Yapan’s film interweaves poetry and dance

YAPAN (LEFT). Baptism of fire.

Recently, we sat down with director Alvin Yapan to talk about his third feature, “Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa.” Yapan is the chair of Ateneo’s Filipino department and has no formal training in filmmaking.

Intimacy

He discloses, “I love Wong Kar Wai, Pedro Almodovar and Lars von Trier, because they’re very adventurous in their storytelling and often offer fresh insights.” “Sayaw” uses feminist poetry in its gay-themed “bromance.”

“It’s a challenge, because no other Filipino film has made an adaptation from poetry,” Yapan enthuses. “Moreover, it’s difficult to do a dance film. We wanted to do a gay film that didn’t focus on sleaze, and we avoided nudity or sex.”

Starring Jean Garcia, Paulo Avelino and Rocco Nacino, the movie recently won the Bronze Prize at the Festival de Cine de Bogota.

Why should people see “Sayaw”? “It is accessible. Even Mother Lily Monteverde liked the film so much that she gave us money, with no strings attached!”