local company to helm an international project involving companies
from Asia’s two strongest media industries is indeed a milestone
for Singapore’s short media history.
“Singapore is a natural hub for regional co-productions. You
are renowned for your stability and efficiency and you have a talented
pool of film professionals. All you need is a vision and a story
with universal sensibilities and Gin Kai came with both when he
approached me with Asian Crisis Centre.”
Girish Malik of Clapstem Productions knows a good story when he
sees one. He has produced and directed more than 3,000 hours of
TV and film content for India and the international market.
Rose Han of Dreamville Entertainment, a leading Korean media company
with branches in USA and Japan concludes, “I love stories
with a message and that is why I want to produce Asian
Crisis Center. The Asian Tsunami that happened only
a few years ago united the world like never before. It was a very
tragic disaster, but the way the world responded gives us a glimpse
of how wonderful our world can be if we care. I hope the stories
in our series will touch the hearts of audiences worldwide.”
Creator's
Statement
Boxing Day is for most people, a day to rest
from the previous night’s parties, a day to relax at home
with loved ones. But for countless souls who were hit by the Asian
Tsunami, 26 December 2004 was the fateful day when their lives were
changed forever.
Hours after the disaster, every newsflash update was heartrending
as the death toll kept increasing. Very soon, the world was abuzz
with news about the tragedy that had struck millions of our fellow
men. Unscathed countries quickly pledged their help and immediately
sprang into action… a polarized world got united in mankind’s
darkest hour.
Untrained but eager to help, I set up 3 relief-collection-centres
and within 24 hours after some emails and calls, tons of relief
supplies arrived. Driving a van from house to house, I collected
more supplies. It was touching to see the generosity of the people,
and it broke my heart when a sad-looking little girl passed me her
favourite doll and ran into her house to get me more… there
is hope for humanity, when people decide to give.
Within days, the UN, many humanitarian organizations and foreign
military powers converged onto our little island nation, as Singapore
was turned into a disaster relief-coordinating centre. Warships
and helicopters sent out rescue teams and supplies to the region…
“swords were turned into plowshares” as deadly killing
machines were used to save numerous precious lives.
Learning from a Buddhist organization that corrupt officials in
Sri Lanka was holding up relief supplies at the port, I put aside
my own Christian affiliation and joined the organization to find
solutions. Muslims, Hindus and freethinkers volunteered to fly in
to Sri Lanka with 11 tons of medical and relief supplies…
disparities were put aside when we found a common cause.
My mum feared for my safety and pleaded me not to go. But when she
saw on TV, children licking water from dirty puddles, she relented.
Her son was going to help other parents’ sons. My wife drove
me to the airport and kissed me goodbye. They were fearful, they
were torn. They wanted to give, but how much should they risk? My
life? The victims’ lives?
Declaring 11 tons of medical and relief supplies as personal luggage
sure sounded funny, but the corrupt customs officials could not
find an excuse to stop us. Visiting different refugee camps in a
convoy of trucks, we distributed the supplies. We bumped into a
medical team that had run out of supplies and immediately replenished
them. They were a volunteer group consisting of doctors from Australia,
US and UK who never knew each other, but were somehow brought together
through the disaster. It was the first time we met, and the last
time as well, but a common bond, forged through that moment of serendipity
still remains.
We heard the saddest stories… a farmer was holding on to two
sons when the waves struck. Holding on to two would have meant sure
death, but how could he give one up? He gave up the younger as the
older could help in his farm. We felt this sadness in our own small
way too. With so many victims and limited supplies, whom should
we save? Whom should we give up on? I felt so powerless and hated
it. How do you decide which life is more important?
We met the saddest people… I met another man, who hovered
around our camp, while others rushed up for relief items. He watched,
he hesitated, he came near, and he stepped back. Intrigued by it,
I asked the locals who he was. It turned out that he was the richest
man in town, and he had lost everything overnight. People used to
beg from him, he was the one dispensing largesse. All that changed
in a moment, and he didn’t know how to beg.
It has been several years since the disaster and I am back in my
office writing stories and making films. The disaster is almost
forgotten and the whole world has moved on. But for the many victims,
their lives are still a struggle. I heard that a fishing village
in Thailand has been given a new fleet of boats, but they were so
fearful that they didn’t dare to go out fishing. An NGO is
leading out a fishing boat to show them that there is nothing to
fear.
I want to create a series out of what I learnt from the disaster.
Yes, there are many dramatic stories ideal for compelling TV, but
there are far deeper reasons than that too. Perhaps it is a cathartic
process to help me understand what I saw. Or perhaps it is because
I refuse to let go of the times when fellow humans showed humanity…
when people were willing to forget about differences in race, creed,
religion and politics for a common cause. It was the saddest of
times for the countless victims, but the way everyone rallied together
showed that mankind has a glimmer of hope.
The past few years have been plagued with numerous disasters...
the tsunami that ravaged coastal regions from Asia to Africa, the
earthquake that buried thousands in Pakistan, the hurricanes in
USA that submerged a city, SARS that claimed the lives of many and
even right now, the avian flu that is spreading across the world.
The theme of Asian Crises Centre is a topic that is close to the
hearts of most Asians and in fact, people throughout the world.
Many still weep for their losses, and we all respect the unsung
heroes that have bravely risked their own lives to save others.
This 13-episode series is a dramatic story that we hope will appeal
to audiences worldwide, and it’s also a salute to the many
volunteers from many places that sacrificed in different ways to
help others.
Gin Kai Chan
Executive Producer
Upside Down Media Group |
