Showing posts with label Cinemalaya 2007. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cinemalaya 2007. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
TRIBU: A TRIUMPH OF THE EVERYDAY MAN
The triumph of Jim Libiran’s TRIBU at the recently concluded 3rd Philippine Independent Film Festival signals the crossing of Philippine cinema from the elitist to one that is mass-based, with ideas influenced and inspired by ordinary lives and projected onto the screen; not for amusement, I hope, but for better understanding of our society which has been wracked for decades by bias, wars, and apathy.
My only hope is that the interest of writers, directors and cinema in general about the plight of our people, especially that of the poor who compose the majority, is real or else it’d be an exercise in futility. It would a tragedy if the topics in Cinemalaya would just end in the blogosphere or in coffee shops as discourses for the intelligentsia. If cinema is able to make people and systems move in order to effect changes then it has fulfilled its purpose. Only through this can Cinemalaya really live up to its name.
Radioactive Adobo sends its warmest congratulations to Jim Libiran and to all our friends from UP LIRA who, I am pretty sure, are currently sharing his joy. We send our congratulations to the participating tribes, and to the entire production crew. Mabuhay po kayong lahat!
TUGISTA, the rapper group in the film (photo above taken at the UP Creative Writing Center last summer), are our guest performers to close our Poetry Festival 2007. This is sponsored by the Writers Guild of which I am unfortunate to be heading for two years now.
What: Tara Let’s! An evening of music, rap, & poetry
Where: SPi Night Café, City of Parañaque 6PM
Entrance is free. Coffee, butterscotch cookies and brownies will be served. For non-SPi employees, please register via SMS. Text TUG_(your name)_(email) to 0927.447.8781.
CINEMALAYA WHINERS, ER, WINNERS
In festivals like the Cinemalaya, 8 out of 10 members of the audience most probably are critics – self-confessed or otherwise. They sit down with their senses on heightened alert, ever watchful of the film’s details, oftentimes enjoying every lapse and mistake yet ever too willing to share in the limelight for its triumph. I wonder if critics ever get to really enjoy a film without having to tear it into pieces for closer scrutiny.
A friend once said that there are only two kinds of films: the bad and the good ones. But oh, if it were only that easy! Anyway, here are the official list of winners for 2007:
Best Film - TRIBU (Full Length)
Best Film - GABON (shorts)
Best Director - Aureaus Solito for PISAY
Best Actor - TRIBU tribes (collective)
Best Actress - Ina Feleo for ENDO
Audience Choice Awardee - PISAY (Full Length)
Audience Choice Awardee - DOBLE VISTA (Shorts)
Best in Production Design - PISAY
Monday, July 30, 2007
SHORT CHANGED
Had a chance to catch one half (or 5) of the 10 short films in competition at the recently closed Cinemalaya. My, was I disgusted. I am surprised that these things even made the cut.
Some of them are thesis films submitted to either the UP or DLSU film faculties hence the experimental feel to them but this, however, doesn’t mean they can make crap considering that most look like good money was spend in producing them.
The series opened with the most boring of them all, Doble Vista. So much for a starter. Terribly contrived and a total waste of a good idea. Crappy camera work, too. Production values are also way below sea level.
Misteryo ng Hapis is story of a man who still hasn’t come to terms about his being gay and the horrors of the past which includes non-acceptance by his very own father (sounds novel enough, don’t you think?). He ends up mumbling lines repeatedly (I can’t recall them anymore out of sheer boredom) while his mother says the rosary with her friends during the pa-siyam for his father who’s just died.
Incidentally, his dad used to warn him never to join in in the prayers with the suggestion that this may make him gay or something to that effect. The images switch back and forth from the pa-siyam, images of when he was a kid, and a theatre production symbolizing his very own struggles (the character, Jay, is a stage actor here, too, so the use of this technique is acceptable, although tried and tired).
Somehow, I was given an impression that his father’s death – an oppressor – didn’t give him the liberation he greatly deserves. Instead, he is haunted by the memories of him. In the end, one is forced to ask, “So what was the point?”
I am glad though that this was made in pure Capampangan, although the lead star, Andoy Ranay (of Duda/Doubt fame), should have been rehearsed a million times in speaking Capampangan properly. You really can’t have everything.
Nineball disappoints. It’s a case of “Never judge a film by its poster.” I was expecting something totally fun, funny and witty (as judged from the poster, which was very amusing to say the least. No, not this poster I have posted here. They used another one during the exhibit).
It’s a story of Bodyi, a natural born billiards player, whose career – or whatever was left of it – ended the day a ball – the 9 ball, of all things – got, uhm, stuck in one of his nostrils. The ball later was seen, in all its gooey-ness, being hit about on the billiards table.
