mIca (p) 113/10/2012
THE RIDGE MAGA ZINE
A NUSSU PUBLICATION 2015 ISSUE 1 Facebook
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CONTENTS NEWS
OPINION
32 TOPENG CALONARANG
08 WELLNESSLY
18 UNREASONED (FOREIGN) POLICIES
33 AIYO, NOT BAD
10 25TH SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
20 WOMEN IN STAR WARS
34 THE AFFAIR & THE WAY WE WERE REVIEW
24 YOU BOOZE YOU LOSE 12 NUSSU DAY 2015
35 PADDINGTON & AN EVIL MIND REVIEW
ENTERTAINMENT
14 SINGAPORE BLOOMBERG APTITUDE TEST CHALLENGE 2014 16 A MYRIAD OF OPPORTUNITIES AND EXPERIENCES
36 2014 IN SPORTS ANIME
26 NUS ARTS FESTIVAL 2015 - SPIRIT OF THE TIMES
38 GILLIAN FLYNN: BEYOND GONE GIRL
28 TAKING THE STEP 40 THE 2014 OSCARS 30 SELAMAT MALAM, PAGI
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40
48
LIFESTYLE
WIRED
42 FROM APPLIED MATH TO DJ’ING FOR A LIVING
51 LITTLELIVES
44 APP REVIEW - MORE MOOLAH WITH MOAR!
54 ONLINE SHOPPING WITH TAOBAO AND 65DAIGOU 56 SANCTUARY RPG
46 REVIEW - FROZEN: BY A THOUSAND BLESSINGS 48 THE GUYS’ GUIDE TO FASHIONABLE COMFORT
58 YUZUKI YUKARI AND THE NICHE OF VOCALOIDS
04 EDITOR’S NOTE
EDITOR’S NOTE I
t used to be that progressive individuals could unambiguously identify with being defenders of free speech. It is only when we have the complete freedom of contradicting and disproving our opinion, as Mill had it, that we are justified in assuming its veracity for the purposes of action. Since complete certainty in our beliefs can never be obtained due to human fallibility, the process of open discussion is necessary. Not even our most deeply-held beliefs are held sacrosanct and immune to criticism. The feelings of offense and hurt that may arise from the expression of racist, sexist or blasphemous opinions cannot serve as justification for restricting the freedom of expression. Implicit in this is a certain optimism that in the realm of open discourse, unsubstantiated criticisms or more broadly, unwarranted expressions of speech, will ultimately be shown, through reasoned arguments, to be the falsehoods they are. It is not difficult to see why this position has such enduring appeal amongst the liberal camp, but one should recognise that such a truth-
seeking, even emancipatory notion of free speech is highly idealised. In the marketplace of free ideas, it is not always the case that substance will win over style, nor that all the participants in the supposedly open discourse are on an equal footing, or indeed, are able to participate in any meaningful sense at all. There are contexts in which the free speech of individuals can have a silencing effect on the speech of others. Erring on the side of caution and advocating for stronger political correctness in turn results in the silencing of the politically offensive speech of the original offenders. In recent years, there has been a growing movement of radicalised liberals who believe that the promotion of social justice requires the suppression of regressive forms of expression. At the crux of the matter lies the issue of co-habitation of different communities within a pluralistic society rife with divisions made even starker by the resurgence of identity politics. It is particularly interesting when considering the case of Singapore with its citizenry largely apathetic to identity politics. Where one stands on the issue of freedom
of expression, I think, rests to a great extent on the cultural contexts that one inhabits. In accordance to The Ridge’s relatively laissez-faire policy towards article topics, the articles in this issue are reflective of our writers’ current inclinations, hence the focus on issues both entertaining and informative. I hope that the articles in this issue will offer a brief respite from the hard slough during the second half of the semester!
Debra Chua Chief Editor theridge.chiefeditor@nussu.org.sg
EDITORIAL TEAM 05
EDITORIAL BOARD Chief Editor Debra Chua theridge.chiefeditor@nussu.org.sg Deputy Chief Loh Kai Ying theridge.depchiefeditor@nussu. org.sg Creative Director Karen Tan theridge.creative@nussu.org.sg Head Designer Kelman Chiang theridge.headdesigner@nussu. org.sg News Desk Editor Velda Wong theridge.news@nussu.org.sg Acting Opinion Desk Editor Debra Chua theridge.opinion@nussu.org.sg Entertainment Desk Editor Tan Yan Ni theridge.entertainment@nussu. org.sg
CONTRIBUTORS Operations and Finance Manager Teo Minshuen a0088383@nus.edu.sg Webmaster Angelita Samsita angelita.samsita@gmail.com Social Media & Marketing Manager Kee Jia Yun keejiayun@gmail.com Acting NUSSU Communications Secretary Kellie Chong commsec@nussu.org.sg Social Media Managers Sufyan Selamet bookwormsuf@gmail.com Mary Lee mglee2@illinois.edu
News Desk Drishti Bahld
drishti@nus.edu.sg
Chen Zhi Rong Jenson
jennywawa@gmail.com
Pearly Seah
pearly.seah94@gmail.com
Tong Yi Jue
tongyijue@u.nus.edu
Opinion Desk Emily Rebecca Ranson Mason
a0133166@u.nus.edu
Jay Chauhan
jay.chauhan02@gmail.com
Chan Jan Lin
janchan@u.nus.edu
Entertainment Desk Regina Koh
regina.koh.yp@gmail.com
Marilyn Cheah
cheah.marilyn@gmail.com
Angelita Sasmita
angelita.sasmita@gmail.com
Lu Xinyi
rebeccaluxinyi@gmail.com
Kintan Andanari
kintanandanari@gmail.com
Valerie Lim
valerie_lim@nus.edu.sg
Ignatius Albert Wijaya
a0111253@nus.edu.sg
Chen Zhi Rong Jenson
jennywawa@gmail.com
Lifestyle Desk Chloe Ang
chloe.nathania.ang.2012@vjc.sg
Hannah Haw
hannahhaw@hotmail.com
Sufyan Selamat
bookwormsuf@gmail.com
Wired Desk Ng Ching Peng
zombieoutbreak@live.com
Yeo Jun Yan
a0111387@nus.edu.sg
Designers
Lifestyle Desk Editor Wendy Wong Shumin theridge.lifestyle@nussu.org.sg Sports Desk Editor Yang Kaiyuan theridge.sports@nussu.org.sg Wired Desk Editor Zhou Jiajia theridge.wired@nussu.org.sg Copy Editors Nurshahiylia Erdina & Yu Pei Fern theridge.copyeditor@nussu.org.sg
Ye Zichen
zichen@nus.edu.sg
Cheryl Low
cheryl.low@nus.edu.sg
Colin Ng
colin.ng@nus.edu.sg
Sun Lixin
victor.sunlixin@gmail.com
Jerlyn Ng
jerlyngelin@gmail.com
Love to write? Looking for an avenue to let your ideas be known? We welcome all enthusiastic writers who want to make a positive contribution on board. Send your portfolio to theridge.chiefeditor@nussu.org.sg (we won’t force you to use a typewriter)
Are you a creative individual with an eye for detail? We are on the lookout for designers to join our team. If you dabble in design or typography, you might be the person that we want. Send your portfolio to theridge.headdesigner@nussu.org.sg
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NEWS
helping you make informed decisions in beauty services VELDA WONG
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ellnessly.com is a beauty services review website set up by a trio of fresh graduates to help people discover the wide array of spas and salons in Singapore and make informed decisions before heading down to their preferred beauty service provider. The Ridge is delighted to speak to the founders of the website as they share more their entrepreneurship journey. What is Wellnessly? Wellnessly is a beauty and wellness reviews and booking website that lists over 1600 business outlets and 1800 reviews on our platform. We have the most number of reviews in Singapore for the Beauty and Wellness industry. You can discover new places (ranging from hair salons, massages, nail parlours to yoga classes), read reviews and book appointments right at our user-friendly platform. We are currently having a promotion for new sign-ups! Wellnessly.com is tying up with Revive Wellness to give away Free Manual Lymphatic Drainage Massage worth $250 to first 300 signups at www.wellnessly. com/revive. What sparked this business and how long has it been? We met a friend at a start-up class organized by NUS Enterprise. The conversation with him led us to discover a UK-based website that provides real-time beauty services booking. It brings additional sales to small businesses and convenience
to customers. We were inspired and decided to bring that idea to life in Singapore. It has been about three months since the launch of wellnessly.com. We had our Minimum Viable Product way back in January to test the feasibility. What were the difficulties faced on your journey to building up your company? We faced many difficulties and we still face them today. At the beginning, we spent an inordinate amount of time raising funds for our start-up but eventually were fortunate enough to secure ample funding from the SPRING ACE Start-up grant. The money really helped to get things started; ranging from a living allowance, buying of advertisement to product testing. Secondly, we had a disagreement on the vision of the company, which has since been resolved. It was a bad phase as time was wasted and everyone felt the dissatisfaction of the disagreement. Disagreements and fallouts are common in the startup scene, cited as top reasons for death of startups. Were there any sacrifices made along the way that, in retrospect, you think was worthwhile? The blatantly obvious would be sacrificing our full-time pay in exchange for a meager “salary” and giving up possible job opportunities. We won’t say it was all worth the
while until our product has gained traction. But so far, the journey has been pretty rewarding. We are learning more and more about ourselves each day. When you are on an entrepreneurial journey, you start to question yourself a lot more about your actions, your thinking and your irrational fears (if any). The mental side of you has to be able to cope as a lot more questions start to pour in. There are times of excitement too when we get an inspiration for an idea and we lose sleep over wanting to implement it eagerly the next day!
younger entrepreneurs?
What activities did you partake in while in NUS? How did you overcome the challenges faced in school?
Do self-assessment regularly to get your priorities right. Time spent on frivolous priorities is time wasted on not building your main product. As a founder, you are also running the day-to-day operations of the company, which can leave you drained at the end of the day. At the heart of it all, always remember to take a step back and think for your company in the perspectives of a founder.
David and I were part of the NUS Overseas College (NOC) Alumni. We had a yearlong stint in Silicon Valley, which inspired and further paved our way for what we are doing currently. It was an eye-opening experience working in Silicon Valley. We are still in contact with many of the people in Silicon Valley, which will certainly aid us in our business in the long run. University education did prepare us for the future and our decision to join NOC started as we developed a keen interest in entrepreneurship later on in life. In retrospect, the challenges in school paled in comparison to the working world and Silicon Valley. If you are fretting over grades then that really isn’t much of a worry. What advice do you have for
Networking and ecosystem is important. However prevalent it is in Silicon Valley, it is still small and growing juxtaposed to Singapore as the start-up scene is still relatively young here. We have enlisted the views of several startups with regards to our company’s direction, frequently helping to clear whatever doubts we had in our heads and keeping our eyes on what is vital and important in the long run. Mentors offer valuable advice, but peers in the field understand you most.
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About the Founders
Shawn Toh
Business Development, 26 NUS Business School Hobbies: Soccer, Dota, movies buff
Ng Zhenhui
Creative Director, 26 NTU School of Arts, Design and Media Hobbies: Weekly badminton, Quora-ing
David Chua
Chief Technology Officer, 26 Faculty: NUS School of Computing Hobbies: Programming, Meditation, Swimming
Wellnessly is currenly looking for writers to write beauty articles and guides for their website. Interested writers looking for freelance or part-time work are welcomed to contact founder Shawn Toh at shawn@wellnessly.com. Examples of articles they are looking for includes: 10 best salons under $30, celebrity hairstylists in Singapore, 10 places for Fish Spa. Writers are encouraged to suggest ideas for the articles and remuneration will be given.
