UP Film Center Reunion with Ms. Virginia R. Moreno on Rizal’s Birthday

Last January 19, Jose Rizal’s birthday J.Moreno Foundation hosted through its President Virginia R. Moreno, Founder of the UP Film Center the reunion of the former and current staff of the UP Film Center. Supposed to have been a celebration of the 41 Aprils of Cinema Artists, it has been moved to coincide with Rizal’s birthday. Because of that, I have had the chance of screening my film MI ULTIMO ADIOS, the first-ever interpretation of the poem in Filipino Sign Language, and the 123rd version of the poem. Aldrin Gabriel, the Deaf actor attended. Cannes Palme d’Or winner Raymond Red was present.

Aldrin Gabriel [Deaf actor], UP Film Center Founder Ms. Virginia R. Moreno, and me, original staff of UPFC

Present and former staff of the UPFilm Center. Seated is Ms Virgie Moreno

The new Film Center. It started in a small room at Palma Hall, Rm 209

Ultimo Adios being screened

Ms Moreno with former UP President Emmanuel Soriano watch the film

Aldrin in front of the exhibit

After the screening, Aldrin thanked all those who watched our film. He said he was very happy to see hearing people watching a Deaf film. Rizal descendant Ms. Lisa Tinio-Bayot was as happy for having the film shown. She was unable to come because they also celebrated the birthday of her lolo Jose.

[Note: Preparing the exhibit with Clare Salaverria and Sheila Red was fun and quite reminiscent of what we used to do decades ago at the Film Center. All photos here were courtesy of Aldrin except for the poster]

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Special Screening of MANUEL CONDE FILMS

From Wikipedia

In celebration of the Centennial Birth Anniversary of the National Artist for Film Manuel Conde [b. October 9, 1915; d. August 11, 1985], the Cultural Center of the Philippines Arthouse Cinema, in cooperation with
Society of Filipino Archivists for Film (SOFIA), the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the UP Los Baños Foundation Inc, will screen three of his films produced in the 50’s. The event — dubbed as *MANUEL CONDE@100* will be held at Tanghalang Manuel Conde, Cultural Center of the Philippines on Sept. 24, October 1 and 8.

I remember interviewing him as then researcher of the UP Film Center in the late 70’s in connection with my research about Vicente Salumbides, somewhere in Sampaloc area near Espana in Manila.The latter talked about Manuel Conde who worked with him in his film Ibong Adarna. Unfortunately, when our house burned in 1998, all my materials — photos, and tape interviews with Salumbides turned into ashes as well.

Luckily, I found my taped interview with Conde among the tape collection of my historian-brother who lived in J.P.Laurel St., Area II inside the UP Campus in Diliman. That was sometime in 2004; the year my brother passed away. I had to gather all his things in order to move out. But moving in and out of a house to transfer materials eventually made searching later for that tape quite difficult, since there were tons of important research materials in his house.

I remember asking him about his Juan Tamad series, Conde’s satirical but socially relevant movies.  I am still hoping that I would find the copy…

Source: Video48.blogspot.com

To be presented by the CCP Arthouse Cinema are the following:

GENGHIS KHAN [1950], September 24 at 3 p.m.
The first Filipino film to compete at the Venice Film Festival in 1952, Genghis Khan starred Manuel Conde and Elvira Reyes. Produced by MC Productions, it is the saga of how the young but wily Temujin rose to become the overlord of the Mongol Empire. The version will have the original Tagalog soundtrack, unhampered by James Agee’s poetic narration in the re-edited international edition which was restored in 2012. [Teddy Co, board member of the Society of Filipino Archivists for Film] will discuss for the first time some confounding and overlooked facets about the film].

KRUS NA KAWAYAN [1956], October 1, 2016 at 3 p.m.
Entirely filmed in Vietnam with Filipino actors in Vietnamese roles, the film tackeles the refugee crisis at the onset of the Vietnam War. The United States Information Service [USIS] funded the film as propaganda material to portray the evils of Communism during the Cold War. [Jun Urbano, who was a young boy in the film, will talk about his experiences working with his father]

VENGANZA [1958], October 8, 2016 at 3 p.m.
Produced by LVN Pictures, the action-thriller starred Mario Montenegro, Carmencita Abad, Perla Bautista, and Carlos Padilla, Jr. The screening will be preceded by the launch of the Manuel Conde. Centennial stamp by the Philippine Postal Authority and NCCA. [Film  scholar Nicanor Tiongson, author of The Cinema of Manuel Conde will give a talk after the screening, emphasizing Conde’s delicacy and care in depicting the indigenous Igorot people shown in the film. A rare bonus clip of an interview with Conde before he died will also be shown.]

