Experiencing Interruptions?

Alive

Set in a post-apocalyptic world where fossil fuels have run out, humans must run on treadmills to generate electricity and hit mandatory output targets. An 18-year-old girl who often struggles to hit her output targets meets a disillusioned 30-year-old man, who wants to escape this life. Through their journey, she begins to wonder about the meaning of being alive.

  • Taylor Yin Meng Ong
    Director
  • Taylor Yin Meng Ong
    Writer
  • Melanie Hui En Lim
    Producer
  • Xuan Ong
    Key Cast
    "Lin Ke An"
  • Max Ma
    Key Cast
    "Shen Chu"
  • Ashley Yan Tong Liu
    Art Director
  • Philip Chong Li Ong
    Director of Photography
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    生
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Sci-Fi, Dystopian
  • Runtime:
    18 minutes 51 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 26, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    17,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Singapore
  • Country of Filming:
    Singapore
  • Language:
    Mandarin Chinese
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital 2K DCP
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Nanyang Technological University
Director Biography - Taylor Yin Meng Ong

Taylor is a 23-year-old filmmaker who freshly graduated with a Bachelor of Communication Studies specialising in Broadcast Studies at Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information.

Her affinity with filmmaking began at the age of eleven as a child actress, but her fascination with storytelling soon expanded to roles behind the camera.

Her directorial debut, Sidelined (2022), was awarded the Best Impact Film (Grief Category) at the 3rd Mental Health Film Festival Singapore.

Aside from writing and directing, she is also actively involved in post-production. Her work as an editor on Playing Pondan (2022) was nominated for the best editing category at the National Youth Film Awards 2023.

She is interested in questioning the absurdities of established norms in the world that we live in.

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Director Statement

Growing up, my father worked tirelessly as a driver. He spent the last 10 years in a vehicle every day; seeing him trade his time for money made me ponder the whole point of it all. But amidst the hustle, his unwavering optimism and knack for finding joy in the smallest things left a lasting impact on me. Alive delves into the themes of burnout and the pursuit of productivity in contemporary society. Amidst developing the story, I explored the concept of living a ‘fulfilling’ life, rather than merely being alive. In the process, I started to value the little moments of downtime I had, such as taking a midnight stroll to the convenience store just because I can. Hence, at the core of the film's characters, all they actually want is to have the freedom to go for walks for no reason at all.