Another World Creators Visit Top Singapore Arts College: A Seven-Year Visual Odyssey of the Soul
2025 Touring Showcase Concludes in Singapore: HK and Singapore Filmmakers Deepen Cultural Dialogue Across Campuses and Cinemas
“The most captivating part of animation lies in its power to break the physical limitations of live-action films, constructing a world of the soul entirely driven by creativity.” In a lecture hall at LASALLE College of the Arts, Tommy Ng Kai Chung, director of Another World, spoke these resonant opening words. Below the stage were rows of young faces—some on the brink of embarking on their creative journeys, others still searching for stories they could truly believe in. In that moment, animation was no longer merely a technique or a form, but a conviction earnestly held.
Organized by the Asian Film Awards Academy (AFAA), the “Hong Kong Film Gala Presentation – Singapore” officially kicked off on December 18. As the grand finale of the 2025 touring showcase, this edition brought Hong Kong films to cinemas and campuses across Singapore, also presenting audiences with the questions, struggles, and perseverance behind the creative process. Under the theme “Together We Dare to Reimagine,” the program showcased Hong Kong cinema’s boundless creativity and imagination with Singapore.
The campus talk, titled “Together We Dare to Animate the Future,” was held at LASALLE College of the Arts, one of Southeast Asia’s leading arts institutions. Chris Shaw, Head of the Puttnam School of Film & Animation, moderated a two-hour creative exchange featuring Another World director Tommy Ng Kai Chung and producer Chan Gin Kai. The discussion spanned the technical evolution of animation, the intricacies of world-building, and survival strategies in the industry, offering students an inspiring professional perspective.
Tommy Ng shared the journey behind his record-breaking animated masterpiece, a project seven years in the making. During the lecture, he noted: “Live-action films are often limited by budgets, physical environments, and even the physical stamina or facial expressions of actors. In the world of animation, those barriers vanish. We can use color saturation and a unique visual pacing to precisely convey abstract emotions like life, death, obsession, and self-forgiveness. For seven years, we experimented with how to use brushstrokes to soothe the regrets within the soul.”
Chan Gin Kai, a veteran Singaporean film producer, shared the industrial logic behind the work. He pointed out that the international success of Another World—including its Golden Horse win and Annecy International Animation Film Festival selection—serves as a prime example of successful Hong Kong-Singapore collaboration. He remarked: “The success of this film proves that by breaking regional boundaries and combining Singapore’s production strength with Hong Kong’s narrative energy, we can create cinematic gems capable of competing on the global stage.”
During the Q&A session, students raised insightful questions regarding technical integration—such as blending 3D action with a 2D hand-drawn aesthetic—as well as how to maintain motivation over a long production cycle. Tommy Ng offered a sincere response: “The most important thing is to believe in your script. If the creators do not believe in the story themselves, they will surely give up halfway. We endured those seven years because everyone on our team believed this film could touch the soul.” Chan Gin Kai added that balancing art and commerce is a mandatory lesson for all filmmakers, emphasizing the need to maximize creative value within limited resources.
Following the campus talk, the Opening Ceremony was held at Golden Village Suntec City (GV Suntec). The three guest filmmakers from Hong Kong—Tommy Ng, Chan Gin Kai, and Golden Boy lead actress Rosa Maria Velasco—were met with enthusiastic pursuit from local media. All three guests expressed their delight in bringing their latest works to Singapore, while local press showed great interest in this long-awaited cinematic exchange.
The ceremony was attended by local film industry professionals, film students, and passionate fans of Hong Kong cinema. Kenneth Tan, Chairman of the Singapore Film Society, and Mr. FUNG Ho Yin, Owin, JP, Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in Singapore, delivered opening remarks. Chairman Tan welcomed the return of the gala, while Director Fung highlighted the vital role of Hong Kong cinema as a cultural bridge.
Rosa Maria Velasco shared excitedly: “I am so happy to represent the Golden Boy team in Singapore. My senior, Louis Cheung, put so much heart into this film. I am honored to meet the Singaporean audience and fans on his behalf, and it is truly wonderful to interact and chat with everyone at such close range.”
The gala officially opened with Another World, the award-winning sensation of 2025. Following the screening, the audience expressed great curiosity about the film’s unique style and seven-year production process. Regarding how animation portrays deep emotions, Tommy Ng shared: “The greatest appeal of animation lies in its ability to break through the physical constraints of live-action filmmaking to construct a world of the soul entirely driven by emotions.” Chan Gin Kai added that animation is not just a technology, but a pure medium that transcends borders to speak directly to the hearts of the audience.
Many audience members noticed that Another World was adapted from Japanese author Naka Saijō’s novel, and asked about what was retained or sacrificed in the adaptation. Tommy Ng admitted the animated version differs considerably from the original, “The first reason is that the novel is simply too long—if we included everything, it might be longer than The Lord of the Rings.” The remark drew laughter from the audience. He explained that the team chose to focus on several key “cycles” of life, prioritising the most touching storyline, while leaving open the possibility of future spin-offs to explore other meaningful chapters from the novel.
In terms of sound design, audiences’ attention particularly focused on the memorable voice performances. Speaking about how voice actors were chosen, Tommy Ng shared that during character design, the team already imagined each character’s vocal texture and rhythm of speech. Through repeated auditions and comparisons of demo recordings, they selected voices that best matched each character’s temperament, giving them greater vitality on screen.
Behind this vitality lay significant real-world challenges. Chan Gin Kai noted that for large-scale and long-term animated projects like Another World, securing investment is far from easy. The team had to seek fundings across regions. Moreover, animation takes years to materialise, and investors often cannot “see” concrete progress early on. Despite regular monthly updates, it is difficult to convey the pace of creation through just a few frames. As such, trust became the most crucial element of the entire creative journey, supported by partners from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and even the Philippines.
Some audiences praised the striking character designs and asked about the origins of the lead character “ Gudo”. Tommy Ng explained that the team wanted the character to embody the presence of death along with cuteness and friendliness—using bone-like textures and contours, for instance. Extensive research eventually led them to an inspiration from a Xizang’s ritual, when someone passes away, there are figures dressed in black and white clothing who have a guardian spirit and dance to send them off. This coexistence of “protection” and “death” became the foundation of Gudo’s design. The circular patterns on the Gudo’s face, he added, were not meant to reference a specific shape, but rather ripples spreading across water, conveying a unique rhythm of life at the first glance.
Finally, a question was raised about the ending—why leave it open-emded? Tommy Ng explained that the ambiguity was intentional, allowing space for imagination. The characters are not “gods” or “omniscient and omnipotent” beings, but are still learning and growing, carrying innocence and uncertainty as they gradually understand how to protect someone. This sense of incompletion, he said, is the tenderness the story wanted to leave behind. It echoes the spirit of “Together We Dare to Reimagine”, returning the answers to the audience and inviting everyone to find the next step of the story in their imagination.
The enthusiasm continued long after the screening ended. Many fans seized the rare opportunity to wait outside the theater to take photos and request autographs from the three guests. The atmosphere was one of relaxed yet profound exchange, with many viewers continuing to discuss visual details and the film’s themes of life and death with the director and producer while they signed autographs.
In addition to the opening on the 18th, the public screening of Another World on December 20 was equally fervent. Fans were thrilled to interact closely with the Golden Horse-winning creators, with a lively Q&A session followed by another large crowd of fans waiting for photos and autographs, proving the film’s immense popularity in the Lion City. As the various exchange activities concluded, Hong Kong cinema continues to spark creativity in Singapore, inviting audiences to rediscover the infinite possibilities of the silver screen.
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