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NEWS
25th international singapore film festival PEARLY SEAH
T
he 25th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) concluded with a bang on the weekend of December 13 and 14 in 2014, with the prestigious Silver Screen Awards as well as the screening of the closing film, In the Absence of the Sun. The Silver Screen Awards saw many deserving films, directors and actors going home with some of the most esteemed awards in Singapore’s film industry. With the hilarious comedian Adrian Pang as the host for the awards, the night started out with loud, merry laughter and very Singaporean humour. The laughter and glittering lights set the stage for a wondrous meeting of prestige, recognition and good cheer (the champagne served prior might have a hand in that). This year’s Silver Screen Awards saw two new categories, namely the Southeast Asia Film Lab’s Most Promising Project as well as the Youth Jury Award in the Southeast Asia Short Film category. In addition, this year’s short film category has been expanded to include short films all over Southeast Asia, rather than just in Singapore. After a bout of jesting by Adrian, which was aptly termed ‘Adrian Pang’s performance’ in the programme booklet, we moved on to the Awards ceremony proper. The first prize given out was the Southeast Asia Film Lab’s Most Promising Project. This inaugural award was given to Bradley Liew for his work-in-progress, Awit Ng Puntod, or Singing in Graveyards. He was also awarded with a cash prize of $5000 to fund the filming of Awit
NEWS
Ng Puntod. After all, filmming, while fulfilling, can be rather expensive. The next few awards given out were all under the Short Film Category. Best Singapore Short Film went to Tan Shi Jie’s Not Working Today, a beautifully shot short film about a migrant worker in Singapore seeking out his own rights. The inaugural Youth Jury Award of the Southeast Asia Short Film Category was awarded to Giancarlo Abrahan’s The Weight. Best Director Award was given to Aditya Ahmad for his film, On Stopping The Rain; Chulayarnnon Siriphol’s Vanishing Horizon of the Sea was awarded the Special Mention by the jury. The last, but definitely not least, award given out in the Short Film Category was for Best Southeast Asia Short Film. This prestigious award was given to Singapore filmmaker, Kirsten Tan, for her film Granny. After all the awards were given out for Southeast Asia Short Film Category, Cheng Pei Pei took the stage like the literal goddess she is. The Hong Kong actress gave a touching tribute to Sir Run Run Shaw, gifting us with personal stories of her personal encounters with him. Being one of the most
influential figures in the Asian entertainment industry, Sir Run founded the Shaw Brothers Studio as well as TVB. Many famous Asian actors like Cheng Pei Pei and Asian directors such as John Woo stemmed from Shaw Brothers Studio and TVB. The tribute to Sir Run ended with a wonderfully made video detailing his achievements and contributions to both philanthropy and entertainment throughout his long and prolific life. Jill Marie Thomas, representing FLY entertainment, then took to the stage, performing several covers for the benefit of the ears of the gathered audiences. The Awards ceremony then proceeded after Jill’s performance, awarding the Honorary Award to Im Kwon Taek to commemorate his contributions to the film industry in his long and active career. With his newest film, Revivre, Im Kwon Taek has directed 102 films in total. Touted as the “Korean Film master”, Im’s brilliance has also been recognized by SGIFF through the rewarding of the Best Asian Director for Chunhyang during the 2001 Silver Screen Awards. The last set of awards given out was all under Asian Feature Films
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category. Indonesian actress Sekar Sari brought home the Best Performance award for her role in Eddie Cahyono’s Siti. Best Director of Asian Feature Films went to Chaitanya Tamhane for Court. Court also went on to win Best Film in this category. Described as a “glittering gem dazzles with its simplicity” by the jury, it is not hard to see why Tamhane would bag two awards for his film. Special Mention of the Asian Feature Films category was awarded to Park Jung-Bum for his film, Alive. The closing address was jointly delivered by an absolutely delightful pair - Mike Wiluan and Adrian Pang. SG50 was mentioned in the closing speech as ushering in a new era of filmmaking and the year of many news. The ceremony was then brought to a close, followed by an after-party in the foyer. R
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nussu day 2015 Drishti Baid
Photo from nus.edu.sg
NEWS
T
he energy at the central forum sky-rocketed with the carnivalstyled NUSSU Day celebrations attracting hundreds of NUS undergraduates with their fun-filled games and activities! Taking place from 10am-4pm on Jan 16 2015, students floated by with handfuls of cotton candy and popcorn as they went from booth to booth getting to know each of the NUSSU Committees better. A lively event with multiple performances, luckydraws and engaging games, NUSSU Day enabled the NUS Student’s Union to welcome NUS students back to school at the start of a new year with great pomp and show. After two years, NUSSU Day was once again held this year with a strong focus on outreach and awareness. President of the NUSSU Executive committee, Lim Kok Seng, says, “We wanted to bring back NUSSU Day in order to remind students what NUSSU is truly about and better acquaint them with the NUSSU committees. This event is an important reminder to students that NUSSU is not just about political and administrative matters - a common misconception held about NUSSU.” A prequel to the more robust celebrations at Open Day 2015, NUSSU Day is a part of NUSSU Exco’s action plan to bring the multiple committees closer and reach out to the students across NUS. Missed the event? Or want to relive the excitement? Let me walk you through the highlights of the fest! Each visitor at NUSSU day received a card at the beginning, on which they had to collect stamps from different booths by playing games. Participants who collected 6 stamps were eligible to redeem a prize at the end. The stamp-search was an exciting impetus that drove students
from booth to booth! Let’s take a look at what games were hosted by the various committees: NUSSU Welfare The NUSSU Welfare committee set up a booth, wherein the games and décor united under the theme of Kampung Day. With a desk-version of five-stones and hopscotch at the games section and a table full of delicious old-school snacks, this booth provoked nostalgic remembrance of the Kampung days. The Kampung, best remembered for its close knit community, was a theme that subtly reminded us of NUSSU Welfare’s role in NUS - To bring students together and enrich their university experience! NUSSU Global Relations Unit (GRU) The GRU hosted an informative booth where it told students more about its role in NUS and upcoming student conferences and events this year. The GRU is responsible for maintaining relations between NUS and external universities. With a comprehensive display of the multiple events, such as the U21 Students conference and APRU Conference coming up this year, the GRU Committee captured quite an audience during the carnival! NUSSU Students Fund (SF) Known for its two-fold role in NUS, NUSSU SF, firstly, organises bursaries and student funds and secondly, promotes financial literacy among students. In line with its function, the NUSSU SF’s booth was a conflation of an informative section and a financial planning game. Given a fixed amount of wealth, represented by plastic balls, students were asked how they would distribute their wealth among
different causes in life - represented my multiple cardboard boxes labelled ‘Marriage’, ‘Education’, ‘Family’, etc. A fun way to get students thinking about financial planning, SF’s game was a great hit! NUSSU Committee for Information Technology (CommIT) Responsible for the PC clusters around NUS and organising workshops and camps for IT skills such as learning Photoshop, NUS
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WE WANTED TO BRING BACK NUSSU DAY IN ORDER TO REMIND STUDENTS WHAT NUSSU IS TRULY ABOUT AND BETTER ACQUAINT THEM WITH THE NUSSU COMMITTEES. ”
CommIT asserted their identity with what they so best - a computer game! A puzzle based computer game with a unique twist enabled participants to get a taste of photoshop as they had to adjust the opacity and rotation in order to fix the puzzle. The three-stage game with increasing level of difficulty and even a treasure-hunt round in between kept passer-bys engaged for quite some time at this booth! NUSSU Business Committee (BizComm) NUSSU BizComm, the key fundraiser for NUSSU and prime marketing committee, took their booth at NUSSU Day to educate students about some of its initiative such as NUStyle and other key sponsorships at NUS. The game at this booth involved shooting darts at balloons mounted on a board. When bursted, the balloon would yield a question- and you answered it, the prize was yours!
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NUSSU Public Relations Unit (PRU) NUSSU PRU emulated a unique display at their booth by building a physical Facebook-inspired Timeline which listed out events planned out for this year. Complete with ‘thumbs-up’ stickers that participants pasted to ‘Like’ an event and a bare space for ‘Comments’, the news-feed was an idea that captured many students! Alongside the timeline, were a series of eyecatching info-graphics collected from the faculties’ feedback at last years’ End-of Semester Survey. True to their goal of ‘Bringing students together’, PRU was also filming students at the carnival and collecting their thoughts about the NUS experience. Watch out for their next video! NUSSU Executive Committee (Exco) The NUSSU Exco worked as the control panel for the entire carnival and hosted a lucky draw and a NUS t-shirt sale. Students rushed here after collecting their stamps to redeem their much-awaited rewards! Apart from these committees, several sponsors added to the enthusiasm with fun and food spread across the central forum. In addition, representative of the Police Department and NUS Campus Security also held their own booths to educate students about safety practices around NUS. A brilliant infusion of information and enjoyment, NUSSU Day was a thoroughly enjoyed by all its participants! R
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singapore BLOOMBERG APTITUDE TEST challenge 2014 TONG YI JUE
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ast semester, we have seen the success of the Singapore Bloomberg Aptitude Test (BAT) Challenge 2014, garnering an overwhelming response from NUS students taking the BAT. Undergraduates and graduates from various universities in Singapore competed against each other in the quest to attain attractive prizes. Bloomberg Institute is the educational branch of Bloomberg LP. The Institute has leveraged Bloomberg’s expertise in financial information and contacts in the finance industry
to develop a test aimed at helping students and recent alumni connect with financial employers worldwide. The BAT Challenge requires students to take a global, standardized online test that has been developed in partnership with premier financial institutions and university faculties around the world. The BAT covers a range of subjects that assesses a student’s aptitude for a career in the finance and business sector. Students who take the
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BAT uncover their strengths on various subjects and gain insights into which areas of finance may suit them best. Responses from students have been especially encouraging. When asked about the BAT, Sean Ling, a Finance student, expressed that, “It’s a valuable chance to see where you stand and understand what you need to strengthen further. A must do!” Students with diverse academic backgrounds, ranging from Environmental Studies to Psychology, have indicated
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IT’S A VALUABLE CHANCE TO SEE WHERE YOU STAND AND UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU NEED TO STRENGTHEN FURTHER. A MUST DO!”
that the test is very relevant and similar to aptitude tests of companies in the banking and financial sector. It is a good measure of how well students’ knowledge in the financial sector is in comparison to employers’
expectations.
interviews with Bloomberg LP!
Anh Son Tran from the NUS Business School has emerged among the ranks and made it to the BAT Hall of Fame. With a score of 750, he tied in as the global top scorer against every test-taker from universities all around the world. In addition, as part of the BAT Challenge, 20 lucky test-takers have been selected to receive an exclusive Bloomberg Advanced Terminal Training workshop. On top of that, the top 10 performers have been guaranteed first round
Students can find out more about the BAT at http://about. bloomberginstitute.com/ as well as look out for upcoming BAT test sessions organised on NUS campus this semester through NUS emails. R
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THEPOWEROFPOTENTIAL D
espite discovering that “late nights”, “panda eyes” and a staple diet of coffee were the norm during the four years in the National University of Singapore (NUS) Faculty of Law, Year 4 student Geena Liaw describes her experience as “challenging yet fulfilling”. Receiving the Yik Luen and Wei Han Bursary has given her greater freedom to lead a more vibrant and fulfilling student life at NUS. Established by a young married couple who had benefitted from student grants, scholarships and bursaries during their studies at
NUS, the Yik Luen and Wei Han Bursary is awarded to financially needy students from the Faculty of Law and the Faculty of Engineering.
STUDIES AND MORE Coming from a humble background, Geena explains, “S$5,000 is not a small amount of money to my family, and receiving the Bursary really helped ease the financial burden on my parents’ shoulders. If not for the Bursary, I would probably be giving part-time tuition after school, and will never have the luxury of time to focus on my studies and other meaningful extracurricular activities.”
As Law students tend to be embroiled in extensive academic discussions on contentious legal issues, Geena makes the extra effort to maintain a study-life balance by actively participating in activities outside the academic sphere. She shares, “I started off volunteering at the Legal Clinics organised by the NUS Pro Bono Group and Pro Bono Services Office. That was where I started to see the applicability of textbook legal concepts on real-life cases, and had newfound appreciation for law. I also embarked on a pilot pro bono project called NUS Student
Photo from Straits Times
NEWS
Influencing the future through philanthrophy Companions, where we assist litigants-in-person at the Family Court in non-legal matters, such as explaining court procedures and forms to them.” Such projects were inspiring to her because they gave her fresh perspectives on life and relationships.
PASSING IT ON Geena’s passion for meaningful activities does not stop there. Outside of law school, she set up a non-profit company called Bringing Love to Every Single Soul (Singapore) Ltd (BLESS), with a few like-minded friends from NUS. BLESS, which is wholly operated by NUS alumni and undergraduates
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ONE CAN GET TOO CAUGHT UP IN GRADES, RELATIONSHIPS AND MATERIAL POSSESSIONS
who are committed to volunteer their time and energies, seeks to engage and empower individuals and companies to enrich the lives of the less privileged. To
date, their programmes include providing children with school necessities, conducting weekly reading programmes for young children staying at rental blocks, and reaching out to elderly living alone to encourage participation in their social support network. “This is what keeps me grounded in the world, where one can get too caught up with grades, relationships, and material possessions,” she says. Having had the chance to meet both Mr Yik Luen and Ms Wei Han, Geena was able to find out more about the couple’s giving philosophy. She is thankful for such “field-levelers”, who put financially disadvantaged students on a more even playing field with the rest of the students, such that they are able to channel more time and energies into studies and other school activities.” She is very honoured to be a recipient of such an inspiring gift. “No amount of words can sufficiently express my gratitude for their kindness and generosity. The only way to fully express my sincerest gratitude is to pass on the kindness I have and give back to NUS as alumni one day,” she says. R
MORE ABOUT BLESS BLESS currently has 5 arms that has targets different communities and aims. Bringing Love to Every Small Soul mobilises funds to meet the needs of less privileged children. Baking with Love for Every Sweet Soul mobilises companies to bake birthday cakes for children on their birthdays. Bringing Love to every Single Stranger mobilises students to show appreciation to their community. Bringing Learning to every Shining Star mobilises residents for a reading program for children in their community. Bringing Laughter to every Single Senior mobilises residents to provide assistance to seniors in their community.
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OPINION
Unreasoned
(Foreign)
Policies CHAN JAN LIN
T
he past year has seen the resurgence of significant trends that will continue to affect the world in years to come. Perhaps the most influential of them are Russian Imperialism (the Crimean Invasion), terrorism (ISIS, and Boko Haram) and cyberterrorism (Anonymous and the Sony hacking). Sorry Charlie Hebdo, you missed the 2014 deadline by 8 days.
