Power list 2014: Pathfinder with big dreams

Two big-budget Hollywood films were shot in Singapore this year, largely thanks to Infinite Studios' state-of-the-art sound stages.

Sci-fi film Equals, starring Kristen Stewart and Nicholas Hoult, and action thriller Agent 47 starring Zachary Quinto and Rupert Friend were filmed in the sound stages at Mediapolis in Buona Vista, which were officially launched in January.

This is the first time in decades that such major movie productions were shot here - raising the local media industry to new levels and giving Singapore's creative talents exposure.

For paving the way for Singapore to house more international film productions, Mr Mike Wiluan, chief executive of Infinite Studios, is sitting high at No. 3 on the Power List.

A sound stage is a soundproof, hangar- like structure where everything from temperature to lighting can be fully controlled to meet the needs of any production.

The two sound stages at Infinite - the first of its kind in Singapore - measure 928 sq m and 1,681 sq m and are equipped to support productions requiring complex set-builds and multi-camera operations.

Mr Wiluan last made the Power List in 2009 at No. 5 for the visual-effects work his company's post-production arm Infinite Frameworks did for the animated feature Sing To The Dawn, which was mostly done in its Batam, Indonesia, animation studio. And the father of three promises more international projects to come. "That's why the company is called Infinite Studios. There are infinite possibilities for us."

Says the man who also produced the Indonesian film Dead Mine (2012) and Royston Tan's box-office hit 881 (2007): "I love making movies and that's what we'll keep on doing more of. But infrastructure is only one part of it. My job is to travel and tell people what we do. When you show others what can be done in Singapore, we can make more movies here."

This article was first published on December 14, 2014.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.