MARCH is Women’s Month and the spotlight of “Cinema Centenario” is on the unforgettable women characters in Filipino films.
Included in lineup are the bravura performances of our most-esteemed actresses, among them Nora Aunor in Himala, Vilma Santos in Anak, Hilda Koronel in Insiang, the quartet of Lorna Tolentino, Gina Alajar, Sandy Andolong and Anna Marin in Moral, Shamaine Buencamino in Lorna, Rosanna Roces in Ligaya ang Itawag Mo Sa Akin, Barbie Forteza in Mariquina, Charo Santos in Ang Babeng Humayo and the promising young actress Jana Agoncillo in Nervous Translation.
Babyruth Villarama’s acclaimed Sunday Beauty Queen, Monster Jimenez’s Kano, Antoinette Jadaone’s Six Degrees of Separation From Lilia Cuntapay and Kiri and Sari Dalena’s Ang Kababaihan ng Malolos are also in the roster of films to be screened this month.
Cinema Centenario celebrates the 100th year of local cinema and aims to contribute to the positive shaping of Philippine cinema by building a home for quality Philippine-made movies.
Lino Brocka’s Insiang and Ishmael Bernal’s Himala are two of the local cinema classics that have been restored courtesy of the well-loved and hardworking Leo Katigbak of the ABS-CBN Restoration team and Davide Pozzi of the Italian film restoration company L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna.
“One of the side benefits of our Sagip Pelikula advocacy is that it has brought together people whose paths may otherwise not cross. I have met new colleagues who share the passion and help spread the word, something we are in dire need off, especially if we want the films of old to remain in the consciousness of today’s generation. The folks at Cinema Centenario have bonded together, united in their love of Philippine cinema and resolute in giving all kinds of Filipino movies a screen where they can survive, thrive, reflect and inspire. It’s also now one of the places the classics can call a home where its old audience can do a bit of rediscovering, and a new audience find previously unseen treasures,” Katigbak shared.
FOCUS ON DOCUMENTARIES
THE Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) is giving local documentary filmmaking much-needed attention and boost. The FDCP has joined forces with the National Historical Commission of the Philippines to encourage documentary filmmakers to explore often-unvisited historical events that have helped shape the country to what it has become today.
“Documentary filmmaking is a powerful medium that has not been given much attention, and that’s why we are launching these new competitions. Documentaries, when properly produced, can tell accurate, powerful and even inspiring stories,” FDCP Chairman Liza Diño remarked.
With its ongoing efforts to educate and empower filmmakers from all over the country, the FDCP has greenlighted its latest program, billed as “SineSaysay: Documentary Film Lab and Showcase.”
SineSaysay will have two distinct, and equally important categories: the Bagong Sibol Documentary Lab and the Feature Documentary Showcase. Bagong Sibol is open to emerging filmmakers working on their first or second full-feature documentary films. Six projects and its fellows will undergo a series of workshops and consultations in developing their short documentary films. From these applications, two projects will be awarded a P700,000 grant each for the filmmakers to make their full-feature versions of their proposed project.
For the Feature Documentary Showcase, interested filmmakers who have worked on at least two documentary full-feature films will have to submit a five- to 10-minute trailer for pitching. Four filmmakers will be given a coproduction grant of P1 million each to produce a documentary full-feature project aligned with the themes of the program.
Promotions to lure more interested parties
have been successfully set up in Metro Manila universities like De La Salle College of Saint Benilde, Asia Pacific College, Mapua, University of Santo Tomas, University of Asia and the Pacific, and the Ateneo de Manila University
The FDCP has set a new deadline of March 31 for both categories to give more time for interested filmmakers to complete the requirements.