Tribute to Alexis Tioseco Screenings - Mogwai Cinematheque: CINEMALEXIS SCHEDULE

Start:	Oct 9, '09 7:00p
End:	Oct 12, '09 01:00a
Location:	Mogwai, Cubao X

Posted at Facebook by Mogwai Cinematheque - http://www.facebook.com/mogwai.cinematheque:


CINEMALEXIS SCHEDULE

FRIDAY
Selections by Philbert Ortiz Dy

7 PM – Aquele Querido Mês de Agosto (Our Beloved Month of August)

Back at Rotterdam, Alexis urged me to see this Portuguese film. Unfortunately, it conflicted with the only time that I could see Slumdog Millionaire, and I thought that I needed to prioritize the film with the big mainstream buzz and the Oscar nominations. It took six months for me to finally see the film, and I really regret waiting so long to finally see the film. Our Beloved Month of August is an amazing piece of postmodern filmmaking. Director Miguel Gomes, unable to find the budget to shoot his film, travels to a remote Portuguese village to shoot footage of a music festival. What starts out as a loose documentary grows into a completely different film as a narrative emerges from the interviews, and Gomes casts some of the villagers in a new film about family and young romance and incest. It’s easy to see why Alexis liked this film so much. It manages to present new ways of telling a story cinematically, while being deeply rooted in culture.

And yes, the film is quite long.

10 PM – Kulay Dugo ang Gabi (The Blood Drinkers)

“Mr. Dy, what’s your favorite Gerry de Leon film?” And I sheepishly reply that I haven’t really seen a lot of Gerry de Leon. Alexis was teacher to a good number of students, but he was my guide as well to an era of filmmaking that I thought I’d never really have access to. He urged me to look for the films of Gerry de Leon, and though Kulay Dugo ang Gabi will never be considered one of his masterpieces, it’s a stellar piece of in its own right. Made for Cirio H. Santiago, de Leon never allows the low budget to get in the way of an artful presentation, making fantastic use of film tints and color to create a truly unique visual experience. The film is this weird perfect union of schlock horror and art filmmaking. And had Alexis ever had the opportunity to ask me again, this film would have been my answer.

SATURDAY
Selections by Erwin Romulo

7 PM – Biyaya ng Lupa

Biyaya ng Lupa was directed by Manuel Silos and is unlike anything else he ever directed. It actually feels like an Avellana film, the prestige ones produced by Manuel de Leon like Anak Dalita. Alexis and I kind of had a common interest for Philippine Cinema ever earlier than Brocka. We’d watch them at my house. We even made cups of tsokolate before watching Avellana’s film adaptation of Portrait of an Artist as a Filipino. His interest in film archiving was nurtured by watching the films of Gerry de Leon, Avellana, Manuel Conde, Richard Abelardo, Gregorio Fernandez and Silos. He joined SOFIA and quickly became one of its stalwarts. He and Ramon Nocon worked on the website and it was ready to go online at the time of his passing. It must be mentioned that Alexis believed in preserving prints rather than just blanket digitizing, which seems to be Nestory Jardin’s focus. His last blog entry tackled this. We also planned several articles in the Philippines Free Press about the Film Developmental Council of the Philippines use of their budget for junkets abroad in proportion to what they're spending on saving films still wasting away in Mowelfund and the UP Film Center. That was the topic of my last phone conversation with him on the afternoon of Sep 1.

9 PM – Signos

Signos was shot in tandem with Sister Stella L, using the same crew. It’s arguably a precursor to the viral video, as it was just passed on through betamax copies. At a time when the news was heavily censored it caused quite a shock to see all this footage of rallies, protests, and anti-Marcos figures. The film was the subject of the first review Alexis wrote for the Philippines Free Press. It was to coincide with the film’s world premiere for a film festival last year organized by DAKILA, an NGO committed to promoting modern Filipino heroism. It’s only apt to show it now in a festival in Alexis’ honor.

10 PM – Batch ‘81

Batch ’81 was the last DVD that Alexis borrowed from me. He wanted to show it to Nika. This version was subtitled. He told me later that some scenes made her jump. Mike de Leon made this the same year as Kisapmata. At the time, it was assumed to be one of the “martial law” films, given the themes of fear and complicity. That’s true of course. Yet, it still resonates today with audiences because it transcends the period as much as it illuminates that period of our history. Or is it because times haven’t changed?

