Shirkers

To call Shirkers a mystery would be an understatement. The documentary, now out on Netflix, explores the story behind Sandi Tan’s 1992 would-be film of the same name. Together with her best friends and teacher from film class, they embarked on a two-month long adventure to make Singapore’s first surrealist indie road movie about a serial killer. Just when shooting was over, however, their teacher, Georges Cardona, vanished with the footage. He left no reason for his disappearance and no trace of the film the friends had poured so much into. The film answers the questions raised by the disappearance…

Shirker (noun):Someone who avoids something, especially work (Cambridge English Dictionary). If you aren’t sure what the film is about, even after watching the trailer, you will not be alone. The mysterious trailer raises several questions while giving almost nothing away. Nevertheless, let me try and break it down for you. Premiering at the Singapore Film Society’s 60th anniversary event on 20 October and globally on Netflix on 26 October, Shirkers is a documentary by Singaporean-born film-maker Sandi Tan. The film chronicles the story of Sandi and her friends’ first movie-making experience back in 1992. The group filmed a Singapore-based indie…