Singapore is back in the Oscars race - this time, with a thriller film.

Today (Sept 19), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) announced that movie Stranger Eyes - written and directed by Yeo Siew Hua - has been selected by the Singapore Film Commission (SFC) Advisory Committee as the official Singaporean entry for the 2026 Academy Awards, competing in the Best International Feature Film category.

Stranger Eyes follows Darren (Wu Chien-ho) whose baby daughter has gone missing. He receives voyeuristic videos from someone who has been filming their daily life and suspects that his neighbour Goh (Lee Kang-sheng) is behind her disappearance.

It also stars Anicca Panna and local actress Xenia Tan.

Siew Hua said: "It's a real honour to represent Singapore again for a second time since my previous film. Thank you to all who have given me this opportunity to explore how we're looking at each other through this film. It is important to keep our stories alive and to continue to tell stories that matter."

His film A Land Imagined was selected for the 2018 Oscars.

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Stranger Eyes, supported by IMDA and the SFC under the Media Talent Progression Programme. is a cross-border collaboration involving production houses from Singapore, Taiwan, France, and the US.

Yvonne Tang, Assistant Chief Executive (Media Industry Group) at IMDA, also said: "Stranger Eyes reflects the growing strength of Made-with-Singapore films. With nine Made-with-Singapore films premiering and competing at top festivals like Cannes, Toronto, and Busan this year, it is clear that our stories are finding their place on the world stage."

2026 marks the 98th edition of the Oscars, a prestigious set of awards that recognises artistic and technical merit in the film industry. Presented annually in California, US, winners receive a gold-plated statuette commonly called Oscar, which earned the ceremony its moniker.

Currently, winners are chosen globally from 24 categories, including best picture, animated feature film, directing, actor and actress. Members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which is divided into various branches of film production, vote for the winners in most of the categories. 

Singapore's recent Oscars entries include the drama film Ajoomma (2023 Oscars) which starred local actors Hong Huifang and Shane Pow, as well as the romcom film La Luna (2025 Oscars).

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Last year, Stranger Eyes received six nominations at the 61st Golden Horse Awards, including Best Narrative Feature, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Lee Kang-sheng) and Best Original Screenplay (Yeo Siew Hua). It was also selected to open the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival as well as the Singapore International Film Festival in 2024.

In September 2024, the film made its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival and was the first Singaporean film to be in the running for the festival's main competition.

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kristy.chua@asiaone.com

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