The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) (Chinese: 新加坡国际电影节) is the longest-running film festival in Singapore, founded in 1987.
The 36th Singapore International Film Festival took place from 26 November to 7 December 2025. From the 37th edition the festival shifted to October and will take place from 21 October to 1 November 2026.
History Originally launched to give local audiences an opportunity to watch independent and non-commercial films, the festival is now recognized worldwide by film critics for its focus on Asian filmmakers and promotion of Southeast Asian films.
The SGIFF was founded by Geoff Malone and Mill Valley Film Festival board member L. Leland Whitney in 1987.
The 24th edition of SGIFF held in 2011 faced issues such as poor organisation and financial woes due to lack of sponsorships. Founder Geoffrey Malone also resigned as the chairman of the Board of Directors with Shaw Soo Wei, former Executive Director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, taking over as the chairman.
The SGIFF went on a hiatus for the next two years and in 2013, Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim announced the 25th edition of the SGIFF will be held in 2014 in combination with the Asia TV Forum and Market, Screen Singapore and the Asian Television Awards in a two-week event.
For the 33rd edition in 2022, the film #LookAtMe, directed by Ken Kwek, was originally scheduled to be screened at the SGIFF but was refused classification by Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), which effectively barred the film from being screened in Singapore for "its potential to cause enmity and social division". IMDA, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and Ministry of Home Affairs also stated that the pastor in the film engages "in an act prohibited by his professed religious faiths"; that the depictions of the pastor in the film are "suggestive of a real pastor in Singapore", and the allegations may be "perceived to be offensive, defamatory and contrary to the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act". However, even with the ban, SGIFF decided to include the film in its advertised line-up, though the film was marked as unavailable for screening.
For the 35th edition in 2024, the SGIFF was managed by a new general manager, Jeremy Chua. Local actress Rebecca Lim was named as SGIFF's first ambassador for the festival. Daniel Hui's film, Small Hours Of The Night, an official selection for the SGIFF was submitted for classification by IMDA for the festival but was refused classification by IMDA in November. The lack of classification for the film resulted it being unable to screen at the SGIFF. SGIFF programme director Thong Kay Wee continued to support the film and list it as an official selection.
Overview Edition Year Opening film Closing film 1st 1987 The Name of the Rose by Jean-Jacques AnnaudThe Mission by Roland Joffé2nd1989 The Glass Menagerie by Paul NewmanTestimony by Tony Palmer3rd1990 The Children by Tony PalmerBlue Steel by Kathryn Bigelow4th1991 Cyrano de Bergerac by Jean-Paul RappeneauDreams by Akira Kurosawa5th1992 Raise the Red Lantern by Zhang YimouA Brighter Summer Day by Edward Yang6th1993 The Trial by David JonesStrictly Ballroom by Baz Luhrmann7th1994 The Blue Kite by Tian ZhuangzhuangThe Scent of Green Papaya by Tran Anh Hung8th1995 The Red Lotus Society by Stan LaiAmateur by Hal Hartley9th1996 The Confessional by Robert LepageMemories by Kōji Morimoto, Tensai Okamura and Katsuhiro Otomo10th1997 Gabbeh by Mohsen MakhmalbafBreaking the Waves by Lars von Trier11th1998 Hana-bi by Takeshi KitanoHappy Together by Wong Kar-wai12th1999 Ordinary Heroes by Ann HuiThe Hole by Tsai Ming-liang13th2000 Monday by SabuThe Wind Will Carry Us by Abbas Kiarostami14th2001 Yi Yi by Edward YangEureka by Shinji Aoyama15th2002 Kandahar by Mohsen MakhmalbafWhat Time Is It There? by Tsai Ming-liang16th2003 Chi-hwa-seon by Im Kwon-taekDivine Intervention by Elia Suleiman17th2004 Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring by Kim Ki-dukGoodbye, Dragon Inn by Tsai Ming-liang18th2005 Steamboy by Katsuhiro OtomoGhost in the Shell 2: Innocence by Mamoru Oshii19th2006 Dunia by Jocelyne Saab4:30 by Royston Tan20th2007 Sankara by Prasanna JayakodyOpera Jawa by Garin Nugroho21st2008 The Princess of Nebraska by Wayne WangRoad to Dawn by Derek Chiu22nd2009 Sincerely Yours by Rich LeeMilk by Semih Kaplanoğlu23rd2010 Mao's Last Dancer by Bruce BeresfordDear Doctor by Miwa Nishikawa24th2011 Red Light Revolution by Sam VoutasSenna by Asif Kapadia25th2014 Unlucky Plaza by Ken KwekIn the Absence of the Sun by Lucky Kuswandi26th2015 Panay by Cheng Yu-chieh 27th2016 Interchange by Dain Iskandar Said 28th2017 Angels Wear White by Vivian Qu 29th2018 Cities of Last Things by Ho Wi Ding 30th2019 Wet Season by Anthony Chen The Truth by Hirokazu Kore-eda31st2020 Tiong Bahru Social Club by Tan Bee Thiam 32nd2021 Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash by Edwin 33rd2022 Assault by Adilkhan Yerzhanov 34th2023 Tiger Stripes by Amanda Nell Eu 35th2024Stranger Eyes by Yeo Siew Hua36th2025Girl by Shu Qi 37th 2026 The Assassin(s) by Hur Jin-ho
Awards
The Silver Screen Awards Competition was introduced in 1991 to encourage advances in Asian film-making standards. Every year, a selection of Asian feature and short films take part in the competition. In 2014, the Southeast Asian Short Film category was introduced, replacing the Singapore Short Film category. The first Southeast Asian Film Lab was introduced in 2015.
References