I mean, seriously, how juvenile!
In this series, only two stood out: Rolyo and Tagapagligtas.
ROLYO is a story of a girl who leads a rather monotonous existence at the farm with her parents. Sometimes she would be sent out into the fields to catch birds to sell in front of the Cathedral on Sundays. There’s a scene there where the nets were the only ones you can see above a sea of talahib. Very nice, methinks.
Anyway, she and her father would paint the birds (this is funny because vendors also do this to chicks these days), and off they go to the Cathedral. The film suffers from really bad lighting compounded by the fact that the weather was also pretty much uncooperative. In fact, if you would look closely, most films in this Cinemalaya, one time or another, have storm clouds brewing in the distance. In last year’s edition, a lot of films were filmed around the location of Malate and Baywalk, but I digress.
I am surprised that they had to take a tricycle to the church. I mean, they only sold one bird and released the rest, I wonder if they earned anything at all! The girl asked her Dad if they can see a movie after they sell the birds (Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code was showing) but ginagabi na sila, says her dad, and buys her two post-New Year horns instead (at Php 30 EACH! Ack!).
Towards the end, the girl was seen uncoiling the horns, made of discarded films negatives, and looking at the images against the candlelight. Awwwww…
Save for some inconsistencies and poor lighting, ROLYO does have its awwwww moments that makes for great potential when improved upon.
Writer ALVIN B. YAPAN has written stories that have received recognition from the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature (1997, 2002, 2003) and NCCA Writers Prize (2005).
Tagapagligtas is probably the better of the lot. Set in Quiapo – again, ang walang kamatayang Quiapo of ironies – it stars Sid Lucero as Anghel, a Quiapo istambay who brings young, impregnated women to Lupe (Sharmaine Buencamino), who does assisted, pre-term deliveries (abortion, if you must). Indulge me but cliché-ish as it may seem, we can opt to tag Anghel as Anghel ng Kamatayan.
Lupe goes about her usual business, visits the church, lights candles, and comes home to do her operations. All this ended, presumably, when Anghel got her only daughter, Cristina, played by a rather forgettable actress, pregnant. The poor girl tried to do abortion procedures on herself and died from the attempt.
Parang, okay. How ironic. It’s something straight out of a tabloid, from start to finish (Headline: ANAK NG ABORTIONIST, PATAY!).
So, who is the real tagapagligtas here? The Nazareno of Quiapo? Lupe? Anghel? The irony of it all?
Your guess is as good as mine.
My two regrets: One, bothering to spend Php 100 to see the 1st half. Two, easily giving up and not seeing the second half because it has 2005’s best director in the short film category (not that he was officially hailed “best”; I am entitled to my own opinion), Lawrence Fajardo of Bacolod City, whose entry, Kultado*, was a film of strength, utter rawness, and excellent storytelling. And the editing… [swoons]
I hope Mr. Fajardo forgives me for my tendency to generalize. Please know that you have in me a most devoted fan. As for the rest, best of luck for Cinemalaya 2008!
*Won the Grand Jury Prize in 2005
Some of them are thesis films submitted to either the UP or DLSU film faculties hence the experimental feel to them but this, however, doesn’t mean they can make crap considering that most look like good money was spend in producing them.
The series opened with the most boring of them all, Doble Vista. So much for a starter. Terribly contrived and a total waste of a good idea. Crappy camera work, too. Production values are also way below sea level.
Misteryo ng Hapis is story of a man who still hasn’t come to terms about his being gay and the horrors of the past which includes non-acceptance by his very own father (sounds novel enough, don’t you think?). He ends up mumbling lines repeatedly (I can’t recall them anymore out of sheer boredom) while his mother says the rosary with her friends during the pa-siyam for his father who’s just died.
Incidentally, his dad used to warn him never to join in in the prayers with the suggestion that this may make him gay or something to that effect. The images switch back and forth from the pa-siyam, images of when he was a kid, and a theatre production symbolizing his very own struggles (the character, Jay, is a stage actor here, too, so the use of this technique is acceptable, although tried and tired).
Somehow, I was given an impression that his father’s death – an oppressor – didn’t give him the liberation he greatly deserves. Instead, he is haunted by the memories of him. In the end, one is forced to ask, “So what was the point?”
I am glad though that this was made in pure Capampangan, although the lead star, Andoy Ranay (of Duda/Doubt fame), should have been rehearsed a million times in speaking Capampangan properly. You really can’t have everything.
Nineball disappoints. It’s a case of “Never judge a film by its poster.” I was expecting something totally fun, funny and witty (as judged from the poster, which was very amusing to say the least. No, not this poster I have posted here. They used another one during the exhibit).
