The ‘bad boy’ of the local film industry, Royston Tan, returns to his roots in more ways than one in a new Mandarin short film simply titled Little Note, which is a testament to the fact that sometimes, good things do come in small packages.

Before he was thrust into the spotlight once again in 2007 with the critically-acclaimed feature film 881, the 32-year-old director began his career with making short films, some of which include Sons, 15, and now, Little Note.

The 15-minute-long short film which skipped theatrical release and went straight to DVD, was set in the late 80s, and stars actress Chue En Jye, Star Search 2007 finalist Desmond Tan and child actor Chen Jing Jun. It was shot in just 2 days in a quiet kampong called Bentong in Pahang, Malaysia, which was similar to the one where Royston grew up in here in Singapore.

The film features a loving, unnamed single mother (Chue En Jye) who leaves notes to her 10-year-old son, Zhiren (Chen Jing Jun), to encourage him whenever he’s faced with an obstacle in his life.

Little Note 1

“This was actually inspired by my own relationship with my mum and how she reacts with me at home. Since I am always in my room busy with work, my mum would come by, writing notes and pasting them on my door to remind me to have my dinner and to drink more water,”  the passionate filmmaker told an audience of about 40 students from the school of Film and Media Studies and Chapman University during a screening of the film on Oct 27.

This is the first collaboration between Chuan Pictures and the Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery and the film explores themes of unconditional motherly love, hope and courage to “get through hard times,” says Royston, who also penned the script for the film.

The story begins by showing the single-parent-family’s simple life in the village, which includes bathing by the drain with a pail of warm water. From the start, the intimate relationship between mother and son is so obvious and tangible that it’ll be sure to make even the most cynical person sigh and vow to be little a nicer to their mothers. This was especially true in the scene where a young Zhiren sings a touching rendition of “世上只有妈妈好”(“In This World, Only Mum Treats You Well”) in a school performance to the delight of his mother, who was moved to tears.

Little Note 2

Eventually, the child grows up into a young man (Desmond Tan) with a bright future ahead of him. However, he was apprehensive about leaving his mother behind to pursue a prestigious education overseas. So when it came for him to depart, he leaves her the same note she left him as a child saying: “Don’t be afraid”, reassuring her with 3 simple words that he’ll always love her and be there for her.

The sincerity of the writing just jumps out to the audience during this particular scene where the young Zhiren ran crying to his mother he was being bullied by his classmates in school for being fatherless. His mother then replied saying, “You do have a father, because he lives in your heart.”

Little Note 3

Combined with the beautiful scenery of the picturesque village and the moving score written by Jim Lim from Monkie Funkies production, Royston once again has a winner with Little Note.

Little Note is now available on DVD.

Duration: 15 minutes

Language: Mandarin

Rating: 3.5/5

Genre: Drama

Director: Royston Tan

Cast: Chue En Jye, Desmond Tan, Chen Jing Jun