In October 2021, anonymous allegations that Night Owl Cinematics co-founder Sylvia Chan verbally abused employees and fostered a toxic workplace exploded into Singapore's biggest influencer scandal, drawing in her acrimonious divorce from co-founder Ryan Tan, police investigations and a sponsor exodus.
Night Owl Cinematics (NOC), founded by the couple in February 2013 after a failed restaurant venture, had grown from wedding videography into one of Singapore's most popular YouTube channels on the back of hits like Shit Singaporean Girlfriends Say. The pair, once dubbed Singapore YouTube's golden couple, announced on 31 May 2020 that their divorce had been finalised in March 2020 after three years of separation.
On 7 October 2021, the anonymous Instagram account @sgcickenrice accused Chan of being a toxic and abusive boss, alleging she singled out a talent named Samantha with an exit strategy and fostered a hostile work environment, backing the claims with leaked audio and video recordings. Major brands including Colgate and Milo swiftly ceased collaborations with the company. NOC responded on 11 October, calling the allegations a massive smear campaign, and its lawyers issued a cease and desist letter to the account, which pushed back through lawyer Eugene Thuraisingam.
On 13 October, Chan apologised, acknowledging she did not live up to the standards expected of her, and was removed from NOC's artiste line-up. But the saga escalated: on 19 October, the blog #EndTheSilence published graver allegations, including misappropriation of company funds and misconduct involving sexual favours. On 21 October, the police and the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices began investigations, while Chan filed her own report over death threats and harassment she received.
The scandal then consumed the couple's private lives. In a nearly two-hour interview with influencer Xiaxue on 24 October, Chan alluded to Tan's infidelity, claiming he had a pattern of driving female staff home. Tan later responded that he drove all staff home to comfort those Chan had scolded at work, and to escape a stressful home. The interview drew over 730,000 views overnight.
In 2024, Chan revealed on her podcast that the saga had triggered a 12-month criminal investigation, with police telling her over a hundred reports had been filed against her covering embezzlement and prostitution claims. No charges were ultimately filed. NOC has since wound down, and the saga remains Singapore's definitive case study in influencer crisis management gone wrong.
The saga's long tail continued well after the headlines faded. Sylvia briefly resurfaced as regional head of media strategy at creator company Gushcloud International, and later announced she was training to become a life coach, hosting a podcast where she described the year-long police investigation as terrifying. Media outlets dubbed the episode Singapore's most epic influencer saga, and it is now routinely cited in discussions of creator-economy accountability, workplace culture at influencer firms, and how quickly brand partnerships can evaporate when allegations surface.