It’s a story of Bodyi, a natural born billiards player, whose career – or whatever was left of it – ended the day a ball – the 9 ball, of all things – got, uhm, stuck in one of his nostrils. The ball later was seen, in all its gooey-ness, being hit about on the billiards table.
I mean, seriously, how juvenile!
In this series, only two stood out: Rolyo and Tagapagligtas.
ROLYO is a story of a girl who leads a rather monotonous existence at the farm with her parents. Sometimes she would be sent out into the fields to catch birds to sell in front of the Cathedral on Sundays. There’s a scene there where the nets were the only ones you can see above a sea of talahib. Very nice, methinks.
Anyway, she and her father would paint the birds (this is funny because vendors also do this to chicks these days), and off they go to the Cathedral. The film suffers from really bad lighting compounded by the fact that the weather was also pretty much uncooperative. In fact, if you would look closely, most films in this Cinemalaya, one time or another, have storm clouds brewing in the distance. In last year’s edition, a lot of films were filmed around the location of Malate and Baywalk, but I digress.
I am surprised that they had to take a tricycle to the church. I mean, they only sold one bird and released the rest, I wonder if they earned anything at all! The girl asked her Dad if they can see a movie after they sell the birds (Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code was showing) but ginagabi na sila, says her dad, and buys her two post-New Year horns instead (at Php 30 EACH! Ack!).
Towards the end, the girl was seen uncoiling the horns, made of discarded films negatives, and looking at the images against the candlelight. Awwwww…
Save for some inconsistencies and poor lighting, ROLYO does have its awwwww moments that makes for great potential when improved upon.
Writer ALVIN B. YAPAN has written stories that have received recognition from the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature (1997, 2002, 2003) and NCCA Writers Prize (2005).
Tagapagligtas is probably the better of the lot. Set in Quiapo – again, ang walang kamatayang Quiapo of ironies – it stars Sid Lucero as Anghel, a Quiapo istambay who brings young, impregnated women to Lupe (Sharmaine Buencamino), who does assisted, pre-term deliveries (abortion, if you must). Indulge me but cliché-ish as it may seem, we can opt to tag Anghel as Anghel ng Kamatayan.
Lupe goes about her usual business, visits the church, lights candles, and comes home to do her operations. All this ended, presumably, when Anghel got her only daughter, Cristina, played by a rather forgettable actress, pregnant. The poor girl tried to do abortion procedures on herself and died from the attempt.
Parang, okay. How ironic. It’s something straight out of a tabloid, from start to finish (Headline: ANAK NG ABORTIONIST, PATAY!).
So, who is the real tagapagligtas here? The Nazareno of Quiapo? Lupe? Anghel? The irony of it all?
Your guess is as good as mine.
My two regrets: One, bothering to spend Php 100 to see the 1st half. Two, easily giving up and not seeing the second half because it has 2005’s best director in the short film category (not that he was officially hailed “best”; I am entitled to my own opinion), Lawrence Fajardo of Bacolod City, whose entry, Kultado*, was a film of strength, utter rawness, and excellent storytelling. And the editing… [swoons]
I hope Mr. Fajardo forgives me for my tendency to generalize. Please know that you have in me a most devoted fan. As for the rest, best of luck for Cinemalaya 2008!
*Won the Grand Jury Prize in 2005
Poster credits: Cinemalaya Official Website
BE STILL, MY BEATING HEART
This was the Cinemalaya entry I considered my personal film, the favorite. It was like it spoke to me, even to the point of rebuking me and my life choices, questioning all the decisions – good or bad – that I have made in my life.
I was in tears 15 minutes into the film and maybe the rest of the audience was in agreement, too, because people can’t seem to get over it even while we lined up to buy tickets for the next film. I had a chance to chat with the brother of the owner of Barbara’s, the official caterer, over lunch and insider information says this was CCP people’s “emotional favorite”, whatever that means. I mean, undeniably, the emotional pull was just too much to ignore. The tears were both for the sadness and the joy, the fall and the triumph of the film. Wait, I’m getting carried away. I should be mean, but I can’t help it. Lead actor, Ron Capinding who plays James Masino, is a natural! Short, almost frail looking, he has the deep voice and the strong resolve of an actor who has taken over his character completely. You cannot not commiserate with his character – an artist who found out he was afflicted by Guillain-Barré Syndrome, autoimmune disease which would make him a paralytic for life and thus make him stop painting, his only reason for being.
