By Bernard Testa
Post-EDSA Manila Times chief photographer Johnny Acasio and airport veteran photojournalist Rudy Santos always said that “everybody can use a camera but not everyone can become a photographer. A photographer must be born.”
Alejandro “Dudoy” Docot Fornoles was born on August 10, 1929. He was the fifth child in the Fornoles brood of six boys and three girls. They were from Nabua, Camarines Sur.
After the Second World War, the family went back to farming with 20 hectares of land to tend. They planted palay but sadly, it’s just one crop per season in a year. Camarines Sur lies along the typhoon belt in Luzon. With a meager harvest, it was very difficult to send everyone to school.
Johnny, the eldest became a chemical engineer. He was asked by a fellow Bataan Death March survivor and scion of the De Leon family of LVN studio to work for them.
LVN studio opened up its shop after the war. Johnny brought his younger brothers Francisco and Valentin to work at LVN studios.
LVN was among the first film production houses in the country, even before World War II erupted.
Pre-war superstars were Fernando Poe. Sr., Mona Lisa, Ely Ramos, and Mila del Sol. The first LVN flick was Ang Giliw Ko (1939).
During ‘Peace Time,’ as most survivors of the war called that era from 1945 to1950, the film industry found its re-birth and flourished.
LVN went on to produce film after film and discovered many superstars—dashing mestizos like Rogelio and Jaime Dela Rosa, Fred Cortes, Armando Goyena, and mestiza beauties like Rosa Rosal, Lilia Dizon, Norma Blancaflor, Tessie Quintana, and Celia Flor, to name a few.
Working at Lvn
Alejandro, or “Dudoy,” finished high school after the war. A self-taught photographer, he went on to manage his own studio acquired from his cousin. He was 18.
Dudoy was honing his newfound skills doing portraits when opportunity knocked. His third brother, Valentin, who was working for LVN studios decided to leave his job and join the US Navy.
After Valentin got accepted in the US Navy, their eldest brother Johnny—now head of LVN Laboratory Processing—summoned Dudoy to come to Manila and work at LVN.
Filled with excitement, Dudoy rode the efficient, clean, and safe Bicol-Manila train.
According to Dudoy’s eldest son Edwin, now 54, it took 12 hours to travel from Iriga station to Paco station.
PHL cinema’s golden age
Upon arriving at LVN Studios, the technical people Dudoy worked with changed his name to “Liloy,” short for Alejandro, his birth name.
Like most of the laboratory technicians at LVN studio, Liloy received training from Kodak, USA
Experts were sent to the Philippines to assist the lab-technicians on the latest in film processing. LVN was at par with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Paramount and MGM in its facilities and rosters of stars.
Soon Liloy became a certified photo technician, processing celluloid by the bulk as more films were produced by LVN giving Filipinos their own heroes.
The 1950s was the Golden Age of Philippine Cinema. They produced an average of two to three films a month.
The period gave another opportunity for Liloy.
Narcisa De Leon or Doña Sisang, the matriarch of LVN studios, encouraged most of its employees to build their homes next to each other in the vast compound.
Liloy’s siblings already acquired a property that became their home in the city.
For the certified photo-technician, life fulfilled the promise of a family. He married Caridad Bigueras, a beauty counselor on September 6, 1965. Their union was blessed with three boys: Edwin, 54; Jaime, 46; and William, 45.
Two Bernards
Liloy became friends with Bernard Belleza and Bernard Bonnin, two of the most popular action heroes of the 50s.
The two Bernards were the ones who asked Liloy to become a still photographer in their movies.
Bernard Belleza always fetched Liloy with his motorbike. But, because of the latter’s phobia for riding a bike, he refused to accompany the action star.
According to his son Edwin, his father’s refusal to ride Belleza’s motorbike allowed Liloy to cheat death in 1970, after an Air Force captain shot Belleza four times while the actor was on his motorbike.
Edwin narrated that his father was so close to Bernard Bonin that the actor requested that the shooting of one of the Palos movies be stopped so Liloy, the still photographer of the film, can go to his wife Caridad, who was about to give birth.
“Hindi nila maiwan yung shooting, kaya nakiusap si Bernard Bonnin at nag-volunteer na maging ninong ko [They could not leave the shooting, so Bernard Bonin intervened and even volunteered to be my godfather]” Edwin said.
Bonnin and Elvie Gonzales became Edwin’s godfather and godmother. Edwin shared that even during his college days at Maryknoll, he was close to his celebrity ninong and ninang.
Edwin graduated AB in Advertising and ventured into advertising photography, doing billboards and poster ads. Sometimes he worked as replacement shooter whenever his father had an emergency or had another shooting assignment.
He soon found himself following his father’s footsteps. His first movie as a still photographer was in Andy Poe’s Big Boy.
