‘Significant’ hit movies show the way for ‘Citizen Jake’

Atom Araullo in “Citizen Jake”

Up until just last week, we were hoping that ace filmmaker Mike de Leon’s comeback movie, “Citizen Jake,” would make it as an official entry in this December’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF).

That would have given it a wide potential viewership, to maximize its impact and ability to enlighten the greatest number of people about current issues that deserve our attention and action.

Recently, however, Mike himself pulled the rug from under that promising prospect, when he announced that he had decided to release “Citizen Jake” out of the festival, to protest the watering down of the MMFF’s selection process and standards.

So, where does that leave film buffs like us, who have been boosting the obviously significant “Citizen Jake” project ever since it was announced?

After getting over our disappointment over the film’s loss of a potentially substantial “built-in” audience, we understand and support the visionary filmmaker’s principled decision—and opt to continue boosting the film’s viewership prospects, when it’s finally screened in local cineplexes, any way or ways we can.

We take heart and example from the other significant Filipino films that have ended up as popular productions watched by many people. How did they end up as “sleeper” (unexpected) hits?

Prime example

The prime example is Lino Brocka’s “Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang,” the master filmmaker’s caustic diatribe against our festering societal ills.

The hard-hitting and “confrontational” production initially had a hard time gaining public acceptance and support—until its producers sought and got the backing of the country’s Catholic schools, which encouraged their students to watch it, in order to make them care about reforms and social justice.

All those students resulted in full moviehouses and financial success for the film, on top of its artistic and advocacy objectives.

Definitely, “Citizen Jake” should also get the support of educational institutions throughout the land, because it’s consciousness-raising and reformist in its own right, and on its own terms.

Positive outcome

Instructively, an added positive outcome of the sleeper success of “Tinimbang” was the consequent encouragement it provided for other filmmakers to come up with their own significant movies.

For instance, when Eddie Romero heard that Brocka’s film had bucked the odds and did not lose money, he decided to resume making relevant movies—and came up with the similarly iconic “Ganito Kami Noon, Paano Kayo Ngayon?”

Other significant and relevant productions that have bravely bucked the odds and became popular hits include Marilou Diaz-Abaya’s “Jose Rizal,” Laurice Guillen’s “Tanging Yaman” and Jerrold Tarog’s “Heneral Luna.”

The makers of “Citizen Jake” can learn from their “from heart to hit” processes as well, including the use of word-of-mouth and social media promotions to make enlightened viewers and citizens know that a particularly insightful film made especially for them is about to be shown.

A “Citizen Jake” film for all of us seething, searching and empathetic citizens?

If that key connection is stressed and made, more viewers will make it a point to watch Mike de Leon’s comeback film on its opening day—whenever and wherever it’s shown!