[Source: CCP Calendar of Events, September-October 2016]

Photos courtesy of Video48.blogspot.com

http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/archive/

Daily Prompt: Money for Nothing / Film Sharing

The photos below are culmination of the work I love doing: documentary film making or using film as a research tool. It was in 2003 when I started producing my own documentaries that are largely research-backed, oral history in format and advocacy in nature. My subjects are centered on special children. The reward is largely psychic in nature… I otherwise work as film editor of full-length commercial and short films by independent filmmakers.

Introducing my latest video docu on special children – this time focused on Trisomy 21 or Down Syndrome

The event was held this month of February. Details of the event were posted last week.

Special showing in a special place: at the Film Center of the University of the Philippines where I used to work as researcher. On the screen is a devoted mother of a Child with Down Syndrome who used to believe that only poor people have children with the said condition, until she got exposed to CDS of rich families in a sports event participated in by her son.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2014/02/15/prompt-money-for-nothing/

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2014/02/15/prompt-money-for-nothing/comment-page-1/#comments

 

Minnie’s Mini Xhibit_2012 Womens’ Month

With friends old and new: [standing l-r ]: William and Nonoy of the UP Film Center, MM, Imee Gines of Blessing’s and ISKO, Minnie Crouse; Anna on the extreme right and Belen next to her”

I was 15 mins late – had to finish the edit of Project Speak Right’s Modules 2-10 – but I watched the bulk of the film screened by friend Minnie Crouse at the UP Film Center Videotheque last Tuesday, March 13 in celebration of the Women’s month. The film which features Minnie is quite sleek… very good as a TV feature.  Saw familiar footages from my film “When the Spirit Soars” in the film…Met old and new friends…

She dreams of a film about her life. By now, quite a number have been made about her. But many more will be done for sure because she has so many things to do; more of her fruitful life are yet to be written, and filmed. She is by the way, a PWD — with cancer of the bones, low vision left eye…but she continues to inspire many so-called abled individuals. Mabuhay ka Manay!

Shooting Tomorrow at the UP Film Center

I went to the UP Film Center yesterday to check the room where we are planning to shoot tomorrow. Teatro Hermogenes Ilagan at the Faculty Center is not available. The room used to be the place where the workshop was held with the German editor of Werner Herzog, Maximiliane, if I remember it correctly.  Her initials are MM like me. When she gave me her editing scissors and her gloves, I have asked her to sign it; she signed MM at it. I facilitated the workshop with Joseph Fortin at that time. It was held loooooooooong ago so much so that my remembrance of the place did not jibe with what I saw. I remember it to be a narrow room, longish, more of rectangular than the actual shape which is squarish. Inside it is the Steenbeck flatbet machine she donated. There are also film splicers, the traditional film bins, etc. Seeing them reminded me of the Film and Television Institute of India where I studied filmmaking.

I am shooting the English and Filipino versions of Rizal’s poems, to be participated in by my good friends from UP KAL.

I proceeded from UP to Scenema Concept to continue with refining Reel 4 of Asiong, and checked Yuka’s remaining notes. Tikoy joined us at 10 pm. Since I could not stay longer, I will continue with the rest of the reels later. Some problematic sound has to be located. There are no clappers to guide the sound editor. We all left at 2 a.m.

Rizal Did Not Write “Sa Aking Kababata”

That’s the current issue ongoing—RIZAL COULD NOT HAVE WRITTEN SA AKING KABABATA—the reason why I had to remove it from the list of five poems that I wanted to have interpreted in Filipino Sign Language (with blessings from the NCCA since NHCP is also in sort of a limbo bout it). I first came to know about the issue when Vim Nadera told me. Ask National Artist Virgilio Almario about it for details!

Anyway, as I really want to have a representative poem of Rizal when he was very young, I am considering as a replacement, MI PRIMERA INSPIRACION, written for his mother before he was 14 years old. But still I need to verify this because some sources are not sure about it and attributing it to his cousin as well.

