I remembered scribbling some notes as I stepped into the airplane. I asked myself, what now? What do I do moving forward from here?

The first thought that came to my mind was regrouping. After all, I got laid off after almost 3 years for a job I was working in. But what got me so focused onto making this film was the urge to do create something outside of my physical comfort zone. And so I continued scribbling notes, which formed the basis of the film Parachute.

I knew right from the start that the film will be a lengthy one. I called it “documentary” in the beginning. But this isn’t really a documentary per se for it really isn’t an account of my experience in quarantine. And being in forced quarantine already feels like a bird trapped in a cage.

Instead, I wanted the story to be a mixbag of emotions, interviews and silliness. And a little bit of dramatization as well.

I often thought of the process of relocation. Having done it once before in 2014 from Singapore to New York for school, I knew the pains of adjusting to a completely new environment. This time, it is not an adjustment, but a readjustment. “Is it any easier?” I asked myself. Maybe not.

I don’t have a clear cut answer on why not. People often asked me to make a comparison between being a Singaporean in Singapore or being a Singaporean in the United States. I felt like to them, there is only one obvious answer. But I have refused to answer this question because my answer has never been as black and white as they think. And I knew how futile it might be if I were to give them an answer aberrant to what they might expect.

For me, relocation has been a way to seek fresh courage to face an uncertain future. I asked myself “what’s the point of holding back?” Parachute is my way of answering that question.

With the exception of Andrew Nelson filming me from across the street, I figured the only way I could record myself was to keep improvising with the tools and equipments I have available.

With less than 60 square meters of space, I figured that my composition had to be extremely efficient. Utilizing all corners of the space was paramount. And while panning and dollying were no longer options, I quickly learnt that I could vary shots by shifting its angles and performing in front of the camera - a trope loosely similar to Robert Andersson’s A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence .

And of course, props was somewhat an issue too. I had so many ideas but had to pull myself back to reality at some points of time. I brought back 3 suitcases, and had one Decathlon bag of extra food delivered my family. Looking back, I felt that they were sufficient for the film.

Minimal budget was spent in the production of Parachute. In fact, apart from the $300 worth of creative composition I've paid my composer to produce a song, most of the production and editing was essentially extremely low-cost. The other large monetary component was a month worth of Zoom Professional Plan, which costs me $15 for one month.

This meant that I had to get very creative in the development of the film ideas. Thanks to Jean, I was able to have her screen through most of the contents before publishing the film during the screening.

I didn’t know how long it will take to finish Parachute, but I am glad that whatever effort it took after the quarantine was time well spent trying to get this to a stage that I’m rather proud of at this moment. There were certainly difficult moments trying to relive the experience in quarantine in the editing stages. But I am massively glad that all these are over.

There are countless people whom I would like to thank. These are people who have been involved in the film in some way, conceptualizing and setting a feasible direction for me. When I pitched this film to them, I received nothing but unwavering support. Thank you.