Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Notes from Joel Shepard, YBCA Film/Video Curator

There were many major events in the Philippines over the last year, with perhaps the biggest of all being the passage of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act after more than 13 years of bitter debate. Opposed by the Catholic Church, the bill provides for sex-education classes and government-funded contraception for the poor. The most recent development in the political fate of this Act is a Philippine Supreme Court-ordered halt to its implementation so that the court may review Church-backed petitions against it.

In the troubled south of the country, a peace agreement was signed between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, an Islamist rebel group. The agreement will create a new semi-independent region called Bangsamoro. Offshore, a territorial dispute escalated with China over the South China Sea (which Filipinos call the West Philippine Sea). And Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao got knocked out by a hard right to the jaw by Juan Manuel Márquez.

Amidst this climate, things have only become more vibrant in the world of Filipino independent cinema. The broad spectrum of film festivals on the islands provided us with a rich array of film from which to craft our program. It was an artistically superb year for Cinemalaya, the largest and most important festival, despite some internal strife. The Cinema One Originals Film Festival continued with another year of high-quality work, including some surprisingly bold experimental films. And feelings were unanimous that Cinema Rehiyon, the festival of regional cinema, had its most successful year ever. The country’s only international film festival, Cinemanila, presented a fantastic selection, yet struggled to find audiences for its non-Filipino works.

Philbert Dy and I worked hard to come up with a unique, diverse and…well, awesome showcase for you this year. It was not easy, and there were more than a few moments of despair when the whole thing threatened to collapse. But I believe it’s even better than last year, and covers a vast terrain: from the scruffy underground to the big-budget feature; documentaries and shorts; from north to south. We’ve also branched out into some new areas, presenting a classic, newly restored work from the past (Himala), as well as an example from the commercial film world—the delightfully deranged (and indie in spirit) Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles. Also new this year, we’ll have ballots at each screening and award the audience’s favorite film.

Talk to us, tell us what you think. We’re doing this for you. Thank you for your support of New Filipino Cinema.

-Joel Shepard, Film/Video Curator

Notes from Philbert Ortiz Dy, New Filipini Cinema Co-curator

Pinpointing a unifying theme in Filipino cinema remains a difficult task. Once again, we are faced with a uniquely diverse set of movies that defy classification. Like the country itself, which is made up of thousands of little islands, each with its own culture, dialect, and people, our cinema often refuses to homogenize.

But as we continue on this quest to document the soul of the country, a character does begin to emerge. One could at least point out that there seems to be a lot more violence in the movies of 2012. It is sometimes easy to forget that the Philippines are still often a very violent place. We are known for our hospitality and our singers. But we are also a culture that has gone through the terrors of war, colonialism, and dictatorial rule. One cannot emerge from such conflict unscathed.

Just a little over three years ago, film critics Alexis Tioseco and Nika Bohinc were murdered in their home in Quezon City. In the same year, the Maguindanao massacre took place. 57 people, including 37 journalists, were ambushed, tortured, and killed for daring to be part of a convoy of a would-be candidate for the gubernatorial seat of Maguindanao.

Those events took a heavy psychic toll on the nation and its filmmakers. Over three years later, with justice still out of reach for either case, the grieving continues in our art. Many of our films from 2012 seem to meditate on living within a culture of conflict, telling the stories of people who are forced to adapt to the violence that is so present in their lives.

Vincent Sandoval’s Aparisyon goes back to the Martial Law era, following a group of nuns as they try and fail to ignore and escape the violence inherent to the Marcos rule. Arnel Mardoquio continues to be the most eloquent voice in depicting the conflict in Mindanao. His latest work, The Journey of Stars into the Dark Night (Ang Paglalakbay ng Mga Bituin sa Gabing Madilim), tells the story of a pair of rebel women who run away from the war. Adolfo Alix, Jr. takes a look at the absurdity of the international conflict over the Spratly Islands in Kalayaan. And Maguindanao native Gutierrez “Teng” Mangansakan crafts vibrant allegory as he documents the end of days in Qiyamah.

Even the films that offer more domestic settings are tinged with darkness and melancholy. Mes de Guzman’s Diablo, Marie Jamora’s What Isn’t There (Ang Nawawala) and Shireen Seno’s Big Boy all portray families deep in conflict, meting out their own form of passive (and not so passive) harm. Erik Matti’s Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles, though ostensibly a mainstream picture, features a streak of nihilism that subverts traditional familial tropes.

But one should not take all this darkness and conclude that we have lost all hope. It is generally not in our character to grieve forever. Our cinema remains as vibrant as ever, and it seems to be heading in promising directions. New, young filmmakers like Whammy Alcazaren are still coming out of the woodwork, wowing audiences with their experimental visions. And looking in the other direction, the country has finally decided to do right by its cinematic legacy, putting together a proper archive and restoring several of our great film masterpieces, ensuring that they will be available for future generations of Filipino cinephiles.

Right now, Filipino cinema is dealing with some complicated emotions. From this mess of anger and despair emerges some truly fascinating art: movies that grapple with some of the most painful parts of the national psyche, hoping to find some measure of understanding. It is a difficult process, but a necessary one. This is how we become okay.

-Philbert Ortiz Dy, Co-curator

For Alexis Tioseco, Nika Bohinc, and victims of violence everywhere.

Philbert Ortiz Dy is the resident film critic of Clickthecity.com and a writer-at-large for Esquire Philippines.