Films from the provinces dominate this year’s lineup for the 2011 Cinema One Originals Film Festival to be held November 9-15 at the Shangri-La Cineplex in Mandaluyong City.
Two films—Victor Villanueva’s “My Paranormal Romance” and Brandon Relucio and Ivan Zaldarriaga’s “Di Ingon ’Nato”—were shot in Cebu (Visayas). Teng Mangansakan’s “Cartas de la Soledad” is from Maguindanao (Mindanao).
There are three from Luzon: “Big Boy,” by Shireen Seno, was filmed in Mindoro; “Sa Kanto ng Ulap at Langit” by Mes de Guzman, in Nueva Vizcaya; “Sa Ilalim ng Tulay,” by Earl Bontuyan, was partly shot in Mt. Pinatubo in Pampanga.
Like Cinemalaya and Cinemanila, Cinema One is among the three digital film festivals that have been supporting local indie filmmakers through an annual competition for the past seven years.
“The objective of the festival is to discover new filmmakers and help increase the number of local content,” said Cinema One channel head and festival director Ronald Arguelles. Ten films are competing for various awards to be handed out November 13 in ceremonies set at the Grand Ballroom of the Crowne Plaza in Ortigas.
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Antoinette Jadaone’s “Six Degrees of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay” follows the story of a bit player who gets nominated for an acting award for the first time in her 30-year career.
Jadaone directed “Tumbang Preso,” winner of the 2008 Cinemanila Best Short Film award, and “Saling Pusa,” recipient of the 3rd Prize Gawad CCP Para Alternatibong Pelikula in 2007.
Dennis Marasigan’s “Anatomiya ng Korupsiyon” is about young lady lawyer Cely (Maricar Reyes), who joins the Family Court as hearing officer. She promptly incurs the ire of coemployees by disposing of their cases expeditiously, robbing them of opportunities to make extra money. The film is Marasigan’s second Cinema One offering after his successful “North Diversion Road” in 2007.
Ivy Baldoza’s “Mga Anino sa Tanghaling Tapat” tells of three adolescent girls’ restless emotions, blossoming love, conflicts and inevitable change through the passing of summer. A former student of the Mowelfund Film Institute, Baldoza was picked for the 2008 Berlinale Talent Campus’ Script Station.
Sari Dalena’s “Ka Oryang” is a story of female political detainees during martial law. Dalena made the memorable “Rigodon” in 2005.
“Big Boy” is an experimental coming-of-age film about a boy and his growing family in Mindoro in the 1950s. “It is the portrait of a family amid industrialization,” said director Seno, a known production designer.
In “Cartas de la Soledad,” Rashid Ali returns to his Maguindanao hometown to see how his education in Spain may improve the lives of his people. Frustrated by the outcome of his attempt, Rashid retreats to a faraway villa and writes letters that connects him back to his adopted home country.
Mangansakan, a cultural heritage conservationist, said his film aims to “give balance to how people see Maguindanao.”
“Ilalim ng Tulay” is the quest of an Aeta family for a better life in the city after the explosion of Mt. Pinatubo. Nono, who is separated from his wife and child, scours the streets and struggles to reclaim his lost connection with his family and himself. Bontuyan, the filmmaker, is a visual artist and director for TV shows and music videos.
“Sa Kanto ng Ulap at Lupa” tackles poverty in the countryside and revolves around Yoyong, Poklat, Boying and Uding, who leave their homes in the mountains and take on odd jobs to survive. Director De Guzman, who also wrote the script, has won four Palanca Awards for his films “Ang Daan Patungong Kalimugtong” and “Chiffons.”
“Di Ingon ’Nato” recounts the last days of people in a remote mountain village who respond to a zombie infestation with age-old beliefs and practices. Directors Relucio and Zaldarriaga were part of the team behind the 2010 Cinema One Originals award-wining drama, “Ang Damgo ni Eleuteria.”
“My Paranormal Romance” is a teenage horror-comedy that revolves around a girl who, hurt by past love affairs, is determined to move on. But she receives a mysterious item that becomes a magnet to things paranormal. Director Villanueva’s first venture was in the Jerrold Tarog film “Confessional,” Cinema One Originals Best Picture in 2008.
P1M grants
The participating directors each received a P1-million grant for production. “We gave them total freedom to do their movies,” said Cinema One’s Arguelles, who also announced that, starting this year, the filmmakers will receive a portion of the revenue that their films make.
The 2011 jury consists of filmmakers Chito Roño and Chris Martinez, critics Nicanor Tiongson and Dr. Benilda Santos, and Cannes International Film Festival executive director (for film) Christian Jeune.
A special tribute to actress and former producer Nora Aunor and filmmaker Mario O’Hara will coincide with the November 16 awards rites. Aunor and O’Hara will receive the Originals in Philippine Cinema Award for their pioneering efforts in independent cinema.