An analysis of each of these trends would definitely require more than a single article. However, I will try my best to condense and give a very brief overview of each trend. Russian Imperialism is by far the oldest of these trends. For half a millennium, Russia was a major global power that was steadily expanding its territory. That changed entirely when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Russians today are nostalgic about the glory of their imperial past. They see the conquest of Crimea as a sign of a resurgent Russia. And let us not forget that, as undiplomatic as it may sound, Crimeans can be considered Russians in terms of both family lineages and culture. Terrorism is not an entirely new concept either. Every era in human history has its own band of stateless outlaws. Even today,
besides fundamentalist Islamic terrorists, we have Mexican drug lords and nationalists in Congo. However, Islamic terrorists differ in their motives (to create a Caliphate) and their barbarity (no concept of human rights and gender equality). The most alarming fact is that they are actually fairly successful in their endeavours. Discontented
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THE MOST WORRYING TREND HERE IS THAT GOVERNMENTS ACROSS THE WORLD ARE EXHIBITING LESS AND LESS THOUGHT IN POLICY-MAKING.�
warfare being conducted by stateemployed hackers who disrupt enemy networks or steal sensitive information. However, what was unprecedented in the Sony hacking was the way in which the hackers had made demands and threatened the company with further hacks. As grave as these international crises are, the response by countries to the respective crises constitutes a larger problem.
youths from all over the world ,even the well-educated, armed with degrees in Law and Medicine, are flocking to their cause. Additionally, they successfully carved out a
In response to the reconquest of Crimea and Russian support for Ukrainian rebels. America and Europe has steadily piled on sanctions on Russia even while Russia started contributing to the peace process. To add insult to injury, President Obama kept making international statements about Russian concessions being
functioning state in the heart of the Middle East.
insufficient. Naturally, President Putin was not amused.
Unlike the other trends, cyberterrorism is a phenomenon that is relatively new to us. While some people may denounce hackers as criminals, perhaps we might be better off seeing it as a new form of human expression. Take for instance the hacker group Anonymous, whose stated goal is to uphold the freedom of information. There is a precedence of cyber-
Obama appears to think that he can starve Russians into submission, although a careful reading of history shows that the Russian regime survived far worse conditions in the period after WWI. Obama assumes that throwing scorn at Russia will provoke internal dissent that could topple the government. Yet he does not seem to realise that scorn is only
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effective if Russians understand the reason behind the scorn. Perhaps the fight against ISIS illustrates the problem with international policies more clearly. Islamic terrorists had long been held in check by dictators with strong military backing. This was the case in Egypt, Libya, Syria and Iraq. After the Iraq war, we learnt that lesson the hard way, which is that dictators keep their countries together. However, in a stroke of genius, the international community supported the Arab Spring without any care to the lawlessness that would follow. Well, so, apparently lawlessness followed. Overnight, the world went from supporting the Syrian insurgents to bombing them. (Admittedly, not exactly the same insurgents, but my point holds.) The same kind of impulsive behaviour was demonstrated in the Sony hacking. Almost immediately, without carefully examining the evidence, Obama blamed North Korea. He then proceeded to publicly condemn North Korea and to further increase sanctions. As more evidence emerged, experts began questioning if North Korea had the technology and the expertise to pull off the hacks, eventually concluding that some other group was probably
responsible. The most worrying trend here is that governments across the world are exhibiting less and less thought in policy-making. The only reason why America features more prominently is because it is the strongest world superpower and hence its policies are the most visible. Furthermore, these unintelligible policies would also encompass domestic policy. The past year has also seen a series of deaths of African-Americans at the hands of law enforcement personnel in America. In what might be seen as interference with the then ongoing state and federal investigation, Obama immediately declared that, “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon (the deceased).” Eventually the court acquitted the guard because there was insufficient evidence to cast doubt on his claim to self-defence. Yet Obama made another statement, declaring that, “Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago.” The most likely reason why world leaders enact such unreasoned policies, or make such unthinking remarks is because they are behaving in the manner that their constituencies wants them to behave. This is nothing but
pandering. Pandering is a common tactic that leaders use to gain support from their political base. This involves acting exactly in the way that their supporters want them to act. The arguments that such politicians make usually consist of either recycled material of policies that have worked in the past or poorlythought-out suggestions made by their supporters. A politician that practices pandering rarely proposes the kind of well-thought solutions that is necessary for getting to the heart of the problem. Worst of all, instead of convincing the entire country to work towards a common goal, pandering divides a nation into opposing factions, allowing politicians to easily manipulate people emotionally. As the world marches into the future, new problems will undoubtedly arise. The greatest challenge to humanity isn’t the crises that we will encounter; it is the mindset that we adopt in trying to solve them. Hopefully, world leaders will become more competent in formulating the kinds of ingenious solutions that we should demand of our leaders. R
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Women in
EMILY REBECCA RANSON MASON
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ince Star Wars debuted in 1977, its success has had a massive influence on its original audience, and continues to do so with its legacy. While it might have been progressive at the time of its original release, with the upcoming Star Wars VII being released this year, its continuing influence and popularity makes it necessary to examine it based on how society is now. The series’ portrayal of women is highly contentious and needs to be addressed, particularly when taking into consideration the influence it has with regards to societal views of women and their worth. If we ignore how heavily maledominated the galaxy of Star Wars is, the female counterparts that do at
least appear to be just as competent as the men. When taken at face value, Princess Leia, undoubtedly the most famous female within the series, appears as a largely unambiguous example of female strength. The movies seem to step away from damaging female stereotypes, with the ubiquitous “Madonna-whore complex” nowhere to be found. Leia simultaneously carries on two separate relationships with two different men, without ever being dismissed as “slutty”, nor is it ever suggested, by the characters or the narrative, that one of her relationships should exclude the other. She in not a Madonna figure either and instead, displays little tolerance for weakness in herself or others. Inclined towards
Princess Leia briefing Rebel X-Wing Pilots
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Shmi Skywalker
Beru Lars
being abrasive, impatient and fierce, Leia seems to be a glowing example of a female character with realistic strengths and faults. Within the movies, should a female character fail to succeed or betray personal weaknesses, as is generally necessary to form a well-rounded character in narrative, these failings are rarely considered to be a fault of gender. The two central females, Padmé and Leia play active roles in their lives, and become influential politicians who chose their allegiances and fight for them with skill. The remaining female cast are all, on the surface, individuals: Beru Lars, quietly but firmly opposing her husband’s intolerance of their nephew’s ambitions; a number of female knights and Rebels; Shmi Skywalker, who exercises as much agency as can be reasonably expected of a slave; at least two more ruling queens; and Mon Mothma, former Imperial Senator and leader of the Rebellion. Despite this seemingly progressive
Padmé Amidala
Mon Mothma
representation of women, and how powerful and promising it appears, Leia’s characterisation is in fact deeply problematic. It is never explained why Luke alone is the heir to their father’s legacy, or why Luke and Leia were separated in the first place. In this science fiction universe, they are twins with presumably equal capacities - both sensitive to the Force, naturally gifted pilots, and descendants of Darth Vader. Yet, paralleling gender-discriminatory practices in education in the realworld, Leia is refused the educational opportunities of her brother. She seems to be considered of little worth in comparison to Luke, whom Obi-Wan declares to be the galaxy’s last hope. There seems to be no logical reason why Luke is so important over Leia in this regard, except one - he’s a man. Even Vader, while acknowledging her potential, still regards her as secondary to Luke - only if Luke remain good will Vader not corrupt Leia; only if Luke turns evil will Obi-Wan train her. She is relegated
Leia Organa
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Padmé giving birth to Luke and Leia in Episode III
to a second-best alternative, for reasons we are never given. Worse, despite her powerful and optimistic beginnings in A New Hope, she is effectively de-powered as the original trilogy progresses. Setting aside the quasi-objectification from the donning of the famous metal bikini, the political power she possessed is stripped from her by the events in the Return of the Jedi. Leia’s authority is respected by everyone at the beginning of the original trilogy; even Han Solo who at first trivialises and sexualises her comes to accept her authority and obey her directives. She is treated as an equal by the military
leadership of the Rebellion and is active in planning strategies and gaining vital information. By Return of the Jedi however, everything changes. Han now acts with gentle paternalism towards her, an attitude just as damaging as his initial hostile sexism; worse, Leia becomes a foot soldier under Han’s command - a complete flip in the power structure - when she is not a prisoner. Her earlier positions of power are parcelled out either to men, or to minor female characters who speak once and never appear again. Even her importance within the narrative is reduced. Leia begins to matter only insofar as she relates
Princess Leia held captive by Jabba the Hutt in the infamous metal bikini
to her male relations - in Kantian terms, she is merely a means to an end and no longer an end in herself. When Vader and Luke fight over her, Leia is not even present because, despite the fact that the scenes seem to be specifically about her, her importance rests solely with how she influences their actions. The prequel trilogy does not improve these problematic elements while there is certainly more female representation in terms of background figures and minor characters, Leia and Padmé are the sole women of actual significance in the entire Star Wars universe. Aside from Leia, the four most important
Princess Leia stangling Jabba the Hutt
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Princess Leia and Han Solo sharing a moment
female characters are all maternal figures, and while the “Madonnawhore” stereotype might not be in play, the equally damaging “Stuffed into the Fridge” trope can be seen in abundance. Here, a character (normally a woman) is killed off in order to rouse strong emotions in another (normally a man) - and in most cases, serve as the motivation for them to act. Beru Lars appears briefly as Luke’s supportive aunt, before her and her husband are promptly killed by stormtroopers - mainly to motivate Luke’s decision to become a Jedi. Shmi Skywalker, Anakin’s mother is tortured to death, dying in his arms
and triggering his first step towards the Dark Side; Padmé’s imminent deaths triggers his final step. Leia’s adoptive mother, Breha Organa, manages to escape this trope, but she too dies after appearing in one scene after looking sufficiently maternal. Their primary narrative value rests with their motherhood and their arcs tend to be dominated by the events that transpire because of their deaths. Overall, none of them are important in their own right. They matter in how they affect the men around them, with their significance being what they represent.
creating an icon of liberal feminism who was shown to be the equal of her male counterparts on all accounts. But as the Star Wars universe continued to grow, becoming more and more reactionary, it seemed to have lost sight of those values, and instead, gradually adoped a damaging and marginalising approach to women that should not have a place in science fiction. One can only hope that the upcoming Star Wars VII will not make the same mistakes. R
Star Wars is not wholly anti-feminist; initially it was progressive for its era,
Darth Vader pointing fingers at Princess Leia
Princess Leia together with Luke Skywalker
Images from: http://www.starwars.com/databank
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OPINION
You BOOZE YOU LOSE JAY CHAUHAN
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hat is the liquor control bill all about?
A liquor control bill has been proposed in parliament supporting the ban of alcohol consumption in public areas from 10.30pm to 7am in Singapore. Public places are defined as areas that public has free access to, ranging from open parks to pavements. Retail sale hours for take-away liquor will also be ending at 10.30pm across the island. Offenders would be penalized with a fine leading up to $2000 and imprisonment of up to six months. Drawing upon the operational assessment of the police, specified areas in Little India and Geylang would be designated as Liquor Control Zones. These are areas where there is significant risk of public mayhem owing to
excessive alcohol consumption, and stricter restrictions and penalties would thus be imposed. All parties would need to apply for a permit to organize events involving alcohol in public areas.
community, but has also pushed the government of the host country to propose a bill which might not be favored by all its citizens.
The impact of the Little India Riot
Most community events in Singapore end by 10.30pm in residential estates. One of the primary reasons behind the proposal is to ensure minimal disturbance to the nearby residents. Drunkenness not only leads to loud behavior in most cases but also causes a lot of pollution as cleanliness is hardly a pressing priority for the drunk. One resident filed a formal complaint when he had to make his way through all the discarded cans and bottles on Robertson Quay while on his morning walk. There have even been
Although the Ministry of Home Affairs has conducted two public consultation exercises and has been reviewing the alcohol laws since 2012 after it received complaints regarding drunkenness in public areas, we cannot ignore the fact that the riots have played a crucial role in the making of the bill, since alcohol was a contributing factor in the riots. However, the point here worth mentioning is how one particular incident has not only tarnished the image of a particular country/
Citizen versus Country
a few cases of sexual harrassment at Clarke Quay. Nevertheless, if safety is a major concern, isn’t Singapore one of the safest nations in the world already? Aren’t there sufficient laws in place to maintain a safe environment? Also, if getting drunk and causing a disturbance is a concern, can it be assured that people won’t continue doing so after drinking from restaurants, pubs and bars, which are allowed to sell alcohol within the restricted time frame of the proposal? What about concerns that a ban might drive some to seek illegal alternatives, which would be even harder to monitor? An alcohol ban would be reasonable if the safety of citizens would be seriously compromised otherwise.
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This has been the case in some American and Australian cities. However, I question the necessity of this ban for Singapore. After an increase in taxes on alcohol in Singapore last year, drinking in restaurants and pubs is hardly affordable for the average Singaporean.
We should not invade the private sphere of the adults, who are responsible enough to make conscious decisions. The Singapore government is often viewed as overprotective, and imposing the ban would only further compound the country’s image as a nanny state.
Furthermore, there is a large number of responsible drinkers. Think about the ordinary office worker who works 40 hours a week within the confines of his workplace and wishes to unwind with his/her friends in the open while enjoying the vibrant night life of Clarke Quay. Think about the manual labourer who works hard at a construction site at a late shift, and wishes to grab a beer while enjoying the cool outdoor breeze. Are we going to direct these people to the high-end pubs and bars on Orchard Road? There are also those who prefer buying alcohol from convenient stores, since it is more affordable. What if these adults wish to purchase alcohol after 10.30pm and consume it at home? Won’t they be unduly penalized when the ban is in place?
