男儿王》
Release Date 22nd October 2020
*2 Golden Horse Awards nominations*
Best Actor (Mark LEE)
Best Makeup and Costume Design (Raymond KUEK, Azni SAMDIN)
 
Number 1 is a heart-warming musical family comedy that follows the story of Chow Chee Beng, a middle-aged white collar manager retrenched by his company. After many failed interviews, Chee Beng unwillingly takes a job as a manager at ‘Number One’, a popular drag club. Soon, Chee Beng is roped into dressing up to join the drag queens on stage. And to everyone’s surprise, Chee Beng is a natural drag queen and his performance wows the audiences!
 
Starring Mark LEE, Henry THIA, Jasper LAI | Directed by ONG Kuo Sin
Distributed by mm2 and Cathay Cineplexes

The Diam Diam Era《我们的故事之沉默的年代》
Release Date End November 2020 (TBC)
 
The story of the Lim family from Long Long Time Ago 《我们的故事》continues in this two-part film series. Conflict grows between Ah Kun and his nephew Shun Fa. Themes of a generation gap between those born in the 1950s and the following generation are explored in their varying reactions to nation-building policies implemented from the 1980s to the present day.
 
Starring Mark LEE, Henry THIA, Suhaimi YUSOF | Directed by Jack NEO
Distributed by Golden Village Pictures, Shaw Organisation, J Team, mm2, and Cathay Cineplexes 

 Precious Is The Night《今宵多珍重》
Release Date 10th December 2020
*2 Golden Horse Awards nominations*
Best Cinematography (Wayne PENG)
Best Makeup and Costume Design (LIM Sau-hoong)
 
Precious Is The Night is a thriller set in 1960’s Singapore. The film stars internet sensation model-photographer Chuando Tan 陈传多 as a 30-something doctor caught in a web of deceit, sex and lies. The murder drama revolves around the doctor who is engaged to make house calls to a mysterious wealthy family.
 
Starring Chuando TAN, Nanyeli, CHANG Tzulei, XIANG Yun, CHEN Yixin, TAY Ping Hui
Directed by Wayne PENG 彭文淳
Distributed by mm2 and Cathay Cineplexes

The Diam Diam Era Too《我们的故事之沉默的年代2》
Release Date CNY 2021 (TBC)
 
Following events in The Diam Diam Era, the story of the Lim family continues…
 
Starring Mark LEE, Henry THIA, Suhaimi YUSOF | Directed by Jack NEO
Distributed by Golden Village Pictures, Shaw Organisation, J Team, mm2, and Cathay Cineplexes
 

Running Ghost 《翻身争霸战》
Releases Q1 2021
 
A timid man finds himself in the afterlife. To win a second chance at life, he must be the winner in the underworld’s reality game show: Running Ghost.
 
Starring WONG You-nam, Cecilia SO | Directed by Mark LEE.
 
 
Hell Hole《鬼地方》
Releases Q1 2021
 
A loving mother makes a death pact with a spirit by sacrificing her life to save her child. Years later, he grows up and is bullied whilst studying in medical school, resulting in his death. Reunited in death as vengeful spirits, mother and son open up a hell hole to those who had wronged them.
 
Starring Justin Cheung, Jennifer Yu | Directed by Sam LOH
 

Ibu
Releases Q1 2021
 
A woman who loses her husband in a tragic accident tries to bond with her teenaged stepdaughter to no avail. Eventually her stepdaughter’s loneliness and longing for a motherly figure attracts the attention of a deadly Pontianak, the spirit of a woman who died in childbirth. Now she must show what it takes to be a mother and protector before she loses her stepdaughter forever.
 
Starring Alicia Amin, Nur Sabrina | Directed by Raihan Halim.
 

Shadows 《残影空间》
Releases Q2 2021
 
A psychiatrist who possesses the ability to enter the subconscious mind must look into her traumatic past and overcome her inner demons in order to stop a serial killer on the loose.
 
Starring Stephy Tang, Tse Kwan-ho, Philip Keung | Directed by Glenn Chan

Fatekeepers 《风水灵灵灵》
Releases Q2 2021
 
5 chosen individuals holding the secret to Singapore’s mysterious Feng Shui formation must unite and fulfil their destiny of defending it with their lives
 
Starring Richie KOH, Julie TAN, Noah YAP, Andie CHEN | Directed by Daniel Yam.
 

Circle Line《生死环线》
Releases Q2 2021
 
Trapped in the underground train tunnel system, a single mother’s resolve to protect her son is tested to the extreme as both of them are the few remaining survivors of an attack by a monster. Meanwhile in the control room, duty engineers fight desperately to rescue the trapped survivors.
 
Starring Jesseca LIU, Peter YU, Andie CHEN | Directed by JD CHUA.

These local movies are expected to do well at the box office due to the delay of Hollywood blockbusters, as well as the pent-up demand for cinema entertainment.