Malaysian born actor Christopher Lee stars in Singapore’s first AI-hybrid drama, Crooks.
The nine-episode series, which has begun production, uses artificial intelligence-assisted environments to expand the scale of its cinematic world that cannot be built physically.
Actors perform on controlled live-action sets, where their blocking, timing, expressions and emotional intent are captured first.
AI-assisted workflows are then used post-production to support background creation, virtual set design, relighting, spatial expansion and environment replacement.
Crooks is inspired by the story of Singaporean former convict Benny Se Teo, who founded restaurant Eighteen Chefs in 2007 with the aim of providing troubled youths and former convicts a non-judgmental working environment, making it easier for them to reintegrate into society.
In the show, Lee plays Ah Cheng, a former convict and chef who inherits a failing restaurant and tries to rebuild his life through the kitchen.
More than 50 crew members across production, technical and editing roles are being reskilled to work in AI-enabled environments.
Singaporean filmmaker Boi Kwong, Crooks’ producer and founder of Singapore-based film production company B-01 Films, said in a statement: “AI cannot replace the tremble in an actor’s voice, the silence between two people, or the truth of a performance. What it can do is give Singapore film-makers more room to build the world around those moments.”
The 47-year-old continued: “The technology is there to support the story, not to take over it. It allows us to imagine with greater scale, while keeping the emotion close.”
Kwong’s credits include crime thriller Geylang (2022), which received a Best Action Choreography nomination at the 2022 Golden Horse Awards and screened at the International Film Festival Rotterdam in 2023.
Lee, 54, said of his latest project: “What moved me was how Ah Cheng tries to earn back trust in small, difficult ways.
“He does it through the work, through the food, and through the way he shows up for the people around him, even when he is still learning how to forgive himself.”
The star, who was last seen on the big screen in the Singaporean comedy-drama film Uncle Odyssey (2026) alongside actor Mark Lee, added: “Crooks is a story not only about second chances, but also about how difficult it is to accept one when you do not feel you deserve it.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