Good governance involves balancing over-regulation and underregulation. Laws that were originally motivated by the need to address the
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THE GOVERNMENT OF SINGAPORE HAS BEEN VIEWED AS OVERPROTECTIVE AND IMPOSING THE BAN WOULD FURTHER VALIDATE THE COUNTRY’S IMAGE AS A NANNY STATE.”
problems arising from a particular area should not be broadly implemented without justification. After the riot, parliament imposed a law allowing the policemen to
bar drunken offenders from Little India, which, I feel, helps to maintain the well-being of the residents. If keeping public areas clean is a concern, specific laws targeting cleanliness should be imposed. Texas, for example, allows public consumption of alcohol with restrictions in place for problematic areas. Why can’t the same apply to areas in Little India and Geylang? Problematic areas should be designated as liquor free zones and monitored, rather than applying the rule across the nation and worrying about the displacement of problems from one area to another. Also, is there sufficient evidence to show that crimes are more likely to occur within these areas, or are we running the risk of profiling a particular community too harshly? The new bill introduces legislation that empowers the police to direct a drunken person to leave the public area and dispose of his alcohol. The police will also have the power to temporarily close licensed premises. I think that the implementation of this particular law, rather than a uniform ban on alcohol, would
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be much more effective. Why not stagger the proposal, and start with empowering the police first on an experimental basis? If their increased powers are sufficient to check incidences of drunken disorderliness, then it may turn out to be the case that a ban is not needed. Alcohol retailers could also help in developing a responsible drinking culture through training store managers and working with the police to identify problem hotspots. This effort from the retailers coupled with constant monitoring by policemen should be sufficient to keep the situation under control. I argue that it is only when specific measures targeted at particular problems have been implemented and found lacking, that a wholesale ban on alcohol should be considered. R
Photo from: http://langaraprm.com
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ENTERTAINMENT
NUS Arts Festival 2015 { Spirit of The Times } TAN YAN NI
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hemed “Spirit of the Times”, the 10th NUS Arts Festival returns this coming March, celebrating pioneers and prodigies in Singapore’s 50 years of nation building. Held over 2 weekends from 20-29 March, the Festival attempts to capture the spirit of significant events in Singapore’s history through a series of performances featuring collaborations with arts professionals as well as student artists.
Words and Music: A Love Story Told In Jazz Jeremy Monteiro with Rani Singam, Wang Liansheng, NUS Jazz Band and NUS Alumni All-Stars. Fri 20 Mar, 8pm at UCC Hall. Tickets priced at $27, $22 and $19
Dance Reflections: Still I Rise CFA Dance Groups Sun 29 Mar, 8pm at UCC Hall Tickets priced at $22 and $19
Words and Music traces the love between Shen and Fong, two people separated by circumstances but bound by their passion for jazz. Their love story is told through original music composed and performed by Cultural Medallion (Jazz Recipient) Jeremy Monteiro with notable NUS alumni such as Rani Singam and a script by Wang Liang Sheng.
Inspired by Maya Angelou’s poem Still I Rise, this performance brings together six CFA dance groups in a celebration of the triumph and resilience of the human spirit. Featuring NUS Chinese Dance, NUS Dance Synergy, NUS Ilsa Tari, NUS Dance Blast!, NUS Indian Dance and NUS Dance Ensemble, Dance Reflections: Still I Rise is a fusion of contemporary dance styles and ethnic dance influences in the biggest on campus dance extravaganza in NUS.
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Overdrive II NUS Dancers with Ricky Hu and Chen Wu-Kang Fri and Sat 20 & 21 Mar, 8pm at UCC Theatre Tickets priced at $22 and $19 The second instalment of Overdrive features a double bill by Ricky Hu and Chen Wu-Kang, international choreographers from fast paced modern Asian cities Hong Kong and Taiwan. Both Hu and Chen will work with handpicked NUS dance talents to present performances examining and reinterpreting our collectively constructed history and how it shapes the hopes and dreams of modern citizens.
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InTempo 2015: Singapore Panorama NUS Wind Symphony with The NUSChoir conducted by A/P Ho Hwee Long, Francis Tan and Dr Zechariah Goh Sun 22 Mar, 8pm at UCC Hall Tickets priced at $19 and $16 With an illustrious history of 47 years, the NUS Wind Symphony is one of the premier wind orchestras in Singapore and boasts an illustrious history of 47 years. Highlights for the evening include Dr Zechariah Goh’s Sang Nila for Wind Ensemble with Choir, Dr Kelly Tang’s Three Portraits for Symphonic Band as well as an upbeat modern version of Muunaeru Vaalibaa.
Poeme Symphonique for 110 Metronomes CFA Music Groups Various Venues and Dates, including UTown, UCC Theatre for the Arts and Alice Lee Plaza. Originally written in 1962 for 100 metronomes by Hungarian composer Gyorgy Ligeti, Poeme Symphonique for 110 Metronomes uses 110 metronomes performed by student musicians from the 11 music groups in NUS Centre for the Arts to represent the number of years that NUS has been in existence. The metronomes are set to different speeds and released almost simultaneously, creating rhythmic patterns through the ticking of the metronomes.
Celebrations 2015: Homecoming NUS Symphony Orchestra conducted by Lim Soon Lee Sat 21 Mar, 8pm at UCC Hall Tickets priced at $19 and $16 Featuring NUS alumni from different years of graduation, the concert celebrates the NUS’s role in nurturing young musicians and classical music fans through the decades through an exciting programme of concertos. The performances will see composer Chen Zhangyi premiering his work Thesus…Ariadne’s Love alongside other talented musicians like pianist Soh Ser Yee, violist Lim Chun and violinist Alan Choo. R Photoz by: NUS CFA
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ENTERTAINMENT
The Ridge had the privileged opportunity to interview choreographer Albert Tiong and the NUS dancers of an upcoming EMCC production. The Steps 前脚走，后脚放 By NUS Dance Synergy 11 Feb, 8pm UCC Theatre, NUS
taking the step
VALERIE LIM
On February 11, NUS Dance Synergy will present The Steps, a full-length contemporary dance piece choreographed by Albert Tiong that narrates the personal tales of Synergizers about their everyday school lives — stories of romance, joy and heartbreak.
with content for improvisation. From there, I will then edit and develop their movements.
Known for his strict and draconian style of teaching, Albert has a reputation which would cause most to tremble at the thought of interviewing him. Yet, all fears were laid to rest once he started speaking about dance and the one thing that definitely stood out from the interview was his passion and experience for it.
Albert: Everyone has different interpretations and understanding of dance. Thus, I would not dictate what the audience should take away. However, I do hope that they will form their own opinions, observations and understanding of the dance.
What do you hope audiences will take away from the show?
What do you think is the role of the arts in society? Could you share with us the inspiration behind The Steps? Albert: I knew I wanted to create a piece that Synergizers could resonate with. At the same time, I had watched the movie So Young and I found that its theme and narrative to matched perfectly with what I had intended. What is your choreographic process like? Albert: I usually give dancers a theme to work with so that they can come up
Albert: It plays a highly important role. Art is everywhere and all-around us if one only takes the time to notice. What advice will you give young dancers today? Albert: Societal and technological changes have resulted in young people today having different opinions and tastes about dance. Compared to dancers in the past, I think those today lack a strong drive to work really hard and
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make sacrifices for what they are passionate in. A huge amount of time, energy and effort is required to attain great achievements in any field. What would you say to your younger self if you had the chance? Albert: I would tell myself to start dancing earlier and to get more exposure to dance, especially overseas. (He began dancing only at the age of 21.) Any interesting or funny memories to share? Jonathan, year 3 pharmacy major: After late night rehearsals, we often carpool and many of us would squeeze into a car! Chuch, year 3 economics major: During the first rehearsal, everyone was told to choreograph hand movements to interesting and memorable snippets of our school life. It can be anything that takes place in school, such as a scolding from your form teacher for handing in your assignments late, or the ecstasy when you receive your report book. This was a really interesting segment, as we were all trying to decipher what each of us were trying to say. Some of our interpretations were spot on, while others were completely off, even absurd, thus we often end up laughing non-stop. Xanthe, year 1 accountancy major: Yes! The movements involved numerous hip shaking! Mei Xuen, year 1 real estate major: The funniest part occurred when Albert Laoshi was choreographing the duet section and the guys complained that the girls “are too heavy”. One of the guys was then assigned to say “ALAMAK!” while carrying one of the girls — it sounded so real that everyone burst into laughter!
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What have you gained most from this experience? Xanthe: I’ve learnt be to more fluid when dancing and the importance of a smooth transition. Xin Yi: There is no limit to improving the quality and execution of our movements even if one believes that he or she had repeated the routine for the umpteenth time. There’s always something to learn from fellow dancers around us, to see their interpretations and improve ourselves along the way. Always strive for betterment. Also, have constant vigilance. Jonathan: The improvisation experience has been invaluable to my development as a dancer. Chuch: I have gained a lot from this experience but if I were forced to pick one, I would say it was the confidence to express myself. Coming up with choreography and telling one’s story before many experienced dancers is not easy. I often questioned myself if my choreography was up to standard, and I always wonder if it is even worth watching. All these fears tend to hold you back from dancing something that’s your own. But I learned that sometimes, I should allow my brain rest, worry less, and just let the body move and let the emotions flow. Renee, year 1 Law major: The style of this dance leans towards dancetheatre. Learning how to cope with the articulation of words and the body simultaneously is something I have gained from this experience. Do you think you have gained more from being part of a full-length performance than a concert with many items?
Were you involved in the choreographic process? If so, how? Chuch: We were each supposed to pen down a summary of our love story, and I was asked to tell my story with body movements which then became my solo. Together with another dancer, Jonathan, we came up with a Contact Improvisation to tell his love story as he narrates it. He remains stationary throughout, while I dance around him, sharing his love story together in this duet. How has this experience changed the way you think about or approach dance? Chuch: This experience has definitely expanded my knowledge and experience on choreography and taught me the possibility of amalgamation between theatre and dance. My non-dancer friends have never failed to ask what the different items were about at the end of every contemporary dance production. Most of the time, they could not understand anything which made the concert less enjoyable than if they had full or at least 80% comprehension. However, this production combines narration from both the dancers ourselves and the music (excerpts from a movie). Not only does this help set the mood but it also serves as a verbal signal for our audience. I believe that this would be immensely helpful in getting our messages across, thus making the production a more wholesome and relatable experience. Xin Yi, year 1 in FASS: Every dancer has a responsibility in the piece.
Xin Yi: Every performance is an invaluable opportunity to grow and learn as a dancer. Being in a full-length production definitely requires a longer and more tenacious focus throughout the entire length of the piece in order to sustain the myriad of emotions, energy and stories throughout. Spatial awareness is vital, especially when there are multiple groups of dancers on stage simultaneously, each telling a different story of their own. Chuch: Yes. For a concert with many items, each item is quite short. While in a full-length item, we need to work with each other to sustain that emotion and build up the story together, slowly but surely, which forced me to stay focused all the time so that the body will not lose the feeling suddenly as this is like arbitrarily adding in colons and full stops in an essay. Renee: Being in a full-length piece gives me an opportunity to observe how an artist uses the “bigger canvas” he now has to express his thoughts and develop his vocabulary of movement. It gives the artist a choice between choreographic techniques or artistry. Writer’s note: The interview with Albert was conducted in Mandarin with the help of Renee Tan. Tickets will be released at the door free an hour before the show begins. Grab yours before they run out! R
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ENTERTAINMENT
Selamat Malam, Pagi CHEN ZHIRONG JENSON
Taking about 8 years to make, In The Absence of The Sun by first-time director Lucky Kuswandi was an absolute joy to watch, going by the rapturous applause and guffaws at the Marina Bay Sands Mastercard Theatre. It was an appropriate choice for the closing film of the Singapore International Film Festival. After all, much of the film takes place at night, mirroring the time we were watching it at, and its contemplative take on the lives of its three protagonists gave us a brief respite from the many films viewed during the course of the festival. In this film, the three main
characters are chosen from a broad spectrum of social classes with which the audience can easily identify with. Indri, a towel girl who aspires to be like the noveau rich she serves; Anggia (Adina Wirasati), a fresh graduate from years of studying in the states; and Ci Surya, a widow who recently loses her husband. Well, perhaps the experience of being a widow is not one familiar to most people, but it is the idea of being free to love and discover your own identity that’s at the heart of In The Absence of the Sun, which makes it so appealing to everyone.