CANTO DEL VIAJERO  and MI PIDEN VERSOS are also in my list… which one to choose is my dilemna right now. Anyway, this will be the last poem that I will do.

This afternoon, Aldrin Gabriel, Deaf interpreter in FSL of Ultimo Adios will join the rehearsals for the cultural night show tomorrow of the International Rizal International Conference. Will take him to the venue and leave him to the care of Dok Apo, then I will most probably attend the event of Aling Barang Moreno at the UP Film Center. (WOW! She’s returning to her “baby.”) It is for us, a momentous event — to see her at the UP Film Center, our beloved UP Film Center!!! Nostalgia bigla!

And next week! I’ll probably be able to join again the Asiong Salonga team…with full focus on it by July. I am well bent in finishing its editing next month, well, interspersed with Alyana showings at the UP or MMC if they will be able to finalize their plan over there in Nova.

The SO Trail

The last quarter of 2008 saw the take off of Silent Odyssey… Hoping that 2009 takes SO to more and more places especially to far flung areas away from Manila. The welcome reactions to the film, the spark and desire it generates on the hearing audience to learn sign language is a clear sign on just how effective it has been to some people. That SO is not meant not only for the Deaf but for the hearing audience has succeeded as one of SO’s main objectives. (Detailed notes and some photos on the 2008 Silent Odyssey trail can be found on the right column under the same heading–“The SO Trail”).

Grand Launch at UP

Yesterday December 12, I was suppose to receive a certificate of recognition from the UP Press in behalf of my historian-brother Dr. Isagani R. Medina whose book “Cavite Before the Revolution” was chosen as one of those “written by some of the best minds the University has produced,” (From the letter of UP Press Director Ma. Luisa Camagay) but I arrived a few minutes late at Malcolm Hall in UP where the Grand Launch was held.

UP Press Centennial Publications Grand Launch

At the same time as the festive centennial celebrations in UP, bright lights shine as family members gather in the house of Dr. Ligaya M. Miranda, our eldest sister who died last Wednesday, December 10 of renal failure at 7:52 am in St. Luke’s Hospital. Both had doctorate degree titles—the former, a Doctor of Philosophy in History from UP, the latter a Doctor of Philosophy in Developmental Education at the University of Sto. Tomas. My brother was professor emeritus at the UP History Department and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts’ (NCCA) Lifetime Achievement awardee (Alab ng Haraya) in Cultural Research. My sister was the second president of Metro Manila College in Novaliches. She replaced her husband Dr. Mamerto Miranda Sr., founder of Novaliches Academy, the first private high school in Nova which later became the MMC. Both were educators.

When I think of them, I feel that I am a “good example of a bad student.” I did not complete my MA in Humanities because I got bored with academic studies after studying and obtaining from the Film and Television Institute in India  a Post-Diploma in Cinema major in Film Editing. I have in my heart however only a “little regret”  for having wasted my time earning more than 20 units of the course in Humanities as I really enjoyed going full swing into film production work with independent filmmaker Tikoy Aguiluz, my long-time friend, colleague and film collaborator.

Now that I am into production of my own film advocacy work and films that hope “to educate and raise the awareness” of some of our people regarding my subjects in focus, it seem that I have afterall taken the same path as my elder siblings did. I never wanted to be a “teacher” but my films which cut across provincial borders, social and cultural differences actually “educate” in a sense based on testimonies of serious film viewers and its stakeholders with regards my docus on autism and Deaf Filipinos. Looking back, I must have been indirectly “prepared” by God having given me “warm-up” assignments as art teacher at Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati before joining the UP Film Center as film researcher in its early years sometime in 1977. Until the UP Film Center merged with UP Mass Communications to become the UP Film Institute in 2003, I was working with Fruto Corre and Joseph Fortin in our Cinema-as-Art program as workshop-facilitator /lecturer under the Film Education program of the Center. Recalling my “teaching” days is remembering the “sharing” of what I have learned. I share. I do not teach. That is what I always used to tell “my students.”

Right now, I actually feel more like a researcher than a filmmaker. I just use the film or video as my tool to share to others what I have researched on or studied and learned while entering diverse worlds.