About the programme

For millennia, notions of the divine have been attributed to the female form. The Goddess represents a powerful creative force: the hidden, secret and sensitive aspects within ourselves as individuals and collectives. Feared and worshipped, the feminine form is venerated in various cultures as conduits for sacred transcendence or harbingers of dark destruction. This reverence however, is not without its trappings, as gendered values seek to contain and restrict, as much as they seemingly liberate and empower.

Conceived as a response to the ArtScience Museum’s presentation of the monumental travelling exhibition “Goddess: Brave. Bold. Beautiful”, DIVINE is a 12-film cinematic journey that seeks to capture the complexity of the goddess; from the dark feminine disrupting existing power structures — Mika Ninagawa’s iconic Helter Skelter (2012), Alina Wong’s wryly comical Ms. Pontianak (2022), and Suzzanna-starring cult horror Sundelbolong (1981) — to the re-telling of classical mythologies — Tsui Hark’s shape-shifting Green Snake (1993) and Sai Naw Kham’s Song of Souls (2023), among others. These overlapping lenses reveal the transformative power of the divine, and its ability to transcend dualities. Together, we enter beyond the realm of the known, and instead celebrate multitudes: masculine and feminine, human and bestial, the sacred and the everyday are transformed by each other.

DIVINE runs from 7 – 30 June 2024 at Oldham Theatre.

Full programme

Sundelbolong (1981, Sisworo Gautama Putra, Indonesia)
Himala (1982, Ishmael Bernal, Philippines) *HD RESTORATION*
Ishanou (1990, Aribam Syam Sharma, India) *4K RESTORATION*
Green Snake 青蛇 (1993, Tsui Hark, Hong Kong) *4K RESTORATION*
Visible Secret (2001, Ann Hui, Hong Kong)
Helter Skelter ヘルタースケルター (2012, Mika Ninagawa, Japan)
Song of Souls လိပ်ပြာလင်္ကာ (2023, Sai Naw Kham, Myanmar) SINGAPORE PREMIERE

DOUBLE BILL: The Secret Garden (2023, Nour Ouayda, Lebanon) + A Night We Held Between (2023, Noor Abed, Palestine)

Malaysian Short Films:
It’s Easier to Raise Cattle Lagi Senang Jaga Sekandang Lembu (2017, Amanda Nell Eu)
Dayang Bersiong – The Sinful Cook 狼牙的御女 (2022, Chong Keat Aun)
Ms. Pontianak (2022, Alina Wong)

Tickets are on sale now. 

Friends of AFA members, please read the membership guide on how to purchase your discounted tickets and redeem your complimentary tickets.

Oldham Theatre’s opening hours

For further assistance, please contact us at ticketing@asianfilmarchive.org 

Important Notice:

Do note that Oldham Theatre operates on a free seating arrangement. Doors will open 20 minutes before showtime so arrive early to choose a seat and avoid disrupting the screenings as AFA does not play ads and screenings will start promptly.

All patrons are encouraged to purchase your tickets online. If you choose to purchase tickets or merchandise at Oldham Theatre’s box office, cashless payment is preferred.
Measures will be taken to ensure the health and safety of all patrons at Oldham Theatre. Mask-wearing is optional as of 29 August 2022.

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T&Cs
Concession tickets apply to Students (Local & Overseas), Full-time National Servicemen (NSF), Senior Citizens (55 years and above) only.

Please check film ratings before purchase of tickets. Please note that you may be asked to present your ID at the door (this applies to concession tickets as well). Only physical photographic identification is allowed, digital copies of identification are not allowed. AFA reserves the right to turn away any members of the public without physical photographic identification.

Upon confirmation of your order for Tickets, no exchange of Tickets will be made under any circumstances and Tickets are not transferable. No refund on Tickets will be made under any circumstances except due to cancellation of the event. The resale of Tickets at any price is prohibited.