Cole Sprouse and Kiko Mizuhara will attend the Asian premiere of Vintage Violence, which has been selected as the closing film of the 37th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF). Directed by Eugene Kotlyarenko, the crime comedy will screen at Capitol Theatre on November 1, 2026, bringing the festival to a close with a story that combines crime, romance, action and dark comedy.
The screening marks the return of a dedicated festival closing night for the first time since 2014. Sprouse and Mizuhara will be joined by Kotlyarenko for the event. The film previously had its world premiere in the Midnight Madness programme at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Vintage Violence follows Carter, an American livestreamer who discovers a pair of nineteenth-century Levi’s jeans while exploring an abandoned mine in Colorado. Hoping to make money from the unusual find, Carter turns to Izumi, one of his subscribers in Japan, who suggests taking the vintage denim to Tokyo, where it could be worth a considerable amount.
The plan soon spirals into chaos. Izumi’s debt-ridden boyfriend becomes involved with Edoga, an underworld figure obsessed with denim, while an exiled yakuza arrives seeking revenge. Carter finds himself caught in a series of increasingly dangerous events, turning what began as an attempt to profit from a rare pair of jeans into an unpredictable crime story.
The film’s storytelling approach also reflects the characters’ screen-dominated lives. Split screens, livestreams, text messages and online comments are incorporated into the narrative, bringing the characters’ digital interactions into the film’s visual style. One notable sequence features a chase through a gaming arcade accompanied by music from Japanese musician Jun Togawa.
Kotlyarenko is known for exploring internet culture and online behaviour in his films. His previous work includes Spree, a thriller centred on an aspiring livestreamer, and Wobble Palace. In Vintage Violence, he brings similar interests to a story involving vintage fashion, online audiences and Tokyo’s denim scene, combining them with elements of crime and exaggerated comedy.
The film stars Sprouse and Mizuhara alongside Nijiro Murakami, Pierre Taki and Hio Miyazawa. Its story moves between Colorado and Tokyo, connecting an unusual discovery in the United States with a market for vintage denim in Japan. The resulting chain of events places the characters in increasingly absurd and dangerous situations.
Ahead of the premiere, Kotlyarenko, Sprouse and Mizuhara will take part in an “In Conversation With” session at the National Museum of Singapore on October 31 at 11 a.m. The discussion will cover the making of Vintage Violence, the director’s interest in contemporary screen culture, and the lead actors’ collaboration and experiences across their careers.
The 37th Singapore International Film Festival will run from October 21 to November 1, 2026. Tickets for the Vintage Violence screening and accompanying events are scheduled to go on sale on October 11 at noon through the festival’s official website.
With its mix of digital-age storytelling, crime and dark humour, Vintage Violence offers an unconventional choice for the festival’s closing presentation. Its selection also brings back a dedicated closing-night event after more than a decade, giving the 2026 edition a final screening centred on a film that draws on the increasingly screen-driven world its characters inhabit.