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Broadly speaking, the first half of the film is about setting up the background of these characters and offering critique of life in Jakarta (it’s awfully tempting to say Indonesia but one must remember that it’s such a big country that one can’t generalise). Whether it’s talking about the lack of sidewalks in Ibu Kota, faux atas restaurants or the Jakartan prevalence of owning multiple handphones (for the reliability!), nothing seems safe from the director’s jibes. All of these segue smoothly into the lives and thoughts of the main characters in the second half as the film becomes more about how we deal with becoming who we want to be. The great thing about using three main characters here is obvious- Lucky is able to portray a range of endings from dissatisfaction to contentment, giving this film a sense of complex
and accurate realism. The film itself was very much like taking a plane to Jakarta. As many members of the audience attested to after the show, it managed to very accurately capture what life in the big city is like. Now I’ve personally never been to Jakarta but as a level 4 Bahasa Indonesia student who watches Sacha Stevenson’s “How to Act Indonesian” Youtube channel, I found myself laughing along with the other Indonesians in the audience at certain scenes. Sombong or arrogance is a very taboo word in Indonesia. So a scene between Ci Surya and her neighbour was just ripe for laughs. Although I could clearly see the set-up a few lines into their conversation, the great thing about Lucky’s directing is that he makes it accessible for
an international audience as well. So even though you might not be Indonesian, the scenario of putting on a false smile for the sake of social nicety is a familiar one. If you’ve been to Jakarta or are Indonesian though, you’ll laugh even harder at how accurately and comically Lucky represents life in the Ibu Kota or Mother City and feel like eating kerak telor (egg crust) afterwards! Two more things should convince you to see the show. Firstly, Lucky’s explanation of the title was amazing. The director explained that the film was really about how what’s obvious and ordinary in the day transforms into something special and beautiful at night, hence the English title, “In The Absence of The Sun”. The original title, which translates as “Good Morning, Night” though, is about how they come alive at night
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and that is quite similar to life in Singapore or even NUS if you’ve ever stayed up late! Secondly, at the post-show talk, the audience lauded the film’s soundtrack. I managed to find the theme song “Selamat Pagi, Malam” on Youtube and as soon as I shared it on Facebook, Tan Peng Sing of Take Two commented that it was “OMG SO GOODDDD”! So if my review doesn’t convince you to watch it, try its music! I don’t know if it’ll ever secure a mainstream release in Singapore (the DVD is on sale at Kepompong Gedut’s Facebook Page) but one thing’s for sure though. I can’t wait to see what Lucky comes up with in another 8 years.
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ENTERTAINMENT
Topeng Calonarang
Balinese witches invocated onto the campus of NUS on 12th November 2014 REGINA KOH YEE PING
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his semester, the Department of Southeast Asia Studies introduced a new undergraduate module, Seen and Unseen: Explorations in Balinese Theatre. The class, taught by Associate Professor Irving Chan Johnson, had their finals in the form of a staged play entitled Topeng Calonarang/ It was showcased to a nearly full house and the students had the chance to display the skills they had learnt in Bali and their ability in interpreting the aesthetics of a culturally unfamiliar genre. Topeng Calonarang showed a new theatrical form which combined the ritualistic narratives of the sacred Calonarang play with the popular Balinese masked genre of Topeng. The performance, which adheres to
Balinese aesthetics, appeals to all the senses. Taken from the sacred Balinese lontar texts, the play narrates the mystical exploits of Walu Nata, the witch-widow of Kediri and her entanglements with the court of King Erlangga. Here, it focuses on the entanglements of Walu Nata’s primary student Ni Rarung and a minister, Patih Maling Maguna. The students are accompanied by musicians from Gamelan Pinda Sari of the village Pinda in Bali and by dancers from Singapore’s Balinese dance group, Eka Suwara Santi – coincidentally, the students of the module are also a part of this group. The play is a good method to unwind, as it takes place in the final week of lectures, and is a great prelude to Reading Week. Despite being new to the scene, Eka Suwara Santi’s first performance looks to be a rising success and an exciting part of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences’ semester repertoire. Whilst there is a certain undercurrent of anxiety amongst the performers, this is easy enough to overlook in favor of the performers and their easy blending of Balinese aesthetics with modern sensibilities; In the latter case, summoning jesters with a cell-phone should seem jarring but the play somehow manages to make it work. The transformation of Walu Nata into the frightening Rangda and the Barong’s appearance to hold her back also reminds us that good and evil are two sides of the same coin and that good does not necessarily triumph over evil all the time, no matter how badly we might want to believe in it. R
Photos by: Regina Koh
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Aiyo, not bad TAN YAN NI
‘Yangmingshan’ (阳明山), a retro dance track inspired by the clubbing scene in 1980s Taiwan. The music video for the track is also noteworthy for being a visual spectacle, with Jay Chou himself trying out a variety of dance styles such as Waacking and Locking.
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f you’ve heard the phrase ‘Aiyo, Not Bad’, it’s probably from world famous singersongwriter Jay Chou. The Mandopop artiste returns after a two year hiatus with his 13th album. Named after his trademark catchphrase, Aiyo, Not Bad features an eclectic mix of tracks ranging from catchy hip-hop tunes to soothing ballads. The album’s opening track is the upbeat
Of course, no Jay Chou album is complete without a ballad or two. Aiyo, Not Bad’s representative ballad is ‘What Kind Of Man Are You’ (算什么男人) but ballads such as ‘Mermaid’ (美人鱼) and ‘Handwritten Past’ ( 手写的从前) come across as more striking and memorable with their intricate lyrics. Other notable tracks in the album include ‘Extra Large Shoes’ (鞋子特大号), a light hearted tribute to Charlie Chaplin as well as ‘What Happened’ (怎么了), a duet with label mate Cindy Yen. Fans of Jay Chou will also be pleasantly surprised to discover that the last track in
the album is ‘Listening to the Sound of the Rain’ (听见下雨的声音), a song composed by Chou for lyricist Vincent Fang’s movie of the same title. Initially sung by Queen Wei, the track takes on a new image under Chou’s masterful reinterpretation, gaining a slightly rougher edge with the lowered key and the addition of bass instruments. While this may take some getting used to, especially for fans of the original version, Chou’s version is unexpectedly catchy and is one of the most enjoyable tracks in this album. Every Jay Chou album is a masterpiece in itself - Chou’s talent for coming up with unique concepts and long-time lyricist Fang’s lyrical genius have produced many of the most popular tracks in Mandopop. While Aiyo, Not Bad may not be Chou’s most outstanding album to date, the wide repertoire of genres make it a refreshing addition to the Mandopop scene, as well as an album worth listening to. R
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ENTERTAINMENT
THE AFFAIR ANGELITA SASMITA
T
he Affair tells a unique story from two interesting perspectives: Noah Solloway (Dominic West), a struggling writer and a father of four with a very attractive wife, and Alison Lockhart (Ruth Wilson), a diner waitress with a debonair husband who has just lost a child. Unsurprisingly, they both meet and start an affair. As they tell their stories separately to a police detective however, we begin to find out that this is not a mere domestic issue. The setup of the show might remind many of another acclaimed show, True Detective. Not to worry though, the two shows are nothing alike. The Affair explores the psychological struggles of all the characters involved and adds another layer of mystery for the audience. In every
episode, we are served two different accounts of the same event told by the two characters. The differences in the accounts are sometimes subtle but at other times so jarring that the entire story is changed and we are left to decide for ourselves whose account we should believe. The Affair is definitely the best new series from the fall line-up. It’s both intriguing and refreshing to watch. The story unfolds in a very deliberate manner which creates dynamism for the show to move from one issue to another while still having plot twists up its sleeve. It will be interesting to see what the show will bring us next season when the center affair comes to an inevitable end. R
Photo from: collider.com
THE WAY WE WERE TAN YAN NI
“
If I never had you, does that mean I will never lose you?” This is the question that Taiwanese drama series The Way We Were (also known as 16 Summers) revolves around as it explores the nuances and boundaries between friendship and love. Spanning over a course of 16 years, The Way We Were stars Ruby Lin and Weber Yang as Tang Jia-ni and Fang Wei-de, two housemates turned friends after Jia-ni enlists Wei-de to help her in a seemingly ludicrous plan to take revenge against her cheating boyfriend. The plan falls through, but they end up becoming fast friends even though the hardworking and motivated Jia-ni seems worlds apart from the frivolous Wei-de. They are joined by Jia-ni’s friends, Ruirui (Tiffany Hsu) and Jun-jie (Melvin Sia), as well as Wei-de ‘s best friend, A-qing (Jason Zou). Together, the five form a lively bunch and promise to stay friends forever. However, when both Jun-jie and Wei-de fall for Jia-ni, the promise reaches a breaking point as the relationships within the group become increasingly complex. A series of misunderstandings and missed opportunities prevent
Wei-de and Jia-ni from realising their feelings for each other while they struggle with the demands of life and the expectations of those around them. Unlike your typical Taiwanese idol drama, The Way We Were is not a fairy tale with a beautiful ending. There are no Prince Charmings, Cinderellas or evil witches. Every character in the show is flawed in his or her own way, but at the same time so relatable that it is impossible to think of them as truly evil or spiteful. In fact, the characters grow more endearing over time and it is almost heartening to see them mature from their impulsive teenage selves into sophisticated adults.
The Way We Were is a drama series that paints an honest and sincere picture of life, a refreshing addition to a television scene that has seen more than its fair share of fantastical and unrealistic idol dramas. More importantly, this show is a lesson learnt in treasuring those around us, especially while we are still in our youth, and have not just one, but many sets of 16 years ahead of us. R
Photo from: http://i.vimeocdn.com
ENTERTAINMENT
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Paddington REGINA KOH YEE PING
A
s a live-action film based upon the beloved book series by Michael Bond, Paddington is not strictly a children’s film. I doubt a film featuring steampunk devices, Nicole Kidman as a taxidermist, and a cross-dressing Hugh Bonneville can be a simple children’s film. Like most films derived from longrunning franchises, Paddington faces the pace of change both contextually and meta-textually. The London of Paddington’s conception has advanced, and his manners are of almost no use. He is a lone bear who has lost his home in a freak storm, is tossed out into an uncaring cold world, and
is far away from his only surviving family, an elderly aunt who is now in a home for retired bears. Much of the film remains true to Paddington’s fish out of water status – then again, this is a talking bear that made it to London from Peru by surviving on marmalade. The threat of being stuffed by sadistic embittered taxidermist Millicent Clyde (Kidman) looms over this walking bearer of bear jokes. “Police-bear.” “Bear left.” Time is the great centrepiece of Paddington, and thus, so is timelessness. The Brown family that takes our bear in almost neatly exemplifies the kindness of random strangers despite very real
dangers: Mr Brown’s risk analysis, for example, reveals that a bear’s presence leads to a four thousand percent chance of the house breaking. It’s an exaggeration, but the point is made. The kindness and cruelty of humans within, and the fact of a lone disenfranchised bear finding a home in a land far, far away are very close allegories of real life. Paddington reminds us that, however the details might change, the story of the migrant experience and the move to seek a new home is always one worth telling. “Exit, pursued by a–” “Paddington?”
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An Evil Mind MARILYN CHEAH
C
hris Carter has outdone himself once again with this latest Robert Hunter thriller. A regular morning at a deli turns into a nightmare after the discovery of two body-less heads in a trunk of a car parked outside. This marks the start of one of Detective Hunter’s most challenging cases to date, especially when he comes face to face with his old classmate, Lucien Folter. While any more spoilers would reveal too much of Chris Carter’s latest novel, it is undeniable that this book contains one of the most gripping opening chapters for a crime novel yet. Unlike the first five Chris Carter novels, An Evil Mind differs in both
style and substance. Hunter is no longer just an investigator, but is now involved personally and is, indirectly, a victim himself as well. Readers also do not have to wait till the end to find out who the perpetrator is. It is also in this book that more is revealed about the brilliant enigma that is Detective Robert Hunter and readers get to discover for the first time how and why he is the man he has become. An Evil Mind continues to prove how Carter’s previous experience as a criminal psychologist has pushed him up the ranks to become one of the most outstanding crime fiction authors today. Carter’s background means that he is able to provide
superb detail and insight into a killer’s mind, adding a factor of authenticity that makes him stand out from the crowd. Overall, this terrifying new novel will bring readers on an emotional roller-coaster ride, full of anticipation and nail-biting suspense that will leave you on the edge of your seat. Chris Carter’s smooth and fluid narrative coupled with his trademark short chapters makes it hard not to finish this in one sitting. Like his previous novels, this one is not for the fainthearted – get ready to experience the sheer intensity and ingenuity of the most Evil Mind out of Carter’s creations yet. R
oneplaceofmymind.com, F1.com, redbull.com
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ENTERTAINMENT
picslist.com
2014 in Sports Anime L
ast year might as well be known as the Year of the Sports Anime. The genre is by no means a new one, but sports certainly seemed to feature rather heavily in 2014’s rotation of shows. New and returning anime alike featured a great assortment of sports, running the gamut from tennis (Baby Steps), cycling (Yowamushi Pedal), swimming (Free!), baseball (Diamond no Ace), and, last but not least, basketball (Kuroko no Basket). The two standout shows of the year, though, were about volleyball (Haikyuu!!) and table tennis (Ping Pong the Animation). Not exactly the most typically glamorous of sports. But what is it about sports anime that make them so popular? Perhaps it’s because their perennial themes of perseverance, friendship, teamwork, and the eventual triumph
LU XINYI
of the underdog are so universally appealing. Haikyuu!! embraces all of these elements, and yet still manages to elevates a seemingly run-of-the-mill sports story into something exceptional and refreshing. The show’s art and animation are consistently excellent and the volleyball matches are rendered in a manner that is both realistic and intensely exciting. None of that matters, though, if the audience isn’t invested in the outcome of a character or a team. How do Haikyuu!!’s characters stack up then? We’re introduced to Hinata Shouyou, your typical happy-golucky shounen protagonist with overwhelming physical reflexes but underwhelming height. In his very first match in junior high, his team
is crushed by a far stronger one led by a genius setter named Kageyama Tobio, nicknamed the “King of the Court”. Kageyama is introduced as an arrogant, antagonistic type, and Hinata, humiliated, vows to defeat him. Fast-forward to high school and – lo and behold - Hinata discovers that Kageyama is going to be his teammate in the Karasuno High volleyball team! The initially hostile dynamic between our two intensely likeable leads slowly and subtly blossoms into friendship. The character development of Kageyama, in particular, is heartwarming to witness: he gradually learns to rely on his teammates and to listen to them, something he never did in junior high. It’s not just Hinata and Kageyama that are well-drawn, the anime makes sure to give each player on the team a distinct personality, all with their
“
ENTERTAINMENT
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WITH ANIME THIS GOOD, IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW MANY
MEDIOCRE, FAN SERVICE-FILLED SHOWS ARE OUT THERE.
own unique quirks, motivations and insecurities. The players on the rival teams aren’t just faceless enemies either; Haikyuu!! makes it a point to show us the view from the other side of the net too. Winners or losers, everyone’s important. It’s a cliché, but Haikyuu!! does it so well it doesn’t feel that way.
often misshapen, and the character designs go against the standard doe-eyed aesthetics of pretty much all of modern anime. However, get past the initial bout of discomfort and you’ll see that the avant-garde, exaggerated realism of the art style meshes seamlessly with the raw, fluid movements of the sport itself.
