Singaporean singer-songwriter, actress and filmmaker Annette Lee is making headlines after offering full refunds to moviegoers who feel they wasted their time watching her latest film.
Lee’s new comedy movie, Dream Stall, officially premiered in cinemas on May 27 and marks her feature film directorial debut.
The film follows Enya, a high-achieving university graduate played by Lee herself, who steps in to rescue her family’s bak kut teh business after her father — portrayed by veteran actor Mark Lee — decides to shut it down.
Ahead of the movie’s release, Lee uploaded a video on social media announcing a bold “money-back guarantee” for disappointed viewers during the film’s opening week.
In the video, she acknowledged that many Singaporeans have become sceptical about local films due to past disappointments.
“Over the years, I’ve seen Singaporeans write off local films before even giving them a chance,” she said.
“I honestly don’t blame them because maybe they watched one before, felt disappointed, and didn’t want to waste their time and money again.”
Lee explained that the refund initiative was her personal attempt to rebuild trust in Singapore’s local cinema scene while showing confidence in the hard work put into the project by her team.
“I know how much effort we put into creating something we genuinely believe people would enjoy,” she said.
However, she added that anyone who still felt the movie was a waste of time could personally meet her, show their ticket stub and share feedback on how she could improve future productions.
“This is not a joke,” she stressed in the video while wearing a red cap featuring the slogan “Make SG Cinema Great Again”.
Viewers seeking refunds can reportedly head to *SCAPE Gallery Level 5 in Singapore on June 5 between 8.30pm and 10pm.
Due to legal restrictions, the refund offer only applies to regular cinema ticket purchases and excludes tickets bought using the SG Culture Pass.
According to the movie’s official website, attendees at the refund session may also be filmed or photographed for documentation purposes.
The unusual promotion quickly went viral online, with many netizens praising Lee’s confidence, honesty and willingness to stand behind her work.
