Annette Lee says she'll refund moviegoers if her new film Dream Stall 'wasted their time'

Local influencer, actress and content creator Annette Lee made a bold promise for her new film: She will personally refund unhappy viewers. The multi-hyphenate recently announced on Instagram that anyone who watched her new film Dream Stall during its opening week, and genuinely felt it “wasted their time”, can approach her directly for a refund. Yes, really. "This is not a joke, everybody!" she insisted. Dream Stall revolves around top university graduate Enya (played by Lee), who decides to modernise their traditional family hawker business selling bak kut teh after her father (played by Mark Lee) decides to shut it down. The film also stars Xixi Lim, Jaspers Lai, Ya Hui and Xander Pang. Though some might assume the stunt was simply clever marketing, she said the decision came from a very honest place. "So over the years, I noticed that there are a lot of Singaporeans who write off local films before they even give it a shot," reasoning that she probably doesn’t blame them. "Because it is possible they gave it a shot once, felt disappointed, and felt they didn’t want to waste the time and money again," she said. In an interview with 8days.sg, Annette Lee added on that she doesn't think Singaporeans support local just for the sake of it. "I think they should support local if they think it’s good," she explained. Sounds genuine enough. Let’s be honest: How long has it been since you last genuinely enjoyed a movie in the theatres? "Because I feel that cinemas are still the best way to experience films. I’m going to be offering a money-back guarantee to anyone who watches my movie Dream Stall in its first week of opening, and feels that it wasted their time," she said. Moviegoers who felt negatively about her film can simply bring their ticket stub on Jun 5 at *Scape Gallery level five. "I’m doing this because I know how much effort my team and I put in to try and create something we really think people will enjoy, and it’s my way of trying to earn back your trust that you probably have lost in the local cinema scene, since I don’t know when," she explained. Annette Lee also told 8days.sg that she has not set aside an amount should there be moviegoers who demand a refund from her. She added that no one has reached out to her yet. Netizens praised her confidence and willingness to stand behind her work publicly. "If I really enjoy the movie, can I also find you to pay you double for the ticket?" joked a fan. To which Annette Lee hilariously replied: "Can is can, but I’ll probably ask you to use the money to buy someone else a ticket." One helpful netizen also highlighted that Singaporeans could potentially use the SG Cultural Pass to catch the film. The pass allows you to redeem a S$16 movie e-voucher. However, Lee clarified to 8days.sg that moviegoers who use the pass to redeem free tickets would not be eligible for refunds. According to her, allowing refunds for SG Cultural Pass redemptions could potentially create a loophole where people attempt to “cash out" the voucher system instead, creating legal consequences. One fan also warned her that publicly offering refunds could easily spiral out of control, advising her not to hand out refunds too casually without proper justification. But Lee seemed completely unbothered. "If they genuinely hated their time, any reason is 100 per cent valid. The fact that they even gave it a chance is something I’m already grateful for."