While Haikyuu!! is a pretty conventional sports anime that happens to be excellent, Ping Pong the Animation is its polar opposite. The art style stands out immediately and can only be described as unconventional. In fact, they feel like unpolished sketches brought to life. The lines are rough and the animation appears crude; even the ping pong balls themselves are
This anime isn’t really about sports, though. Sure, people play table tennis in every episode, but that’s not the point. The matches themselves are secondary to the emotional and spiritual development of the characters; while most sports anime would spend three episodes on a single match, Ping Pong might cover a whole tournament in just one episode. The entire anime
p2e.mobi
bhslaughter.com
is just eleven episodes and yet covers a little over a year. Still, it never feels rushed and the pacing is executed with a delicate yet masterful hand. It feels like we are being shown snapshots of these people’s lives—glimpses with just enough detail and meaning—on their journey toward becoming fully self-actualized human beings. The robotic Tsukimoto Makoto, nicknamed “Smile”, and his charismatic best friend Hoshino Yutaka (“Peco”); The immense pressure and isolation faced by the reigning champion Kazama Ryuuichi (“Dragon”); The constantly homesick Kong Wenge (“China”). Every single character in the show goes through a metamorphosis akin to caterpillars becoming butterflies.
By the last episode, everything is wrapped up beautifully and it feels like we’ve witnessed the end of a transcendental journey. The various plot threads come together in a delicate tapestry, the symbolism comes full circle, and the entire experience feels nothing short of profound. With anime this good, it doesn’t matter how many mediocre, fan service-filled shows are out there. Haikyuu!! and Ping Pong may seem completely different on the surface, but both have developed realistic, fleshed-out characters that we can empathize with, get invested in, and cry and laugh along with—it’s powerful stuff. Highly recommended. R
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ENTERTAINMENT
GILLIAN FLYNN BEYOND GONE GIRL We may all have heard of the critically acclaimed film Gone Girl, but how much do you actually know about author Gillian Flynn and her other books? KINTAN ANDANARI
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W
hat do Camille Preaker, Libby Day and Amy Dunne have in common? They are all fictional characters of mystery books written by Gillian Flynn, writer of Gone Girl.
Dark Places, her second novel, explores the satanic cult hysteria back in the 1980s. Libby Day was just a seven year-old when she escaped her family massacre unscathed and testified against her brother When it first graced our screens, Gone on the grounds of satanic ritualistic Girl got us talking about all sorts of abuse. Years later, she meets a things. Crumbling marriage, feminism group of people obsessed with her (or antifeminism, however you see misfortune, one of whom fervently fit), psychopathy, preoccupation believes her brother’s innocence. In with image, media’s obsession with dire need of money, she accepts the tragedies - everyone had its own take group’s plea to revisit the case and on the movie. Especially that plot finds herself right where it all first twist. started – on the run from a killer.
She thrives in putting forth multidimensional characters and people as they are - neither good nor bad, just ultimately human.
Gone Girl, however, is only the tip of the iceberg. Long before it was adapted into a movie, Flynn already had two other mystery novels to her name, each bagging awards, each with vastly different themes, but ultimately connected by a loose thread that make them unmistakably Gillian Flynn books. Her debut novel, Sharp Objects, follows a female journalist in a mediocre newspaper who has just finished a brief stint in a psychiatric institution. Following the murder of young girls in her hometown, she is tasked to investigate these murders but the trip down the memory lane is not so pleasant after all.
While her books are notable for their plot twists, I think what really kept me going were the deeply flawed characters. All three books put the female voice at the centre (with the exception of Gone Girl where Amy has to share the limelight with her husband) and all are characterized as troubled souls with a penchant for manipulating those around them. While some have branded Flynn as an antifeminist for creating bad female characters, she identifies as one in an interview, saying that being a feminist also requires the capacity to accept “woman are bad characters. The one thing that really frustrates me is this idea that women are innately good, innately
nurturing… I don’t write psycho bitches. The psycho bitch is just crazy – she has no motive, and so she’s a dismissible person because of her psycho bitchiness.” I agree. Her female characters are manipulative but you can’t quite pinpoint them as evil; they hover between victims of circumstance and actors making pragmatic choices. Take Libby Day for instance. She goes to Serial Killer fandom meetings to bask in all the attention given to her case – and she likes it. Surviving on donations since her family’s brutal murder, she quickly jumps onto the next scheme to exploit money from the massacre once her bank account is depleted. Opportunistic as she may be, Flynn gives a context to all her handicaps (one that you have to find out). Her description of depression, or the blues as the characters call it, is also notable. We see different forms of depression in her books - a character carves words onto her skin, another one feels debilitated by the normal humdrum to the point where she cannot get up for work for 25 years, while yet another one plans suicide in a flippant way. She thrives in putting forth multidimensional characters and people as they are – neither good nor bad, just ultimately human. R
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ENTERTAINMENT
THE
20 4 OSCARS
IGNATIUS ALBERT WIJAYA
That time of the year is finally here again – the parade of beautiful actors and actresses in endless awards ceremonies throughout America, Europe, and pretty much the rest of the world. It’s the Oscars season yet again. This year, we have the privilege of having many truly exceptional movies in contention – the sort of movies which, when we look back on 2014 ten years from now, will go down as the true works of cinematic art, albeit in different aspects.
wired.com
BIRDMAN With its unbelievable camerawork and editing, this movie was a truly pleasing cinematic experience. The entire movie seemed like it was done in one continuous shot, or at least they edited it in such a way that it flawlessly looked like one. A towering technical achievement indeed.
Even though this movie’s greatest strength is its technical marvel, the cast deserves a great compliment as well in portraying their respective characters’ insecurities. Michael Keaton gave the performance of his career as a “washed-up comic strip movie star”, which ironically is not very far from the reality of his real career as he played Batman in real
life, a fact not-so-subtly referenced in the very title of the movie.
THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL If “Birdman” was a technical masterpiece, “Budapest” is a visual one.A pleasing showcase of Wes Anderson’s trademark use of symmetrical sets, it also boasts a great original score by Oscars regular Alexandre Desplat. In addition to this, excellent production and costume design all the hallmarks of a great period
drama movie – help to emphasise Budapest’ lush look.
One must also not forget to mention the incredible collection of stars ranging from Ralph “Gustave” Fiennes and Edward Norton to the Oscar-winners Adrien Brody and Tilda Swinton. These are seasoned actors who have perfected the timing of their body movements and facial expressions down to an art. Despite the amount of stars the film is bursting with, the director
Beyond all the spectacular visuals though, “Budapest” is also a film of morals that you might have to take a closer look at to see: it parodies the ruins and destructions of war, the racism rampant in Europe and the perceived declining standards in service standards such as hotels.
However, what really makes “Birdman” stand out is its social critique: it makes fun of the social media age, it makes fun of stage productions and the audiences, it makes fun of the film industry, it makes fun of the people who try
to remain “relevant” for the sake of it. All of will undoubtedly make “Birdman” go down as one of the more poignant movies of the 2010s.
Will win in the Oscars: Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography
shows that he knows how to juggle an ensemble-cast film where all the actors get the chance to shine in the spotlight --- even those in the supporting roles, so kudos to Wes Anderson for that.
Will win in the Oscars: Best Film Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Make Up & Hairstyling, Best Original Score
filmcaptures.com
ENTERTAINMENT
BOYHOOD If “Birdman” and “Budapest” were technical and visual classics, “Boyhood” is an emotional masterpiece and an unexpected showcase of unprecedentedly ambitious moviemaking that is taking the meaning of movie realism to a whole new level. The tag of being the first movie to ever shoot over 12 years is enough to entice everyone into seeing Ellar Coltrane literally grow up on screen.
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struggling mother along with the man behind the show itself, director Richard Linklater who helmed the production for over a decade. Nonetheless, when you look past the twelve-years-in-the-making tag, “Boyhood” turns out to be rather ordinary without much exceptional technical qualities to it.
Will win in the Oscars: Best Director (Linklater), Best Supporting Actress (Arquette)
The real star of the show, however, is Patricia Arquette who plays the filmcaptures.com
THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING A not-so-feel-good movie of both victory and defeat, Stephen Hawking’s groundbreaking victory in science in spite of his physical deterioration and his eventual spiral downwards after his marriage to his long-time wife Jane. As for the acting, Eddie Redmayne gives a masterful performance that might very well go down as the best of the 2010s. The actor’s mimicking of the real Hawking is impressive.
Redmayne portrays every single tic and motion of the scientist’s body as it deteriorates from a motor-neuron disease: the slanted mouth, the abnormal hand and feet movements, the hunched back. On a softer note, the chemistry he exhibited with the lovely Felicity Jones in the movie is worth mentioning as well.
Will win in the Oscars: Best Actor (Redmayne) focusfeatures.com
THE IMITATION GAME Possibly the biggest heartbreak movie of 2014 that is for once NOT related to any sort of physical love relationship. Benedict Cumberbatch, of Sherlock TV fame, plays real-life legend in science Alan Turing who invented the first incarnation of the computer and broke the Nazi’s Enigma code, thus allowing the British and the Allies to end the war earlier by two years. However, despite this, Turing never received his well-deserved reward for this legacy and was executed instead for his sexual orientation. A heartbreaking story of how once
theimitationgamemovie.com
a person’s services are no longer required, they are, in the words of Heath Ledger’s Joker, “cast out like a leper.” Technically, this movie’s strongest feature is the screenplay with its classic British wit and humour. Unfortunately, beyond that, “Imitation Game” is a rather safe movie that is quite clearly produced as an Oscar bait, and thus does not quite stand out in the end.
Will win in the Oscars: Best Adapted Screenplay
OTHER MOVIES Julianne Moore is set to win the Best Actress for “Still Alice” as a linguistic professor losing her self upon onset of the Alzheimer’s disease. J. K. Simmons is also likely set to win the Best Supporting Actor for “Whiplash” as an overzealous music director of a top music school, who bullies his students into over performing their to the brink of insanity. R
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LIFESTYLE
from applied math to dj’ing for a living WENDY WONG
“WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY ARISES, BE READY FOR IT. SOME PEOPLE HAVE DREAMS AND TALK A LOT ABOUT THEM, BUT DON’T DO MUCH TO FULFIL THEM.”
LIFESTYLE
M
eet Ben. He’s one of the youngest DJ’s on bilingual radio station 88.3Jia FM, and an NUS alumni who graduated three years ago. We caught up with him to hear what life as a DJ is like, what he misses most about NUS, and his words of advice for those considering a leap of faith—career-wise, that is. Upon graduation in 2012, Ben joined 88.3Jia FM as a weekday lunch show host. During his daily three hours on air, he talks about a wide range of entertainment and celebrity news, as well as interesting news bites from around the globe. “Just today I was telling my listeners about a restaurant that sells strawberry curry in Tokyo,” he mused. Does he ever run out of things to say on the job? “A lot of people think that that happens, but actually there’s so much stuff to talk about. There’s something new every day!” And sharing about the latest happenings with his listeners is what he enjoys most about his job: the interaction and human connection. “What I love about hosting is that I get to share my opinions with listeners, so there’s a direct relationship. Sometimes when I’m at events I meet listeners who remember and share with me things that I said—even things I don’t remember!” That’s also why one of his most memorable experiences as a DJ was getting to meet his listeners on a 3D2N cruise a few years ago,
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in celebration of the radio station’s birthday. CHINESE VS. ENGLISH MUSIC Ben’s love for Chinese music started from young, when he was raised in a Chinese-speaking family that tuned into Mandarin music. Back then, English and Chinese music were very different. “English music had a lot more choices genre-wise. There’s hip hop, rap, pop—even within pop there’s different types. Chinese music in the past was mostly ballads… so not much variations. But today there’s more collaboration between English and Chinese singers, and more interesting music arrangements.” The 26 year old also helps out with 88.3Jia FM’s music arrangement by scheduling songs to be played every week. Songs are chosen based on current music trends and listeners’ taste. For Ben’s fans, these usually include popular Chinese ballads that can even go back to the 1970s! MUSIC TO MATH TO MUSIC? But being a radio DJ wasn’t what Ben had in mind as an NUS undergrad studying—of all things— Applied Mathematics. Instead, he wanted to be on the radio, but as a singer. “I’d always been interested in the media industry; since I was young I’ve loved to watch Taiwanese entertainment shows. When I entered NUS, I wanted to be a singer. But back then there was no singer course, so I took up maths. It was partly a backup plan, but also because I liked maths. It was my best subject in school. I thought I’d do well, but I thought wrong,” he joked.