I digress here for a bit. GBS is supposed to be an ascending paralysis, but the film showed James showing weakness in his right hand first before he was shown falling in the latter part of the film. Respiratory weakness is also very common in half of the cases (but not a hallmark) and yet James was able to run around the island with the girl, Emma (GMA7’s Glaiza de Castro) without succumbing until after the day was done making an audience member remark, "Ayan, pinagod mo kasi!". Now moving on…
James decides to go to his friend’s vacation house on a far-away island to say farewell to his family (by leaving behind three paintings dedicated to them) and die. He actually meant to do the latter by slashing his right wrist, but he never comes around to doing it. The struggle is clearly evident and registers pretty well on Ron’s countenance. The audience feels a mixture of emotions ranging from awa to doing the fighting back for the character.
All these frustrated attempts to end his life, well, ended when Emma arrives at the guest house. She cleaned after James, cooked breakfast, questions his art and his views of art (“Kapag hindi malungkot, hindi art!” is one of James’ most memorable lines but this depends on one’s persuasions).
Anyway, to cut the story short, both had the chance to open, enter, and share each other’s live so much so that in the end, James thanks Emma for saving his life.
If you think this would end happily like some tragic stories do (say, isn’t that an irony?), you are completely mistaken. A twist in the story ensues when a flashback showed Emma running after a baby rattle – that of her baby which she gave up for adoption by the very doctor who stopped her from having it aborted – and got hot by a bus and was sped to the hospital. In a parallel universe technique meant to show two events happening concurrently, James was discovered half-dead on the island (he eventually decided to cut his wrist after all) and he wakes up to his sleeping mother beside him. The mother turns out to be Irma Adlawan, the same doctor who adopted Emma’s son!
Turned out, James had been fighting a long, long battle with GBS. Like most artists, there is the angst – a de rigueur among the lot, so it seems – that has made him decide to end it all because what’s the point of living if he couldn’t paint anyway? The raison d’etre would have been lost. Emma turned out to be the same young woman who gave up her baby to Irma Adlawan, and died of the same bus accident in 1976 (James probably was around 35 in this setting) hence making Emma James’ mother – a blast from the past where Emma “returns” to her son to save him just as she promised to return to him 35 years or so ago but was cut short by the accident!
Fantastic, ‘di ba? Grabe talaga ang storytelling style ni Katsky! Panalo!
Kudos to Glaiza for breaking expectations (I was half expecting acting a la Starstruck) and coming up with a moving portrayal of Emma, the most important character in this film because of the pivotal role she was to play later on. I sure would love to see her in future film projects. Very soon, I hope.
I have no regrets choosing STILL LIFE over SINUNGALING NA BUWAN which I am sure has its merits as well pero I’d rather have this than trouble myself with three love stories in SINUNGALING. The only remaining two questions I had were, first, will this film cross over to mainstream? I seriously doubt it because Ron Capinding is a veritable unknown to the larger viewing public (but then again, so was Nathan Lopez of Maximo Oliveros!). Will the excellent story and word of mouth carry it over to the other side? I pray to God this will be so. The second question is how did this film affect my life? That deserves its own blog entry, he he he!
Ron, as I soon found out, is an actor pala of Tanghalang Ateneo (‘di ba member din si blogger Mcvie nito?) and has played a wide range of roles from Romeo (in Romeo and Juliet, 1992) to a maniac (Anarkista, 2006). This very well explains his great acting in STILL LIFE. Even Neil Ryan Sese didn’t have this great a debut in Aishite Imasu (2004) where he conveniently disappeared among the cast as a Japanese guard, and he wasn’t even the star of the show in Maximo Oliveros either. Sad. Another Jaclyn Jose in the making, underrated and unappreciated. Oi, huwag naman sana po. Saying ang talent.
Anyway, we can only watch and wait for more good news for STILL LIFE. It definitely is up against ENDO and TUKSO for the Best Film plume. I am dying of anticipation!
Katrina Flores, you are so up there together with Auraeus Solito, Jon Red, Paolo Villaluna, Ellen Ramos, Mark Meily, Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil and the rest of the next generation of Philippine film greats!
Mabuhay po kayo! Sana bumalik po kayo next year!
Photo & stills credits: Glaiza de Castro Official Site
I was in tears 15 minutes into the film and maybe the rest of the audience was in agreement, too, because people can’t seem to get over it even while we lined up to buy tickets for the next film. I had a chance to chat with the brother of the owner of Barbara’s, the official caterer, over lunch and insider information says this was CCP people’s “emotional favorite”, whatever that means. I mean, undeniably, the emotional pull was just too much to ignore. The tears were both for the sadness and the joy, the fall and the triumph of the film. Wait, I’m getting carried away. I should be mean, but I can’t help it. Lead actor, Ron Capinding who plays James Masino, is a natural! Short, almost frail looking, he has the deep voice and the strong resolve of an actor who has taken over his character completely. You cannot not commiserate with his character – an artist who found out he was afflicted by Guillain-Barré Syndrome, autoimmune disease which would make him a paralytic for life and thus make him stop painting, his only reason for being.