Edwin recalled that his father was very considerate and very loving. He remembered that his dad used to say to him that all of their appliances came from his earnings as a still photographer. His dad encouraged them to do other things when they were growing up.
Foremost artisan
Ka Liloy Fornoles became one of the foremost artisans in the days of LVN. He went one notch up with most of the 100 films he helped to process.
From being a still photographer, he became a stillman, using Minolta and Yashica Twin Lens Reflex cameras, which use 120mm film. He learned every bit of film production as well.
As a photographer, Liloy dabbled in some of the events or public engagements of actor-turned-Senator Rogelio de la Rosa, who was a member of the Philippine Senate from 1957 to 1963.
In 1969, Zaldy Zshornack gave him a Nikon 135mm Single Lens Reflex camera. Liloy invested in prime lens, giving the bigger and heavier 120mm cameras to son Edwin. Liloy preferred to use the more lightweight and ‘japorms’ Japan made cameras.
After LVN stopped producing movies in 1961 due to the high cost of production, the studio offered post-production to several independent production outfits.
Liloy also offered his skill as stillman to document behind the scenes and location shoots for cinema displays, poster layouts, and newspaper ads and press releases.
With his dedication to his craft, he maintained a very rigid work process, diligently making proofs of his works that came in handy when showing his portfolio to independent film productions.
Liloy hooked up with Artemio “Temyong” Marquez, a prolific director who had the reputation of producing two films while shooting in one location.
He became Ka Temyong’s favorite because he was a reliable shooter. He knows the light and has great timing. Years of processing film experience in the lab gave him a great advantage.
Liloy saw the birth of a new generation of matinee idols—the 60s giving way to the 70s and the likes of Nora Aunor, Tirso Cruz III and the ”Guy and Pip” love team. According to Edwin, Liloy cherished working with Ka Temyong.
Legacy
Edwin, on the other hand, continued his father’s legacy. He shoots for GMA teleserye on a project basis.
After the major shift from motion pictures to TV teleseryes, most artisans sought jobs in TV networks.
LVN folded up in 2005. It was absorbed by ABS-CBN, bringing LVN movies in their cable platform, Cinema One Presents.
“Kasagsagan ng piracy noon, 1999-2000, kaya lahat ng nasa pelikua, napunta sa teleserye [It was the height of piracy that is why all those involved in film transferred to the teleserye],” Edwin said.
These days, he documents the teleserye for archival purposes and press releases.
In 2005, Ka Liloy exhibited his body of work, “Unaltered.” The photo exhibit showcased the arresting work he did in more than 300 films featuring some of the best and brightest directors, actors, and actresses in Philippine cinema.
Immortalizing mortals
Liloy always shot with two cameras—one for black and white and one for color.
Edwin remembered that there was one time he had to pitch for his dad in a one-day shoot. It was a Ramon Revilla movie outside of his own Imus Productions.
Revilla was irked when he saw Edwin shoot with just one camera. “Tanungin niyo na lang si Papa [Just ask my father],” was Edwin’s curt reply when Revilla admonished him for using just one camera.
It turned out that the production outfit had to cut its budget so Liloy downgraded the shooting from two cameras to one.
At first, Liloy told his son, “umiiwas akong makatrabaho yan [I avoided working with him],” referring to Revilla who had the image of being brusque, strict, and a troublemaker.
According to Edwin, his father later revised his view when he discovered that Revilla was in person a kind, thoughtful, and considerate actor-director.
In time, Liloy became Ramon Revilla Sr.’s favorite shooter.
Edwin said that his father was a stillman for more than 300 movies. And in all those movies, Ka Liloy could not pick his 10 best because he loved all his films. Most of all, he enjoyed being behind the scene.
Liloy captured with his signature still shots the great interaction between directors and thespians—from Artemio Marquez and superstar Nora Aunor; comedian Dolphy and dramatic actress Celia Rodriguez; and action star Bernard Bonin and dramatic actress Liza Lorena.
Ka Liloy’s last movie behind the viewfinder was in 1997, when he shot Cariño Brutal, starring Rosanna Roces. He finished the film before succumbing to a stroke. The movie was released in 1998.
Alejandro “Ka Liloy” Fornoles died after his fourth stroke in 2009.
Ka Liloy’s book
Edwin said he wanted to preserve his father’s negatives, his body of work. He is reaching out to kind-hearted people from showbiz and government to help him make into a book Ka Liloy’s gift to the Filipinos—who looked up to their celluloid heroes in coping with their daily struggles in life.
His images will forever bring the stars in their prime, as the song goes, “I wish my life was a non-stop Hollywood movie show. A fantasy world of celluloid villains and heroes, because celluloid heroes never feel any pain, and celluloid heroes never really die.”
Image credits: Bernard Testa