‘Kampon’

Scene from ‘Kampon’—QUANTUM FILMS

(We are running this guide to help you plan your movie-viewing activity during the holidays. The 49th Metro Manila Film Festival, or MMFF, Christmas Edition runs from Dec. 25, 2023, to Jan. 7, 2024.)Directed by King Palisoc; written by Dodo Dayao; starring Derek Ramsay, Beauty Gonzalez, Erin Espiritu and Zeinab Harake; Produced by Quantum Films.

Ramsay plays Clark, a former police officer, with Gonzalez as Eileen, his wife. After being married for eight years, the couple remains childless. Clark is at a point where he has already accepted that they can’t have children. Eileen, on the other hand, is still hopeful and persistent, and then a little girl named Jade comes along, claiming to be Clark’s daughter.

“That’s when complete chaos happens,” Ramsay said. As to why Eileen was easily accepting of Jade, Gonzalez explained: “She feels alone. Clark is always away working as a policeman. Then, here comes a child who can fill up those empty spaces in her life. Sometimes, we make decisions when we’re sad.”

“Kampon” was supposed to be part of the 2019 MMFF. Palisoc, however, said the project needed the three-year “resting period” for them to see how else they could improve it. “It had been a great time for us to revisit the script. We were able to refine it, turn it into the very best version it could be. That was one good thing that came out from that break in 2019. With all the improvements, the best term to describe it was that things fell into place this time around,” Palisoc explained. —MARINEL CRUZ INQ