I digress here for a bit. GBS is supposed to be an ascending paralysis, but the film showed James showing weakness in his right hand first before he was shown falling in the latter part of the film. Respiratory weakness is also very common in half of the cases (but not a hallmark) and yet James was able to run around the island with the girl, Emma (GMA7’s Glaiza de Castro) without succumbing until after the day was done making an audience member remark, "Ayan, pinagod mo kasi!". Now moving on…
James decides to go to his friend’s vacation house on a far-away island to say farewell to his family (by leaving behind three paintings dedicated to them) and die. He actually meant to do the latter by slashing his right wrist, but he never comes around to doing it. The struggle is clearly evident and registers pretty well on Ron’s countenance. The audience feels a mixture of emotions ranging from awa to doing the fighting back for the character.
All these frustrated attempts to end his life, well, ended when Emma arrives at the guest house. She cleaned after James, cooked breakfast, questions his art and his views of art (“Kapag hindi malungkot, hindi art!” is one of James’ most memorable lines but this depends on one’s persuasions).
Anyway, to cut the story short, both had the chance to open, enter, and share each other’s live so much so that in the end, James thanks Emma for saving his life.
If you think this would end happily like some tragic stories do (say, isn’t that an irony?), you are completely mistaken. A twist in the story ensues when a flashback showed Emma running after a baby rattle – that of her baby which she gave up for adoption by the very doctor who stopped her from having it aborted – and got hot by a bus and was sped to the hospital. In a parallel universe technique meant to show two events happening concurrently, James was discovered half-dead on the island (he eventually decided to cut his wrist after all) and he wakes up to his sleeping mother beside him. The mother turns out to be Irma Adlawan, the same doctor who adopted Emma’s son!
Turned out, James had been fighting a long, long battle with GBS. Like most artists, there is the angst – a de rigueur among the lot, so it seems – that has made him decide to end it all because what’s the point of living if he couldn’t paint anyway? The raison d’etre would have been lost. Emma turned out to be the same young woman who gave up her baby to Irma Adlawan, and died of the same bus accident in 1976 (James probably was around 35 in this setting) hence making Emma James’ mother – a blast from the past where Emma “returns” to her son to save him just as she promised to return to him 35 years or so ago but was cut short by the accident!
Fantastic, ‘di ba? Grabe talaga ang storytelling style ni Katsky! Panalo!
Kudos to Glaiza for breaking expectations (I was half expecting acting a la Starstruck) and coming up with a moving portrayal of Emma, the most important character in this film because of the pivotal role she was to play later on. I sure would love to see her in future film projects. Very soon, I hope.
I have no regrets choosing STILL LIFE over SINUNGALING NA BUWAN which I am sure has its merits as well pero I’d rather have this than trouble myself with three love stories in SINUNGALING. The only remaining two questions I had were, first, will this film cross over to mainstream? I seriously doubt it because Ron Capinding is a veritable unknown to the larger viewing public (but then again, so was Nathan Lopez of Maximo Oliveros!). Will the excellent story and word of mouth carry it over to the other side? I pray to God this will be so. The second question is how did this film affect my life? That deserves its own blog entry, he he he!
Ron, as I soon found out, is an actor pala of Tanghalang Ateneo (‘di ba member din si blogger Mcvie nito?) and has played a wide range of roles from Romeo (in Romeo and Juliet, 1992) to a maniac (Anarkista, 2006). This very well explains his great acting in STILL LIFE. Even Neil Ryan Sese didn’t have this great a debut in Aishite Imasu (2004) where he conveniently disappeared among the cast as a Japanese guard, and he wasn’t even the star of the show in Maximo Oliveros either. Sad. Another Jaclyn Jose in the making, underrated and unappreciated. Oi, huwag naman sana po. Saying ang talent.
Anyway, we can only watch and wait for more good news for STILL LIFE. It definitely is up against ENDO and TUKSO for the Best Film plume. I am dying of anticipation!
Katrina Flores, you are so up there together with Auraeus Solito, Jon Red, Paolo Villaluna, Ellen Ramos, Mark Meily, Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil and the rest of the next generation of Philippine film greats!
Mabuhay po kayo! Sana bumalik po kayo next year!
Photo & stills credits: Glaiza de Castro Official Site
Coming up next on Radioactive Adobo: A sleeper film to close the festival.
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