Moving House (2001)

There are two versions of Moving House (搬家) films: the 2001 version (about the Chua family, commissioned by Discovery Networks) and the 1996 version (about Pin Pin's family, self-funded). Although both share a similar narrative arc, the former was a television commission for an international audience, while the latter—Pin Pin's first film—was made as a personal document for future generations.

The 2001 version follows the Chua family, one of 55,000 Singaporean families who were required to relocate their relatives' remains to a columbarium to make way for urban redevelopment. The family outing, which has the semblance of a picnic, belies the underlying sadness and confusion felt by all involved.

In February 2001, Discovery Networks Asia issued an open call for documentary ideas about Asia, aiming to commission work from emerging regional filmmakers. Over 400 proposals were submitted. Moving House was one of six ideas selected for funding following a pitching session. For her pitch, Pin Pin used clips from her 1996 film to illustrate the process of exhumation and re-interment.

The documentary first aired across Asia on 26 Dec 2001. It became the first documentary commissioned by Discovery Channel to be entirely conceptualised, initiated, and directed by a Singaporean.

Moving House (2001) served as Pin Pin’s Master’s thesis film for Northwestern University. It won a Student Academy Award for Best Documentary, among other accolades. The award-winning version presented here has been edited to remove commercial breaks and certain voice-over segments.

  • Dig this new discovery, Straits Times

    Video victory, Northwestern Daily

    • Student Academy Award, Best Documentary

    • Discovery Channel’s Asia First Time Filmmaker Award

    • Chicago International Film Festival, Certificate of Merit

    • Nextframe, Documentary Prize. USA-Asean Best Documentary Award.

    • Finalist, International Documentary Association/David L. Wolper Student Achievement Award

    • Finalist, Golden Reel Award, Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film & Video Award

  • Director/Writer: Tan Pin Pin
    Production Manager: Suryahti Abdul Latiff
    Line Producer: Ho Choon Hiong
    Camera: Jackie Ong, Ho Choon Hiong, Lucas Jodogne
    Production Assistant: Lee Chuen Ling
    Sound Recordist: Michael Lee, Cheong Yew Mun
    Camera Assistant: Lillian Wang
    Off-line Editor: Gek Li San, Daryl Burney
    On-line Editor: Hendry Keck
    Music Composer: Philip Tan
    Audio Mixing: Muhd bin Jafar
    Narrator: Remesh Panicker
    Graphics: Marc Campbell

    Production Management

    For Live Art Television, Singapore
    Robert Andrews, Amelia Hanibelsz

    For Discovery Channel International
    Executive Producer: Chris Haws

    For Discovery Networks Asia
    Series Supervising Producer: Bruce Moir

    Executive Producer: Vikram Channa
    Executive in Charge of Production: James Gibbons

  • First telecast on Discovery Networks Asia in its Asia Pacific Feed in 2001

    • 2024 Spirit Film Festival, Bukit Brownies, Singapore

    • 2023 Singapore Film Commission 25th Anniversary, Esplanade

    • 2019 Dok Leipzig (Retrospective)

    • 2017 Montreal International Documentary Festival (Retrospective)

    • 2009 55th Oberhausen Short Film Festival, Unreal Asia

    • 2007 Cut Cineclub, Macau

    • 2003 Kodak Emerging Filmmakers’ Showcase, Cannes

    • 2003 Australian International Documentary Conference

    • 2003 Discovery Channel Asian & Australian Broadcast

    • 2003 Bangkok Short Film and Video Festival

    • 2003 International Film and Video Awards, Hong Kong

    • 2003 Philadelphia International Film Festival

    • 2003 NextFrame Traveling Film and Video Festival

    • 2003 Image Union, Chicago Public Television Broadcast

    • 2003 Commonwealth Film Festival, UK

    • 2003 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film & Video Festival

    • 2003 Chicago Asian American Showcase

    • 2003 Malaysian Video Awards

    • 2003 Women Inspire, Singapore

    • 2003 Asian Film Symposium, Singapore

    • 2003 Loyola Marymount University Television

    • 2003 Malaysian Video Awards

2001, 22 min, 4:3, in Chinese, Hokkien and English, with English subtitles

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Rogers Park (2001)