On Thursday evening, 9 May, join director Pang Wei Han and AWARE for a screening of the documentary short film Factory (Super)Women, followed by a discussion with Pang (and his mother, Madam Voo)!

Factory (Super)Women is an enlightening documentary about the factory women who paved the way towards Singapore’s economic success. It sheds new light on a forgotten, female piece of the jigsaw puzzle of our nation’s history.

To capture their stories, young filmmaker Pang and his team interviewed more than 30 such women—including Pang’s own relatives.

He says, “I started this project because both my mother and grandmother worked as factory workers, and so female factory labor has truly shaped me and who I am today. By providing the women a platform to remember, reminisce and reflect about their own experiences, our documentary and exhibition are infused with their bittersweet memories of factory work—from the stress and struggles of the production line to the sense of community and sisterhood with their fellow workers.”

Factory (Super)Women came about as part of The Future of Our Pasts Festival, a Yale-NUS arts and media programme showcasing stories from Singapore history. In full, Factory (Super)Women comprises both the documentary film and an exhibition; only the film will be presented on 9 May.

When: 9 May 2019, 7-8.30pm
Where: AWARE Centre, 5 Dover Crescent, #01-22, Singapore 130005

This screening is free. Refreshments will be provided.

About the guests:

Pang Wei Han is a history major from Yale-NUS College. He is passionate about Southeast Asia, and wrote his thesis on Buddhist Art in Cambodia. His grandmother, mother and father all worked in factories (his parents met in a factory!), and the industrial experience has deeply shaped him and the values that he holds. Graduating in 2019, Wei Han hopes to pursue a career in education.

Madam Voo began working at factories in 1979 during her polytechnic days. She worked at GE, KDK and Polycore during her holiday periods, and continued to work in the HR departments of factories ater graduating with a diploma in Business Studies from Ngee Ann Polytechnic. In the years since, she has worked at Hitachi, Nemic Lambda and various other companies. Most recently, she worked part time doing administrative work for Great Eastern.

Register here!