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So he joined NUS Voices, a Mandopop music club, to follow his dreams of singing. He later became its vice-president, guiding the musical direction of the group’s performances. For Ben, joining the club was the “best part of my NUS life.” It was also during his time in NUS that he developed an interest in hosting, especially after becoming a weekend DJ during his last semester. His part-time job at 988 Online Radio Station gave him the opportunity to learn from industry veterans and about the different types of radio and music programmes. Upon graduation, he joined 88.3Jia FM, where he is today. So, what does Ben miss most about NUS? “The food, [especially] the dumpling noodles at the Science Canteen! Food was my motivation when I went for lessons… and buying coffee for those 8am classes.” Especially when NUS was an hour away from home!
WORDS OF WISDOM When asked whether he had any advice for those considering a similar career path or switch from what they’re currently studying, this is what he had to say. “It’s important to have some backup plan, especially in an industry that’s unpredictable. But when the opportunity arises, be ready for it. Some people have dreams and talk a lot about them, but don’t do much to fulfil them.” So does Ben still plan to pursue singing as his dream? Not professionally, but “for leisure, maybe.” Yet nothing’s cast in stone— if the right opportunity comes along, why not? Catch Ben on air on 88.3Jia FM’s《午 餐 HIGH 一点》, on weekdays from 11am to 2pm. R
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LIFESTYLE
App Review:
More Moolah with
MOAR!
CHLOE ANG
I
have a confession: I spend an obscene amount of my allowance on food, shoes and books. By the time I actually need to buy something important, I’m pretty much broke. So when I was offered to do a piece on MOAR!, an app that helps me earn money, I jumped on it the way a drowning person leaps onto a lifeboat. What I didn’t expect was me subsequently wandering into several bars and taking an unusual amount of interest in liquor. No, I didn’t turn into an alcoholic—I was merely doing the tasks that were required to get me rewarded with money! The app’s set aim at
the time was finding the best and cheapest beers in Singapore. To accomplish the ongoing series of tasks, I needed to find a bar near me, take a picture of it, and—gulp— ask some questions. I found this endeavour a little difficult because I don’t really like drinking beer (most of the ones I’ve tried taste icky). So I did feel a little out of my depth scouring the shelves for a certain brand or asking about the prices of the beer. And I could’ve sworn I felt waves of judgement (or bemusement) radiating off the bartender. But all in all, it was a rather educational experience and now when people talk about beer, I
actually have something to say! How MOAR! works is that it serves as a platform for companies to crowdsource data using virtual manpower, paying the ‘workers’ virtually. By enlisting the app users to help out, it’s a win-win situation on both ends. The best part for us students is that MOAR! was designed with the idea of flexible employment. According to MOAR!’s website, its training tasks pay 50 cents each, with advanced tasks paying one to two dollars. Imagine: in the time spent checking your social media
feeds while waiting for the NUS internal shuttle bus, you could have made $2. Doesn’t sound like much? Suppose you make $6 a day. This would add up to $30 per month. That’s the equivalent of an H&M skirt, at least four cups of Sanum from Llaollao or a really nice meal... You get the picture. In the two days that I experimented with it, I earned about $4—just like that. So here’s how it works: Download the app (it’s free!), pick one of the listed places, make your way over, snap a picture and answer about five questions about the place, and voila! All that’s left to do is wait for your
LIFESTYLE
pay. The app also lists places nearby your location or favourited locations so that you don’t waste money travelling. If you don’t want to travel, you have the option of completing a survey instead. It contains about the same amount of questions, and you might not get paid as much, but it’s a lot simpler! A staff member then verifies sub-missions to make sure no one tries anything funny. And just like that, data’s collected for the company—fuss-free, convenient, and easy. (In case you were wondering, the app doesn’t share or sell your personal data, although task data such as GPS locations, your answers, and timestamps are provided to MOAR!’s partners.) My only gripe with the app is that the rewards aren’t cold, hard cash. Instead, the money is deposited into your EZ-Link card, which isn’t that
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bad since I don’t own a car and it still frees up travelling expenses. But not to worry though, MOAR!’s creators are still in the pro-cess of developing the app, and I do have word that the next avenue of payment is through PayPal. So stick around and bucks in your bank might be next! All in all, MOAR! is an app that comes in handy for us cash- and time-strapped students. It’s a simple way to earn a quick buck, and its tasks can be interesting, to say the least. So the next time you’re waiting for your shuttle bus to arrive, give MOAR! a try for more moolah! MOAR! can be downloaded for free on your iOS and Android devices from the iTunes Store and Google Play respectively. R
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LIFESTYLE
Frozen By a thousand blessings HANNAH HAW
Y
es, this is a newly opened selfserve froyo store. No, it does not reference Disney’s Elsa and Anna. Or Olaf.
white accents. Its toppings include fresh fruits and nuts, adding to the clean and wholesome feel of the place.
Frozen is a Melbourne-based frozen yogurt bar that opened its first outlet on our shores last October. Its creators pride themselves on using only biodynamic (organic) milk sweetened with Stevia instead of sugar. The store, nestled in Toa Payoh, is well-lit and minimalistic in design, with wooden and winter-
The self-serve process is simple. First, pick one of the six froyo flavours available: Pomegranate, Green Tea, Mango & Soy*, Coconut, Chocolate and Natural. Next, choose from an array of some 20 toppings that range from pearls and blueberries, to Turkish delights and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. (At
this point, I felt like a child in a literal candy store.) Lastly, top off your creation with white chocolate, dark chocolate or caramel sauce. Weigh your end product at the counter and pay before enjoying!
Soy and Chocolate. I chose lychee pearls, blueberries and M&M’s for my toppings, and finished it off with white chocolate sauce. My bill came up to $6.30—not too ridiculous for a dessert-sized serving.
The staff was very friendly and helpful in explaining the process and the available flavours. They even offered samples—always a good tell-tale sign of good F&B service! I settled for the Natural Yogurt, but also sampled Mango &
My froyo had a good consistency and wasn’t too creamy. I usually stay away from sour yogurts, but the sweetness of M&M’s and white chocolate sauce balanced out the yogurt quite well. The blueberries were fresh and sweet rather than
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IT COMPARES WELL WITH OTHER FROYO JOINTS SUCH AS SOGURT OR LLAO LLAO, WITH THE ADDED BONUS OF SKIPPING QUEUES AND BEATING THE HEAT.”
sour, which earned my approval. I was also pleasantly surprised when I tried the Chocolate Yogurt: it was darker and richer than the normally creamy chocolate-flavoured yogurts in the market.
or Llao Llao, with the added bonus of skipping queues and beating the heat. Frozen has about 15 seats indoors, and an additional 10 to 12 seats outdoors, catering well to its crowd.
My only gripe was that I overheard the staff telling a customer that their yogurt melts after 30 minutes whereas mine did so in three - but that’s only important to those who want to post a photo of their creation on Instagram. (By the way, #frozenbyathousandblessings has over 700 posts on Instagram!)
The verdict? Frozen’s great for a midday treat or after-dinner dessert with friends and/or family. But will Frozen be able to stick it out through the Llao Llao craze? It’s hard to say, but seven other customers walked in during the 30 minutes I was there, and considering that it wasn’t even lunchtime yet, it’s doing pretty well for a new kid on the block.
At $3.80 per 100 grams, some may find Frozen’s yogurt a little pricey. But it compares well with other froyo joints such as Sogurt
*Mango & Soy contains soy milk instead of the biodynamic milk used in the other flavours. R
FROZEN Block 126 Toa Payoh Lorong 1, #01-551 (5-10 minute walk from either Toa Payoh MRT or Braddell MRT) Tel: 6259 0025 Opening Hours: 11.30am to 10pm (weekdays), 11.30am to 11pm (weekends) Facebook: Frozen By A Thousand Blessings Twitter: @FrozenBlessings Instagram: @frozenbyathousandblessings
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The Guys’ Guide to...
Fashionable Comfort MUHAMMAD SUFYAN B SELAMET
CAMP T-SHIRTS You get one at every camp and even though you’ve got a drawer full of them, for some reason, you keep every single one. They’re comfortable, we grant you that, but for most of them, that’s pretty much it. Keep them as pyjamas or stay-athome clothes. Some things should just be kept within the bedroom (We’re still talking about camp T-Shirts by the way, whatever you were thinking).
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chool’s back and winter break is out. So I guess that means it’s time to pull out the orientation T-shirt, army shorts and fli—HOLD UP. Just because the holidays are over, it doesn’t mean your style has to take a nosedive into hell. Start the year on a fresh note, and what better way than letting it show! Here at The Ridge, we’re going to suggest a few alternatives for the various fashion faux pas that you commonly see around campus.
zalora.sg/scribble-print-t-shirt-246429.html
ALTERNATIVE: Graphic/Patterned T-Shirts We’re not denying the comfy and cool factor of T-shirts. In fact there are plenty of high fashion T-shirt designs and looks, so tees as a fashion statement are pretty legit. The issue here is in the kind of T-shirt you’re wearing. Instead of the orientation camp shirt from two years back, try out shirts with graphic designs on them. Every graphic is piece of artwork, so it’s almost like you’re a walking piece of art yourself (which we’re pretty sure you are, even without the T-shirt). You could also try out T-shirts with interesting patterns and designs to stand out from the crowd. Everyone seems to be wearing paisley and floral patterns though, so why not try something a bit different?
threadless.com/product/6143/Lazy_Sunday/tab,guys/style,shirt
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ARMY SHORTS Guys, you ORD-ed* ages ago. And it’s the start of the school term, so stay far away from these shorts, unless you’re out to exercise or going to bed. Walking around in them from lecture to lecture? Let’s try not to, shall we? We get it that army shorts are really comfortable too, so here are some alternatives to comfortable bottoms that are a lot more eye-pleasing. ALTERNATIVE: Slim Fit Sweatpants Stay sporty and comfy with a pair of slim fit sweatpants. You might think that these long pants are too hot for our climate (or too hot to walk from Arts to UTown!), but no. They’re looser than jeans or chinos, but still maintain the slim look. This makes them both breezy and flattering at the same time. Why not give them a shot?
lookbook.nu/look/5878681-Gap-Macintosh-Coat-Free-CityZip-Up-Hoodie-Champion
topman.com/en/tmuk/category/clothing-140502/mens-joggers-1718904
FLIP FLOPS Get out of the house, put them on, and off you go. It isn’t hard to see why flip flops are popular footwear. Convenience and comfort are definitely two major pluses. The fact that you won’t have to contend with wet socks if it rains are also an added bonus. We understand, so we propose a more fashionable footwear that’s equally promising. ALTERNATIVE: Leather Sandals Keep it classy with a pair of leather sandals. These sandals are just as easy on your feet while still adding style points to your look. They’re also incredibly versatile because you can wear them with jeans, pants, shorts, and so on. Leather sandals are also a smart investment as they can last significantly longer than your everyday flip flops, and they don’t look like they’re about to fade away from the fashion world any time soon. So leave those flip flops at home and step out with a pair of leather sandals instead!
pinterest.com/pin/529735974893269219/
pinterest.com/pin/350225308497953683/
Rounding Up After all this, we have to say that you don’t need to follow our tips to the letter. (We’re not the fashion police!) After all, what you wear is an expression of your own personal style and taste. Wear what you want, as long as you think it makes you look your best and you’re comfortable with it! R
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LittleLives Love Educators. Connect schools. Modernise Education. ZHOU JIAJIA
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fficially set up in 2011, LittleLives provides Softwareas-a-Service (SaaS) to aid the efficient running of preschools. Founder Sun Ho, alumnus of NUS Computer Science, envisions the creation of a preschool education network that serves to facilitate the sharing of teaching resources across schools. Having focused on Singapore preschools since its inception, LittleLives is currently working on bringing its software abroad to expand this education network. Sun shares her story with The Ridge in hope of finding individuals who share her motivation and would like to join her team as a designer, programmer, public relations officer or simply as someone who believes that he or she has something to contribute to the group. Accepting the offer for an interview, I walked into LittleLives’ office on the eve of Christmas Eve, only to see a crowd of young employees around a coffee table cracking their brains to solve a board game. Their storyteller, Jia
Yi, then told me, “We work hard and play hard.” What was the trigger that prompted you to start LittleLives? It wasn’t so much of a trigger. I had worked for about 10 years and at that point, my career was giving me a comfortable life. But, I wanted to do more. I’m always an ideas person and I’ve always been very hands-on with my ideas. Even though I was working fulltime, I was still trying out different business ideas. When I first started business, it was because I was hard up. My family, we come from a poorer background. From my younger days, I always thought money was one of the most important things. When I had reached a point where I was very comfortable with my career and I could take good care of my family and myself, I started to see what it was that I really wanted to do – I wanted to give back. To give back, I looked at what made the biggest difference for me and I believe that education was what made the biggest difference.
