Film lab to hone skills of aspiring filmmakers

FDCP Chair Briccio Santos (second from left) with Ky Anh Nguyen, chief of culture and information, Asean secretariat (right) in Myanmar

To fulfill its mandate of “upgrading the craft of filmmaking in the country and to escalate it to a new level,” the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has tied up with a private movie production outfit to create the “Reality Film Lab,” a practical training ground for aspiring film practitioners.

FDCP Chairman Briccio Santos last week led the signing of a joint undertaking with Reality Entertainment for the creation of the film lab, where workshops on various aspects of filmmaking such as cinematography, acting, directing, scriptwriting, editing and production design will be conducted from May 4 to 31.

Invaluable knowledge

Also on hand for the signing were FDCP executive director Teodoro Granados, and founders of Reality Entertainment Dondon Monteverde and Erik Matti.

Santos explained that the Council has long been conducting seminars and workshops through its Audio-Visual Development Program using its various cinematheques in the provinces as venue. “These sessions have provided invaluable knowledge and have honed the skills of aspiring filmmakers in the regions,” he said in a statement. “However, other skills have not been addressed as the FDCP can only undertake a limited number of workshops in a given year.”

AT THE CONTRACT signing (clockwise from top left): FDCP executive director Teodoro Granados, Reality Entertainment founder Erik Matti, FDCP Chair Briccio Santos, and Reality Entertainment founder Dondon Monteverde

Through the Reality Film Lab program, Santos pointed out, industry workers and film students can choose the specific aspect of their craft that they would like to develop. “By individually honing the knowledge and skills of film workers in their particular specialty, the capability and expertise of the film community as a whole will be upgraded,” he added.

The following are the modules offered, as well as their facilitators: film directing (Jade Castro, Raya Martin, Erik Matti, and Jose Javier Reyes), editing (Jay Halili, Tara Illenberger, Edber Mamisao, and Borgy Torre), scriptwriting (Emman de la Cruz, Vince Groyon, Roy Iglesias, and Raymond Red), film production (Katski Flores, Madonna Tarrayo, and Steve Vesagas) and basic acting (Maimai Montelibano and James Montelibano).

Collaboration

There are also courses in makeup and prosthetics (Juvan Bermil and Osh Medina), commercial directing (AF Benaza, Henry Frejas, Carlo Ledesma, and Sid Maderazo), digital cinematography (Shing Fung Cheung, Gym Lumbera, and JA Tadena) visual effects and 3D printing (Dave Yu) and production design (Leo Abaya, Adelina Leung, Ericson Navarro, and Richard Somes).

Each of the module will run simultaneously for a month. “At the end of the program, the students will collaborate in film projects, which will be exhibited in all FDCP cinematheques nationwide,” Santos explained. (For details, visit www.fdcp.com.ph.)

‘Flowers’ in Myanmar

“KAYAN Beauties”

Meanwhile, two Filipino films represented the country at the 1st Myanmar Asean Film Festival in Yangon from March 17 to 21.

Maryo J. de los Reyes’ “Bamboo Flowers” and Martin Masadao’s “Anac ti Pating” were screened in four venues along with movies from other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member countries, according to an FDCP statement.

FDCP Chair Santos delivered the welcome remarks, as well as presented the opening film (Aung Ko Latt’s “Kayan Beauties” from Myanmar), to Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Information H.E. U Paike Htwe, officials of the Ministry of Culture, Asean secretariat representatives, and film industry leaders and talents.

The week-long festival was the result of an agreement among Asean member countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand,

“ANAC ti Pating”

and Vietnam) that took part in the Film Asean program.

“The aim is to present a unified film industry in the region,” the FDCP statement said. “It is expected that other Asean countries will be holding their own Asean festivals to showcase the different cultures in the region. With continued exposure to these cultures, it is hoped that an Asean identity can be found.”

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