From Heart To Hearts For Hearts

"With From Heart To Hearts For Hearts’ willingness to experiment with both film and dance, Grain Performance and Research Lab has crafted a unique, introspective performance that reminds us the importance of holding on to hope, and that it is only when we get in touch with ourselves, mentally and physically, that we will be able to tackle all that life throws at us."
- Bakchormeeboy.com

This film was created based on the real-life experience of a young lady, Kylie Boo, who was born with congenital heart disease (CHD). She fights to get the struggles of CHD patients heard through her paintings.

This led to From Heart To Hearts For Hearts, an interdisciplinary film comprises film, theatre, paintings, movement and dance, which portrays the constant breathlessness, emotions and dreams that the CHD patients have been through.

This theatre-film is a collaboration between a young filmmaker (Goh Ying Sheng) and a veteran theatre director (Beverly Yuen) which explores the meeting point of film and theatre, produced with sincerity and honesty, from the heart to the hearts for the hearts of people around us.

From Heart To Hearts For Hearts was conceptualized and created from May to July 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Though the paintings are inspired by portraying the struggles of patients with CHD, the project is about showing care and love to those around us, especially during this pivotal moment of Covid-19.

  • Goh Ying Sheng
    Director
  • Beverly Yuen
    Director
  • Beverly Yuen
    Producer
  • Beverly Yuen
    Key Cast
  • Beverly Yuen
    Writer
  • Kylie Boo Kai Ni
    Artist (Paintings)
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short
  • Genres:
    Experimental film, art film
  • Runtime:
    37 minutes 52 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 29, 2020
  • Production Budget:
    13,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Singapore
  • Country of Filming:
    Singapore
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Goh Ying Sheng, Beverly Yuen

Director (Film)
Goh Ying Sheng
Ying Sheng is a widely experienced, up-and-coming director, producer and writer whose work has been nominated in several local and regional festivals and competitions.

His short film PROJECT HOME (2011) was selected for the Very Short International Film Festival and nominated for Best Screenplay at ciNE65. TILL DEATH LOVE US APART (2013) was invited to the 10th InDPanda International Film Festival (Hong Kong). In 2014, Ying Sheng’s social documentary LIVE LIFE! was a finalist for Yahoo Fast Flicks. His 2018 short film, DO NOT OT, was selected for the Shorties Film Festival, Viddsee Juree Awards and Viddsee Shortee Award. That same year, Ying Sheng produced LOVE IN A CONVENIENCE STORE, a National Arts Council commissioned short film for Silver Arts 2018, which was also selected for the Viddsee Juree Awards.

Ying Sheng’s latest feature film screenplay SHE FORGOT TO DRINK GRANNY MENG’S SOUP was awarded the “Special Attention Award” at the ATF Chinese Pitch – Mystic Asia 2018, while his short film THE UNKNOWN was a finalist at the 2019 Scream Asia Short Film Competition. He recently released the short film WHO STOLE TUA PEK KONG? (2020), which has already garnered over 90 thousand views within a short time-period. The short film is also a finalist in Viddsee Juree Awards Singapore 2020, and screened as part of “Stay Home Shorts, December 2020” by Singapore Art Museum.

Director (Theatre & Movement/Choreography)
Beverly Yuen (aka Dr Low Yuen Wei) is the Artistic Director of Grain Performance & Research Lab.

Beverly obtained her Bachelor of Arts (Theatre Studies) from the National University of Singapore and a Masters and PhD in Communication Studies from the Nanyang Technological University. In 1995, she co-founded Theatre OX with Ang Gey Pin and a couple of theatre practitioners, and was a full-time performer with the troupe from 1995 to 1999. In 1998, together with Theatre OX, she headed to the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards (Italy) and received intensive performer training for a year.

Beverly founded In Source Theatre (IST) in 2001 and was its Artistic Director from 2001 to 2013. With IST, she produced, created, performed and marketed more than 25 original works locally and internationally. She served as a company advisor of IST from November 2013 to September 2016, and conducted physical theatre workshops for the performers and public members during the period.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

"Theatre has always been a unique medium. In this cross-collaboration between film and theatre, I interpreted the theatre elements within the performance and creatively find ways to express it through film language, so that the meaning behind each painting can be deepened.

This form of collaboration is a first for me and I am hope it brings an unique viewing experience to the audience as well."
- Goh Ying Sheng

"When I looked at Kylie’s paintings, I was drawn to the poignant inspirational images that portray the inner world of the CHD patients. For instance, in one of the painting series 'Four Seasons', each season is depicted within each heart. Kylie had the vision of painting the series when she was in the hospital, wondering how many seasons she could get through.

To express how I felt about conceptualising the film and relating the story of Kylie during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, I would like to cite a quote from Dreams (1990) by Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa: 'You're staying home. The sun is shining but it's raining'."
- Beverly Yuen