Once again, Cinemalaya on its 8th year will prove us that the Filipino talent is a certified world class, starting off by giving opportunities to independent filmmakers to showcase their artistic and cinematic works.
My friends and I were supposed to watch Bwakaw and Oros. We have decided to buy our tickets at CCP a day before the actual screening to make sure that there will be available tickets for us, but as I asked the lady if they had tickets for it, she said it were already sold out. We were devastated and disappointed because we badly want to watch those films. But since there's nothing we can do about it, we have decided to buy advance screening tickets for Kamera Obskura and Sta. Nina instead. We have heard a lot of good reviews from our classmates who watched it already so we felt better in a way.
Kamera Obskura
Directed by Raymond Red
"The film's concept adheres to formalist cinema, where the filmmaker's thesis is to make a semblance of a vintage film seemingly produced sometime in the late 1920s to early 1930s in the Philippines. The thesis is to conjure up a film from a period that did not really exist in Philippine cinema's historical cultural heritage as we know it, such as a pseudo-expressionist / experimental Filipino cinema of the silent film era. It is a film within a film."
“Kamera Obskura” is a Filipino spelling of the latin “Camera Obscura” which simply means “dark room”.
It is a silent film portrayed as a vintage piece set in retro-futuristic past complete with flying machines powered by pedaling. This is about a character named Juan (Pen Medina) who was trapped in an enclosed room for over two decades and only sees the world through a hole.. until he is released and tries to figure out what's going on by going through a mysterious building. This mysterious building is where corruption, deceit, and betrayal seem to be at work at every level. When a movie camera assimilates with his arm and the rival political parties discovered its ability to absorb bad people/ politician he was being urged to run for a councilor by those politicians that are just going to take advantage of him. With the usage of the terms “pabaon”, “boksingero ng bayan” and “tuwid na daan”, one could easily identify the stinking inspiration to this movie.
"The film KAMERA OBSKURA is a tribute to Filipino cinema heritage. Through the re-imagining of an era of cinema in the transition from the lost silent era, the filmmaker hopes to instill in the next generation the recognition of the value of passing on that heritage before it is totally lost."
Sta. Nina
Directed By Emmanuel Palo
The movie synopsis in the Cinemalaya official site goes like this:
"When Paulino Mungcal and his co-worker in a lahar-filled quarry unexpectedly dig up the remains of his 2-year daughter Marikit, they discover that she showed no signs of decay. Could this be a miracle, and could she -- despite death – cure the sick? Inspired by whatever healing power the deceased child may have, Pol asks the church to declare her a saint. But how, when her resurgence stirs up emotions buried by time, and shores up questions about pure love, guilt, sin and salvation?"
I feel the film quite like a mainstream, maybe because since it was coined "Indie film" what I expect is not really an extravagant or as big production. But with this film, I think the production is quite grand. Indeed, I find the film well made and polished. Each actor delivers exceptional performances; Anita Linda as Paulino’s dementia-afflicted grandmother really made me laugh as she delivered her lines and Coco Martin's performance is especially fine.
After the show, audience had the opportunity to directly ask Direk Manny about the film. It's their chance to clear things up or fully understand the film. It's really a good thing, both for the audience and Direk Manny as well. We have found out that since this is the first time that Direk Manny will be joining Cinemalaya, he wants to make it extra special by setting it at his hometown in Pampanga.
"The film is made from a perspective that does not hold judgment towards these beliefs and practices. It finds humanity in the very reason why these beliefs and practices exist and persist. Instead, it connects the outward and perhaps sham religiosity of these people with their inward insecurities because of their very own acknowledgment of their own sinful ways.
"Sta. Niña" depicts sinners suffering so much in such a judgmental world that the sudden appearance of the titular incorruptible saint becomes the only viable escape, and the price they would have to pay for a much-ambitioned redemption. Nothing is more human than survival in a society that is quick to pass guilt and slow to forgive and forget"
