FILMS FROM Asia are gaining more notice by Western audiences but movies from the Philippines have not received the same exposure than the films from other Asian countries. That oversight is about to change.
Cinematografo, a new San Francisco film festival featuring movies, documentaries and short films from the Philippines and productions by Filipino/Americans, hopes to present the new wave of Filipino and Filipino/American film talent to U.S. movie goers.
Motion pictures in Japan have always been received well by international film audiences. In recent years, the movies from South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and India have gained fans and acceptance outside of Asia.
Even though the motion picture industry in the Philippines has been in existence just as long as Asia's other movie-making centers, with few exceptions, films made in the Philippines, have not received similar critical recognition.
Sometimes marred by poor production values, overly dramatic or fluffy plots and acting, Filipino filmmakers and studios didn't attempt to appeal to international audiences. They were satisfied to cater almost exclusively to the local movie goers with
Fortunately, as audiences in the Philippines became more sophisticated and demanded better productions on par with Hollywood or Hong Kong, the Philippine movie industry is changing.
Signs of the maturation of the Filipino film industry and the growing appeal of Filipino productions to international audiences included the awarding of the Best Actress award at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival given to Jaclyn Jose for her gritty portrayal of a drug-dealing matriarch in a Manila slum in Ma' Rose.
Last month, Across the Crescent Moon, a film that was hardly noticed in its the home country of the Philippines, ran away with Best Global Feature Film and Best Ensemble Acting awards at the International Film Festival Manhattan. It was directed by Baby Nebrida.
Sometimes marred by poor production values, overly dramatic or fluffy plots and acting, Filipino filmmakers and studios didn't attempt to appeal to international audiences. They were satisfied to cater almost exclusively to the local movie goers with
Fortunately, as audiences in the Philippines became more sophisticated and demanded better productions on par with Hollywood or Hong Kong, the Philippine movie industry is changing.
Signs of the maturation of the Filipino film industry and the growing appeal of Filipino productions to international audiences included the awarding of the Best Actress award at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival given to Jaclyn Jose for her gritty portrayal of a drug-dealing matriarch in a Manila slum in Ma' Rose.
Last month, Across the Crescent Moon, a film that was hardly noticed in its the home country of the Philippines, ran away with Best Global Feature Film and Best Ensemble Acting awards at the International Film Festival Manhattan. It was directed by Baby Nebrida.
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| A musical number from Ang Larawan that will open the film festival. |
Cinematografo happens on Nov. 9-12 at the AMC Dine-In Kabuki 8 Theatres in San Francisco's Japantown. Over a span of four days, the festival will show 11 feature films, seven documentaries, a bevy of short films and a number panels.
The exhibition of screenings, panels, and intimate industry networking will feature narratives, documentaries, and short films from North America and the Philippines from Filipino and Filipino-American filmmakers.
The festival opens with the U.S. premiere of Ang Larawan (The Portrait), adapted from the musical play of the same name based on the Philippines' National Artist Nick Joaquin’s three-act play “A Portrait of a Filipino as an Artist.” Director Loy Arcenas, lead actress Rachel Alejandro and composer Ryan Cayabyab will be attending the event on today, Nov. 9.
Ang Larawan , a musical, was shown at the Tokyo International Film Festival last month to favorable reviews and was an audience favorite.
The Philippine production was hailed as “stirring … handsomely produced… impeccably performed and crisply photographed” by Variety’s Richard Kuipers in a Nov. 1 essay.
Hopefully, Once More, the popular romantic comedy featuring Lea Salonga will be the festival's Saturday night feature. The 1995 production, which was filmed in the San Francisco Bay Area, was remastered for this showing.
The closing film Sunday night will be The Ghose Bride, a 2017 horror movie of a girl who makes a deal to marry a dead man.
One of the best known documentary filmmakers, Ramona Diaz, will be feted. Her latest, award-winning film Motherland (Sundance 2017), about one of the world’s largest maternity wards located in Manila, will be screened, followed by a conversation about her work and prolific career as one of the best known Asian women documentary makers today.
Besides the Diaz tribute, there will be panels on the "State of the Nations" (the Philippines and the U.S.). Another panel, "Minority as the New Majority," will feature a discussion among industry insiders.
The CIFF, sponsored and organized by ABS- CBN International, hopes to become the premier event for Filipinos and Filipino/Americans to tell their stories, and to become the platform to bring these films to the world stage.
Raffy Lopez, COO of ABS-CBN International, stated that he “has always believed that films are powerful purveyors of culture. When moviegoers leave the theaters, we provide them with a little more understanding of who we are or we trigger a curiosity or hunger for them to know and learn more about our culture and all its complexities and nuances."
While opening night. including dinner, is by invitation, all other presentations are open to the public. Tickets for the festival offerings, including the panels, mixers, conversations wiith filmmakers, can be bought at the door.
For a schedule of all the screenings and events and for more information, click here.
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