Our National Day Films
- ejorigin
- Oct 10
- 7 min read
Written by: Anushka (25-E2), Amelia (25-E3), Liyana (25-I3), Kaitlyn (25-U1), Lynette (25-U1)
Designed by: Giselle (25-E3)
Raise your hand if you watch the annual National Day films!! Oh wait… just me? Well, never mind! Today, let’s dive into Singtel’s annual National Day films!
Since 2017, Singtel has released annual National Day films, ranging from 2-30 minutes to commemorate Singapore’s independence day, coming in the forms of montages, skits, interviews and so on.
2017: “National Day After”
The title draws attention to the fact that the release of the first video came not before, nor on the day itself, but on the day AFTER National Day, with the intention to inspire Singaporeans to press on, keeping up the Majulah spirit beyond the hype of the celebrations of National Day. The film pays tribute to the resilience and spirit of Singaporeans, propelling Singapore from a mudflat into the sprawling metropolis it is today.
2018 : “The Drive Home”
The longest film to date, this six-minute film features a skit about a teenager studying abroad in Australia coming back to Singapore to visit his grandfather. Unbeknownst to him, his visit comes right before National Day. This skit, highlighting the generational gap in terms of the significance of National Day to them, made a comical yet sobering video, as the video delves into how the meaning of home differs for the youth and the elderly as we become more globally interconnected, will the connection between Singapore and her people still stay strong through time and distance weathered bonds?
2019 : “In Return”
This film celebrates the Singaporean spirit of diversity, inclusivity and kindness, paying tribute to Singaporeans who exemplified the spirit of giving back. This film features national para-swimmer Toh Wei Soong, Theatre Arts scholar and practitioner Shaza Ishak and orthopaedic surgeon and medical volunteer Dr Kumaran Rasappan as they share their common dream of sharing inclusion and positivity to Singapore’s citizens.Even as Singapore became wider known and regarded for its progress and tenacity, this film highlights the need to keep including and taking care of those who find themselves on the fringes of society.
2020 : “This is the year”
This film honours the Singapore spirit of perseverance and tenacity, as its citizens pushed through the tumultuous challenges of COVID-19. This film highlights the dislocation and displacement felt keenly by everyone, as it seeks to recognise the heavy toll that the pandemic placed on Singaporeans, yet pays tribute to the indomitable Majulah spirit that each Singaporean embodied to push past the difficult times. Despite the muted celebrations, this film showed how our national spirit and pride still was as strong as ever as we navigated our way through the crisis.
2021 : “Leading Through Uncertainty”
This film features Singapore’s top athletes as we follow their journey in the anxiety-filled lead-up to the Japan Olympics as the shadow of COVID still looms large. The film offers a rare glimpse into their anxieties, vulnerabilities and uncertainties as they persist with their training amidst the disruption of the pandemic. This film aims to convey the indefatigable resilience and tenacity that is at the heart of the Singapore spirit, hoping to inspire us all to press on and keep trying.
2022 : “The Making of a 5G Nation”
This film throws the spotlight not on renown figures, nor on celebrities, but instead on Singtel’s planners and engineers, the unsung heroes who work tirelessly behind the scenes to pull off the NDP. After the two year hiatus, this year’s film focuses on Singtel’s efforts to assemble and prepare the National Day Parade, tracing Singtel’s 5G journey as Singapore became the first country in the world to be fully covered by 5G. Emphasising connectivity, the film aims to show how Singapore still manages to move forward together even while the effects of the pandemic still linger.
2023 : “From Mudflats to Smart Nation”
This film commemorates our founding prime minister’s 100th birth anniversary, with the title alluding to Mr Lee’s famous line from Singapore’s first year of independence when he declared he would turn Singapore from a mudflat to a metropolis. This documentary, structured in three acts, aims to show how Mr Lee’s promise came about, exploring his vision for Singapore, as well as charting Singapore’s meteoric rise from a fledgling nation to the global economic hub we are today. Singtel Group’s leaders also chime in on Singapore’s growth story, having been there to witness and contribute on Singapore’s journey to reinvention.
2024 : “Shining Bright From Singapore to Paris”
With the nation’s birthday and the Olympic Games in Paris coinciding, this National Day film focuses on the Team Singapore athletes who would be representing Singapore, competing against the world’s best of the best. This 90 second film features the athletes training against iconic backdrops, such as Marina Bay, Gardens by the Bay and Henderson Waves at Telok Blangah Hill Park. The athletes each embody the three values they regard as crucial for success, namely — speed, resilience and tenacity. With the fire that the athletes carry with them, this film hopes to inspire Singaporeans with their spark and tenacity to reach further, pushing past our limits.
