#858: An Oscar-worthy SG Film, His Viral NDR Tears & AI's Threat to Animation ft. Ervin Han

About this episode

Ervin Han's animated feature The Violinist just won the top prize at the Annecy Animation Festival, animation’s version of the Oscars. He walks through the 11-year, nine-country production, why he shot real locations like Esplanade and Victoria Concert Hall instead of inventing fictional ones and clears up what actually happened during his viral tearful moment at PM Wong's National Day Rally.

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(00:00) Intro

(02:01) Introducing Ervin Han: Director of The Violinist

(03:13) Setting the Record Straight on That Viral NDR Crying Moment

(05:29) An Underdog Story, Just Like Lawrence Wong's

(06:06) Where It All Began: The Violin Short Film for SG50

(08:30) From Short Film to Feature: Filling a Gap in Singapore's Animation Industry

(09:45) Choosing the Riskiest Subject: The Japanese Occupation

(10:17) Ten Years in the Making: Research, Financing, and a Pandemic

(12:25) Storyboards Over Script: How the Story Kept Evolving

(13:39) A Film Made Across Nine Countries

(14:07) Why a Violin? The Instrument Closest to the Human Voice

(16:28) Working with European Co-Producers Without Losing Creative Control

(18:14) A Love Letter to Modern Singapore's Landmarks

(19:12) No Room for Imagination: Grounding Every Frame in Research

(20:51) Real Locations, Real Respect: Esplanade and Victoria Concert Hall

(23:08) Taking Creative Liberties with History (Boat Quay's Not-So-Clean Water)

(24:29) The Star-Studded Voice Cast

(25:06) Believing In a Project You Assume Will Never Get Made

(27:19) Tailoring the Pitch: What Works Locally vs. In Europe

(33:26) Debunking the Myth That Local Stories Can't Go Global

(36:20) What AI Means for Singapore's Media Industry

(39:06) Efficiency vs Integrity in the Age of AI

(42:16) Would It Be Okay to AI-Generate a Film "In the Style of" The Violinist?

(44:08) The Value of Art Is How Much You're Prepared to Risk

(46:12) The Race to the Bottom: AI, Budgets, and Losing Margins

(51:37) From Civil Servant to Filmmaker: Ervin's Unconventional Path

(54:02) Discovering Miyazaki and Falling in Love with Animation

(55:12) The Early Days of the MDA and Singapore's Media Industry

(57:07) Making His First Film at 51

(1:00:04) The Risks They Took (and the Ones They Didn't)

(1:02:04) What He Really Felt Winning the Award: It Wasn't About Him

(1:07:55) The Violinist's Journey Ahead: Release Dates and Festivals

(1:09:28) Where to Watch and Follow The Violinist

(1:10:56) One Shiok Thing

(1:17:03) Post-Interview Reflections

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