SUNDAY
Selections by Quark Henares

TO BE ANNOUNCED.

Tribute to Alexis Tioseco Screenings - Mogwai Cinematheque: CINEMALEXIS SCHEDULE

Posted at Facebook by Mogwai Cinematheque:


CINEMALEXIS SCHEDULE

FRIDAY
Selections by Philbert Ortiz Dy

7 PM – Aquele Querido Mês de Agosto (Our Beloved Month of August)

Back at Rotterdam, Alexis urged me to see this Portuguese film. Unfortunately, it conflicted with the only time that I could see Slumdog Millionaire, and I thought that I needed to prioritize the film with the big mainstream buzz and the Oscar nominations. It took six months for me to finally see the film, and I really regret waiting so long to finally see the film. Our Beloved Month of August is an amazing piece of postmodern filmmaking. Director Miguel Gomes, unable to find the budget to shoot his film, travels to a remote Portuguese village to shoot footage of a music festival. What starts out as a loose documentary grows into a completely different film as a narrative emerges from the interviews, and Gomes casts some of the villagers in a new film about family and young romance and incest. It’s easy to see why Alexis liked this film so much. It manages to present new ways of telling a story cinematically, while being deeply rooted in culture.

And yes, the film is quite long.

10 PM – Kulay Dugo ang Gabi (The Blood Drinkers)

“Mr. Dy, what’s your favorite Gerry de Leon film?” And I sheepishly reply that I haven’t really seen a lot of Gerry de Leon. Alexis was teacher to a good number of students, but he was my guide as well to an era of filmmaking that I thought I’d never really have access to. He urged me to look for the films of Gerry de Leon, and though Kulay Dugo ang Gabi will never be considered one of his masterpieces, it’s a stellar piece of in its own right. Made for Cirio H. Santiago, de Leon never allows the low budget to get in the way of an artful presentation, making fantastic use of film tints and color to create a truly unique visual experience. The film is this weird perfect union of schlock horror and art filmmaking. And had Alexis ever had the opportunity to ask me again, this film would have been my answer.

SATURDAY
Selections by Erwin Romulo

7 PM – Biyaya ng Lupa

Biyaya ng Lupa was directed by Manuel Silos and is unlike anything else he ever directed. It actually feels like an Avellana film, the prestige ones produced by Manuel de Leon like Anak Dalita. Alexis and I kind of had a common interest for Philippine Cinema ever earlier than Brocka. We’d watch them at my house. We even made cups of tsokolate before watching Avellana’s film adaptation of Portrait of an Artist as a Filipino. His interest in film archiving was nurtured by watching the films of Gerry de Leon, Avellana, Manuel Conde, Richard Abelardo, Gregorio Fernandez and Silos. He joined SOFIA and quickly became one of its stalwarts. He and Ramon Nocon worked on the website and it was ready to go online at the time of his passing. It must be mentioned that Alexis believed in preserving prints rather than just blanket digitizing, which seems to be Nestory Jardin’s focus. His last blog entry tackled this. We also planned several articles in the Philippines Free Press.

9 PM – Signos

Signos was shot in tandem with Sister Stella L, using the same crew. It’s arguably a precursor to the viral video, as it was just passed on through betamax copies. At a time when the news was heavily censored it caused quite a shock to see all this footage of rallies, protests, and anti-Marcos figures. The film was the subject of the first review Alexis wrote for the Philippines Free Press. It was to coincide with the film’s world premiere for a film festival last year organized by DAKILA, an NGO committed to promoting modern Filipino heroism. It’s only apt to show it now in a festival in Alexis’ honor.

10 PM – Batch ‘81

Batch ’81 was the last DVD that Alexis borrowed from me. He wanted to show it to Nika. This version was subtitled. He told me later that some scenes made her jump. Mike de Leon made this the same year as Kisapmata. At the time, it was assumed to be one of the “martial law” films, given the themes of fear and complicity. That’s true of course. Yet, it still resonates today with audiences because it transcends the period as much as it illuminates that period of our history. Or is it because times haven’t changed?

SUNDAY
Selections by Quark Henares

TO BE ANNOUNCED.

noidph > Edward Lim S...

noidph > Caroling 200...

noidph > Archdiocese ...

Just checking if I can still post -- a friend is having a hard time creating her blog.

