WARNING: CONTAINS GRAPHIC CONTENT

Besides bringing in some of the best movies from around the globe (nearly every one is “Certified Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes), homegrown independent film distributor Anticipate Pictures is known for its hyper-stylish, often-cheeky scroll-stopping artworks promoting said flicks — after all, the company was founded in 2016, when Instagram was starting to seriously blow up.

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Behind the majority of them is 30-year-old graphic designer Danielle Ng. Keng Yang Shuen catches up with her to find out about what it's like drawing up the equivalent of movie posters in the age of social media and fading cinemas.

DANIELLE! TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF AND HOW YOU CAME TO DESIGN VISUALS FOR THE FILMS ANTICIPATE PICTURES DISTRIBUTES HERE?

“Hi, I'm Dan, a full-time associate creative director at the brand consultancy Somewhere Else. I also illustrate and design graphics for Anticipate Pictures part-time. I first got to know Vincent Quek, the founder of Anticipate Pictures, when I worked on a project with him and (the nonprofit educational and cultural organisation) Alliance Francaise de Singapour. I was very moved by how passionate and sincere he was about films, and his mission of sharing them with more people really resonated with me. Back then, he was mostly screening at The Arts House, which meant it wasn’t easy for him to reach new audiences, and I felt that the films he brought in were extremely underrated and that his socials could do much more to highlight them. I remember attending a screening of the animated Chinese dark crime comedy Have a Nice Day in 2018 and there were only three people in the room, including myself. At that moment, I felt a strong resolve to help out and do something for the community. For the first few years, I designed for Anticipate Pictures ad hoc and on a voluntary basis — a pro bono role, since the company was still finding its feet. It was only during Covid-19 that I took on a more permanent part-time role and now, I design for every film that comes through its doors.”