2025 : “Majulah Singapura”
Onward Singapore, the title of our national anthem, was this year’s theme for the annual film, hoping to serve as a rallying cry for all of us to move forward into the future together. Honouring this year’s SG60, the film highlights how the National Day parade has changed and adapted over the six decades our nation has existed, illustrating the progress that Singapore has made and how far we have come since then.
After that dive into the history of Singapore’s National Day films, are you excited to see next year’s film? I sure hope so! Let’s wish for next year’s film to be as exciting, moving and inspiring as its predecessors!!
Singapore’s rising stars!!
The happiest country in Asia, the cleanest city in the world, the best airport in the world… the list goes on. Singapore boasts numerous titles, and despite its booming success in the international stages of economical and educational growth, our artistic, creative and entertainment industries have seen a rapid decline in popularity.
Today, Singaporeans speak of struggling to support local creatives, and as stated by a Straits Times article, “Creative arts are a prominent example of an “un-Singaporean” professional pursuit that tends to attract doubt and detraction from other Singaporeans on public platforms”
But! In light of National Day, let's take time to appreciate our rising stars and take a step back to encourage Singaporean talents who have chosen to go against the grain and persisted in pursuing their creative goals in spite of everything!
An up- and- coming singer songwriter born and raised in Singapore, Regina’s sweet love song, “ the cutest pair” took off on tiktok, reaching a large international audience, and making around 50 Million streams on spotify alone! Today, the young singer has accumulated a listening of about 700,000 people on Spotify, making her one of the most recognised young female artists to come out of Singapore this decade! Her tour, held in January of 2025, sold out in Manila, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur. At 21, Regina is an alumni of SOTA ( School of the Arts, Singapore), and enrolled in the University of the Arts, Singapore, in 2024. Despite facing backlash from a few bitter netizens online, Regina has continued doing what she loves: making music, and has recently released her new single: Before I leave. “Take a chance and see, we were truly meant to be!” Don't forget to give Singaporean creatives a chance too! This writer loves you Regina! 😘. Regina graced the audience attending NDP Bay celebrations for SG60 this year,performing her hit “The cutest pair”, sharing her dulcet voice and lighthearted energy.
Gentle Bones, as known by his stage name, or Joel Tan, has received a fairly large amount of success in the 2010s, with his debut breakout song, “ Until we die” , topping the Singapore Itunes charts shortly after its release, and becoming a hit among local youths at the time. ( a true feat! ) He still remains one of Singapore's most popular local English pop artists, and was the second most streamed Singaporean artist on Spotify in 2021, behind Mandopop star JJ Lin. He was even named under the Forbes 30 under 30 list. Although he has recently retired the stage name “ Gentle bones” , and maintains a low profile, he has no plans of retiring from making music and many look forward to new releases in the near future.
Despite Singapore having had shirked from its position in the region’s entertainment scene, we certainly cannot forget Singapore’s golden era of Mandopop, where we saw stars like JJ Lin, Tanya Chua, and Stefanie Sun be propelled into the limelight, making waves in the mandopop community and earning regional recognition as talented artists. Practice love, a song released in his 2013 album, 10 untold stories, is an emotional ballad that the singer revealed was dedicated to the 104 victims of the SilkAir Flight MI185 tragedy that took place in 1997. He also revealed that the story that plays out in the official music video was based on a true story between him and a close female friend, Xu Chue Fern, who he had known during grade school. Xue had had a crush and confessed to the singer, then 16. However, JJ's feelings for Xu never went beyond friendship, and he did not reciprocate her feelings despite months of pursuit. Unfortunately, Xu died a few months later in the tragedy."I still keep her photo to this day. I want to preserve my memory of her." JJ Lin's surmountable impact on the mandopop community continues to grow as he continues to proudly represent the nation, performing our 2015 National Day Song, “ Our Singapore”, which was composed by Dick Lee, a notable figure in Singapore’s creative industries.
While a mere handful of Singaporean artists were featured in this article, we cannot overlook the contributions made by others in the community to push our creative departments to greater heights, and we appreciate the continuous efforts of such talents to create a more artistically inclined and expressive Singaporean society. Happy 60th Birthday, Singapore!
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