At any rate, check out my sites WriteLit.com, FilipinoWriter.com, and PinoyFilm.com.

Thanks!

My blog still exists! Therefore I am! What have I been up to lately? -- http://www.WriteLit.com -- "Where writers and readers meet." See you there! :)

Yo, yo, yo! I'm back! Been trying out RSS feeds with Feedreader, and came to the conclusion that this is a great time to start blogging again.

Just got back from interview with Ms. Ellen at her place. Wow. That was one heck of an interview. JP was with me, and can you say meeting of minds! We let her read our unpublished reviews and she was touched. At one point, I think she was on the verge of tears. Imagine finding people who understand your work -- that must have been what's on her mind. I interviewed her from 5:45 to 7:30, and from thereon, we talked till past 10. She wanted us to stay for dinner, but we begged off later, not wanting to take up her time much longer. She learned from us. We learned from her. We think the story will not end there. She expressed her desire to organize like-minded persons--digital filmmakers--and was intrigued by our internet marketing of JP's work.

She was obviously happy to have met us, and vice-versa. She wanted to see JP's work, and JP will also lend him Faces and What Happened Was...Sometimes, the universe just works in mysterious ways. Imagine if we were not there at the UP screening...

I do hope that Inquirer publishes my review, and JP will find a venue for his own article. Will know feedback from Inquirer on Monday. Keeping my fingers crossed as usual. Angels definitely needs all the help it can get -- it deserves it...

Speaking of Lav Diaz, I am working again on an interview I did with him last year around the time of the Cinemanila Film Festival.

Right now, I'm transcribing the interview, which was done in Filipino. I have to translate it to English later because I'm sending the interview on spec to an international publication. I hope they will accept it. It will be a big boost to Philippine Cinema. But the transcription process is a bit hard. Interviewed Lav at the Araneta Center's Cafe Bola, just when the Megastar was having a concert, so you can only imagine the din of the diners almost drowning our interview -- can't even hear myself in parts! Perhaps I can ask Lav what I was asking. :) Invite him over. Besides, the article needs updating with what's happening in his longer-than-Batang West Side Ebolusyon. JP can set that up. I still have lots of cans of beer and pasta in the dining room -- left over from my "birthday party." JP said he makes a mean pasta with pesto. Yum! I love pesto. :)

That would be cool. Lav and the rest of us getting drunk in my apartment, while feasting on pasta with pesto!

So just finished this film review of the digital film Angels, produced by Star Cinema, written by Ricky Lee, and directed by Ellen-Ongkeko Marfil. Finished it this afternoon, and sent it to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, and will just have to wait for feedback. Decided to do a review, after me and my Indie filmmaker friend, JP Carpio (auteur of another brilliant digital film, himself, the first Ilonggo feature Balay Daku) decided that the movie was great, and we ought to help it, and let more people know about it. (The UP screening is just the second screening in the country in more than two years! Imagine that. Star Cinema may not know that they have gold in their hands. The sad thing is the digital film dept. of Star Cinema, had long been shut down.)

Started writing the review (while I was still pumped up), immediately after I got home from Dencio's Katipunan, where we, Ricky Lee and his present and past workshop students, went after the UP Film Center screening -- a reunion of sorts. Just wrote down whatever came to mind; as Anne Lamott, author of Bird by Bird, would advice, just put down the crap. :)

So while looking for a venue for the article, I talked on the phone to Nestor Torre, editor of Inquirer's Saturday edition, and our facilitator in the Film Development Foundation scriptwriting workshop a few years back. He said that they don't print reviews, but I can interview Ms. Ellen. Wow. So, through Ricky (who also talked to me on the phone, and said that Ellen would love anything that would "push" the film) and his assistant Jerry, I got in touch with Ms. Ellen and was able to schedule an interview Saturday afternoon. After faxing me more info about the film, I asked her a few details about the movie while supervising Debate last night -- she works at the Public Affairs Dept. of GMA. And so this morning and afternoon, I was able to revise and polish my review, and sent it at around 4 pm. I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

I'm now preparing for the interview tomorrow. I invited JP, and he said that he will come, too. I feel that this meeting might be the start of something big for digital filmmaking, especially for independents. We can start an organization, perhaps...or just support each other. We need more young artists to start a new wave of Philippine Cinema, which, according to JP, is what Lav Diaz wishes to happen...

Hello world! So I am now, officially, a blogger!