In a lot of countries, if you’re in the bottom twenty percent (of the socioeconomic ladder), you end up stuck in it for your life time, while for me, I could get into the best school, turn my life around and basically go for any job that I wanted to. I felt that I had to give back to education. Technology is my expertise, so a combination of education and technology resulted in the idea of Littlelives. Why did you choose to target preschools? I started with primary schools because I like children. They are innocent, they play, they learn and we learn from them as well. I wanted to capture them at an age where we can learn from each other. Eventually preschools came to me saying that they wanted me to develop something for them. The preschools liked what I did and they were pretty open to allow me to develop what I wanted in terms of vision, but at the same time, they had a problem. It was good
for me because I had the problem statement and my users from day one. What we did is we built a phototaking check-in app, when they kids come to school, they check in to school, show their parents and when they check out of school, they go home. This automatically checks the time-in and time-out of the child, and this is sent to the parent. This way, the parents know who has brought the child home. From there, we also submit the statistics to the Ministry, so the Ministry knows the attendance rate of these children. In the past they were just signing in, but with this one simple action of photo taking, everyone from the Ministry, the centre and the parents benefited. That is what technology can do different. When you quit your previous job to work on LittleLives full-time, was Littlelives already providing you a stable income? It was starting to. In the very first year, no. When I first started Littlelives, I did it on the side, so I
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still had my fulltime job. For about three years, I was doing it parttime, at night, during the weekend and any free days I have. I had one friend and then some part time students working on it together, and then I reached a point when I became very confident and passionate about it. I wanted to focus entirely on it. At that time, I had no stable income yet. It was still shaky - you never know whether it’ll just one day crash or if there will be days where you don’t have enough money to eat or something. There was that risk, but it was the passion when you know you love something, you work on it and you enjoy it. It was satisfying and I enjoyed doing it. I’m glad we finally managed to build it up to the current team of 22 people but there is never a point where I feel like we can sit down and relax. What do you think sets Littlelives apart from other similar startups? I was talking to a friend about the differences between Singapore
start-ups and overseas start-ups. In China, workers in start-ups can work longer hours there. They can do twelve hours a day for seven days a week while for Singapore start-ups, as much as we are passionate, we have work-life balance. So I was asked by my friend, “how do I compete with them?” And I said, in school, do you have friends who study shorter hours but do better. So it’s really a mind against mind. Rather than working longer hours and looking at the physical hours, we look at the actual results that we build. Another difference I observed in the office, compared to the other places I’ve worked at, is that I always hear people laugh in our office. Every day, you just sit in the office and you will hear people laughing. There is that joy in our work. Jia Yi: One thing I’ll like to add as an employee, they (Sun and her partner, Arjuna) really takes care of the team. It’s intrinsic motivation. During our mundane morning meetings, Sun will always
inspire us, so it really reminds us to keep thinking about it in a different way. I really appreciate the time that Arjuna and Sun put in to give us feedback. It’s really like a very flat hierarchy. You can just approach whoever can help you best. In that way, it’s not just about product and money. Sun always like to say that there is heart in our software. It is the company culture that sets Littlelives apart. Regarding Littlelives’s aim to expand overseas, at this point, what kind of connection have you built between local and overseas preschools? We did a project called ‘Love from the World’. We got all the kids to make a little flag and then take a picture of it and mail it in. It was a project where we wanted to show that kids from around the world can actually come together to do something. It was amazing. There was a little boy from Nepal. He took a photo of him kissing the flag and I notice that the photo was quite dark.
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They were having an electricity ration so on some days they had no electricity. They read about us through their father’s Blackberry. You realise that gadgets like these are fundamental to them. A Blackberry is a phone that can be charged and used for 24 hours. They did the project in darkness and mailed them to us. I think that is the beauty of technology. You can really connect people from different areas together and there is more collaboration that can be done. It is not just the individuals in front of their gadget but a connection to the world. We hope that LittleLives opens up doors to schools from around the world. If someone has an idea for a lesson, this lesson can be shared to others. A child in another country can share their kind of environment to people from other parts of the world. We are not providing the education, Littlelives is trying to create the community to allow for the exchange of information. R
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online shopping with taobao and 65daigou
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x ZHOU JIAJIA
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aobao is a Chinese online shopping website that functions in ways similar to sites like Amazon. My impression of it used to be that it sells cheap and poor quality goods. Then came a day where I was looking for a bag retailing in Singapore stores for SGD60, when I came across a blogger who purchased the bag on Taobao for just RMB60 (around SGD12). I decided to give it a try. With the shipping costs, it totalled up to around SGD17 in the end. A year and a half later, the bag is still in good shape. It is a bit worn out, but only in ways that any other bag would be. However, Taobao is not just about cheap and quality goods - it is about buying things from all over Asia. One can buy the most obscure things like a Japanese stall banner to one’s most coveted idol goods. This is because apart from hosting online shops that produce their own manufactured goods, Taobao hosts shops that provide a service known as daigou (“代购”, dàigòu). Daigou is derived from the phrases daili (“代理”, dàili, roughly referring to proxy) and gouwu (“购物”, gòuwù, meaning shopping). In other words, it means having a proxy purchase goods on one’s behalf. Remember the last time you asked your friend to buy something for you when he or she is going overseas? This is exactly the service that some shops on Taobao are providing. On top of that, these proxies are even willing to queue for your goods if need be. With this, one can buy a range of goods from the latest Korean fashion to that specific face cream that is only available in China.
However, do not expect daigou goods to be cheap. These proxies earn their keep through fees that are accounted for in the prices listed on their Taobao sites. Yet, these fees are often cheaper than the markup fixed by local retailers and it is most definitely cheaper than an air ticket. The main problem for some is that making use of Taobao requires a certain level of proficiency in Chinese. Although there are images that aid the browsing of the site, the shop and item listings are mostly in Chinese. On the other hand, for those who are simply afraid that their Chinese proficiency is not up to the mark, the shipping agent 65daigou provides the middleman service where one simply has to provide the website URL of the item desired and additional specifications can then be keyed in English via the comment box on 65daigou’s website. The 65daigou agent will then follow those instructions to purchase the goods and ship it to Singapore. For those who simply wish to ship their items, 65daigou provides one of the lowest rates around with its recent adjustment of shipping rates to a flat fee regardless of weight (except for packages beyond 30kg on sea shipment). In other words, one does not need to accumulate purchases in an effort to reduce shipping costs. Taobao aside, 65daigou provides shipping from Taiwan and USA as well. Also, 65daigou’s shipping comes in three choices – economic air, sensitive air and sea shipment – with differing shipping rates and duration. With the growing number of shipping services and online shopping websites around, it is no longer about waiting for brands to enter the country and robbing you with heavy markup prices. It is now increasingly possible to reach out to overseas brands and make one’s purchase in the foreign land without having to be there. R
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SanctuaryRPG – A Different Kind of Adventure during the Holiday
YEO JUN YAN
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orget the stunning modern high definition graphics. Forget the life-like environment and character designs. Step back into the world of classic text-based computer gaming. SanctuaryRPG: Black Edition is a text-based role-playing game (RPG), developed by Black Shell Games, currently available in its Early Access version on Steam, a gamers’ networking platform. The game cost SGD$5.50 on Steam. This version on Steam is supposedly an improved form of the original SanctuaryRPG. The original version can be downloaded from the developer’s website for free. Buying a Steam game under Early Access means that players are buying a game in its developing
phase. In other words, Early Access games are incomplete and players are helping the developers by providing feedback to make the game better for a proper release, while running the risk of spending money on a game that is possibly not going to be completed. Most readers might have never played a text-based game. As gaming graphics continue to improve exponentially following the past two decades, perhaps the closest forms of text-based RPG that most readers have played are dating simulation games. However, Sanctuary RPG is more similar to an interactive fiction in which players choose their characters’ fate, akin to gamebooks like “Give Yourself Goosebumps” by R.L. Stine. Whilst a text-based
game, SanctuaryRPG has less words on a page than most gamebooks. Despite the game being relatively simple at first glance, SanctuaryRPG is rather complex and sophisticated. There are many possibilities that entail players’ choices on their classes, masteries, weapons, paths they walk and attacks they use during battles. Although some luck is involved like in most RPGs, with the different items dropped by monsters and found along the adventure, some strategic thought is needed in the turn-based battle system for chances to heal or continue a combo for stronger attacks. Players also need to consider if they are ready to move into a new area to
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battle stronger enemies based on their level and items. Options can be made on the main screen, such as moving the character to fight at different places so as to continue with the main storyline, buying new weapons at the blacksmith, drinking at the tavern, or even reading at the library. Making wrong moves can lead to a player’s death. In this RPG, respawning is not an option if players choose to play under the Classic mode in which death is permanent and all progress is lost upon being killed, so choices must be made carefully. Alternatively, as difficulty levels of monsters spawned can be set by players, players can consider the
Softcore mode in which death is a mere setback. This is best suited for players looking for a less stressful game to play as a getaway from their workload during the semester. There is also a more difficult Lunatic mode if players are up for the challenge and a Survival mode where players battle in a stage mode without the RPG aspect of traveling, doing quests and crafting items. The battle system in SanctuaryRPG is done on a turn by turn basis with options to fight, heal or flee, similar to the Nintendo PokĂŠmon game series without the attack animations. By starting with different attacks, different attackdefence combinations can be used, while charging up for the ultimate move to be used at the right time
when the enemies are susceptible to it. A text-based game might not be for gamers who are more focused on the graphics, but the complexity in making choices in the game is something enjoyable that keeps players’ minds thinking and planning for the next steps. However, reading might sometimes be too heavy as the game is literally made out of walls of text. Admittedly, at times it gets tiresome in long battle sequences when players make the same moves over and over again. Despite that, it is not a criticism on the quality of the game concept. At its current Early Access stage, the game is flawed with repetitions in certain parts of the game that
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bore players who wish to progress further and explore the multiple aspects and possibilities in the world of SanctuaryRPG: Black Edition. Another problem of it as an RPG may be that it is lacking a quest list function where players can access their completed quests. This forces players to remember the quests manually and match the items dropped by the enemies. As mentioned in the beginning of the review, the game is still in development. Hence, it is expected that there are still some problems with the gameplay. Overall, if players are able accept a text-based game. SanctuaryRPG: Black Edition is an adventure that they can venture upon. R
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Yuzuki Yukari &
the Niche of Vocaloids NG CHING PENG
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reated in 2004, Vocaloid is a voice synthesiser software intended for musicians. By keying in lyrics and melody, Vocaloid software can be used to compose music and synthesise voice from a diverse range of genres and languages.
Decked out in purple, Yuzuki Yukari is notable for being both a Vocaloid and Voiceroid product. With a voice provided by voice actress Ishiguro Chihiro, Yuzuki Yukari’s voicebank is diverse. Her calming voice with its natural inflexion makes her capable of video narration as well as speech during songs. In addition, her mature tone makes her Vocaloid voicebank a good match for any ballad piece.
Marketing them together with an illustrated image, Vocaloid has gained popularity not only as a genre of music but also as a group of characters. Audiences familiar with online video sharing websites may have already heard of Crypton Future Media’s Hatsune Miku software, or the twins Kagamine Rin and Len. However, Vocaloid is not the only speech synthesising software released by major companies. Voiceroid software has also been developed by AH-Software, designed for speech rather than song. Among the list of Voiceroids is Yuzuki Yukari, released in 2012.
Yet comparatively, Yuzuki Yukari does not see as much use by composers against other Vocaloids like Miku or GUMI. Still, less use is hardly representative of what her software is capable of.
Avatar of the synthesized voice Yuzuki Yukari. Image credits to Ayakura Juu, AHSoftware
Several musicians on sites such as the Japanese video-sharing website NicoNico Douga have found good use for her in their compositions. The following four songs are a taster of what Vocaloid – especially lesseremployed ones such as Yuzuki Yukari – can do.
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It Seems Like There’s A Secret Command To Becoming Happy by Utata-P (top) Utata-P has Yuzuki Yukari providing the vocals – or rather, speech – to this trance piece. This unique and eccentric song makes full use of her Voiceroid speech software, with the chorus being the only lyrical segment. The rest of the track consists largely of spoken words, with Yuzuki Yukari constantly repeating to the listener the increasing difficulty of her way through the ‘game’ of life. Yuzuki Yukari’s matter-of-fact narration of life’s burgeoning social pressures overlays the repetition of a catchy tune, creating an addictive looping effect for the listener.
Screen grab from: youtube.com/watch?v=lwT4h6x3UM0
Screen grab from: youtube.com/watch?v=akuhgBoN2Dw _the NIGHTMARE THEATER by LIQ (second from bottom) A song with gruesome lyrics that stand out against its energetic and bright melody, Yuzuki Yukari performs again in this composition by LIQ. The piece is characterised by rock instrumentals, most significantly its heavy use of bass. This displays Yuzuki Yukari’s flexibility, adapting to fit the composer’s genre of choice. Her mature voice carries the song in a firm and commanding manner, especially suitable for carnivalesque compositions such as this one.
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Music Score of Starry Space by DAISUKE-P (second from top) In this piece about the vastness of life in the cosmos, Yuzuki Yukari displays her stunning ability to hit high notes as she sings about songs of the stars. Her voice reverberates through the space created by DAISUKE-P’s strong orchestral backing track and carries across all the wonder the song wishes to convey. Through a masterful blend of vocals and strings, Yuzuki Yukari’s affinity with ballads comes across as clearly as her voice in this tribute to the stars.
Screen grab from: youtube.com/watch?v=lJ2viBxFAc0
Screen grab from: youtube.com/watch?v=LtW7p_Zs6IU
Setsugetsuka by Bumpy Urushi (bottom) Yuzuki Yukari’s ability to deliver song in her clear tone resounds throughout this track. Setsugetsuka opens with narration, demonstrating the ability of her speech, before letting its piano melody dissolve into a song carried by strong techno beats. Yuzuki Yukari lends the fourminute-long track her voice tuned to an almost mystical clarity, creating a unique haunting quality. R
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