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The room was buzzing with cheers at the Valencia Events Place last Saturday, Aug. 9. From across the hall, members of the Philippines’ film and TV industry had gathered—directors, actors, producers, screenwriters, production designers, assistant directors, stuntmen, and more—invited by the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), the Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP), and the Movie Workers Welfare Foundation (Mowelfund) for the “Araw ng Pagkakaisa.”
It was a call by the three institutions to unite stakeholders of the various local film and television guilds to discuss each of their goals for the country’s cultural media landscape.
The event began with a solemn tribute to the many talented filmmakers we have lost this year and last year, a somber beginning that served to ground the event before the FDCP, FAP, and Mowelfund shared their plans to strengthen and develop the industry with their new programs.
Film Development Council of the Philippines chairman, director Joey Reyes, opened his presentation with gratitude that everyone present could join together that afternoon because we all “know the state of the industry”
One would think that the industry is fragmented and in competition with each other. After all, before the shutdown of the ABS-CBN operating franchise, ABS-CBN and GMA were in a constant battle for higher ratings, while movie studios were battling it out at the box office. Off-cam, filmmakers will be cliquish but create groups based on common ideals and filmmaking practices, and not between studios or channels. From my experience, we all gather to share our personal stories about the highs and lows of making movies and television shows.
But the FDCP chairman, director Joey Reyes, opened his presentation with gratitude that everyone present could join together that afternoon because we all “know the state of the industry.”
It was a sobering blow because local box office numbers have been down. Even the last two Metro Manila Film Festivals (MMFF) found some films unable to make a profit, when the MMFF used to be a sure-fire way for movie studios to earn.
While we get the occasional blockbuster like “Rewind” and “Hello, Love, Again,” those two films are outliers in the years since the pandemic.
Yes, “Sunshine” is doing very well, but that’s through an aggressive on-the-ground marketing campaign, and the great reviews have snowballed into a strong word-of-mouth that has allowed the film to make it to its third week. It’s a great sign, but again, this shouldn’t be an isolated case; yet it is. So many other strong local films have been released since then that haven’t found their audience in the cinema.
So this event was set so that the FDCP, FAP, and the Mowelfund could lay out their programs for the industry with the hopes of empowering film and television workers and pushing us back into our glory days when movies could make over P300 million at the box office in a non-MMFF season.
This event was set so that the FDCP, FAP, and the Mowelfund could lay out their programs for the industry with the hopes of empowering film and television workers and pushing us back into our glory days when movies could make over P300 million at the box office in a non-MMFF season
For the FDCP, they will continue to develop and build the next generation of filmmakers. A lot of their programs are geared toward education, such as providing funding for short films for student filmmakers, with an emphasis for students outside of Metro Manila, while also conducting various workshops in various disciplines. Through CreatePH and other programs, they also hope to invest in short films and full-length features to help raise money for movies that need to be seen. As I recall, “Sunshine” is one of the films that have been funded through this program.
And while the Mowelfund will continue its programs to give workshops and provide aid and assistance to movie workers, their new project is the one that I’m most interested in. They are currently planning to create a film museum, a project that would collate and visualize the rich history of Philippine cinema under one roof.
The project is still under development and fundraising, but once this is running, this would be a wealth of knowledge that would be accessible to all.
But all eyes are on the newly revamped Film Academy of the Philippines. The FAP is now under the Office of the President of the Philippines and has its own budget for their projects.
FAP director general, director Paolo Villaluna, spoke about two major branches in their goals. The first is the standardization and accreditation of all film workers to push for a more professionalized industry. The standardization will include mandatory first aid classes for all film workers and mandatory attendance for workshops on proper work practices, which include awareness of sexual harassment and abuse. The accreditation will ensure that all filmworkers and institutions will abide by these regulations to weed out bad-faith organizations that may use film and television as a means to seduce.
The most perplexing, for me, is the second branch of FAP’s goals, which is to professionalize and amplify local films for qualifications for the Academy Awards, especially for the possible entries into the Best Foreign Language Film category. They will work earlier to pinpoint films that may qualify and help them participate in film festivals around the world for better visibility and a stronger chance of getting nominated.
When asked the rationale behind this push for an Oscar nominee (and win), FAP director general Paolo Villaluna responded, “An Oscar nomination or win is beneficial and can be transformative for any local film industry
When asked the rationale behind this push for an Oscar nominee (and win), Villaluna responded, “An Oscar nomination or win is beneficial and can be transformative for any local film industry. The Philippine cinematic heritage is the oldest in Southeast Asia, and though we’re already acknowledged globally for our films (from Cannes to Berlin, from Shanghai to Venice), we’ve yet to acquire an Oscar shortlist or nomination.”
He cites the many ways an Oscar nomination has boosted a country’s economy, citing the Oscar wins for Latvia’s “Flow,” South Korea’s “Parasite,” and Iran’s “A Separation.”
Each film had increased interest in each country’s culture and media products. An Oscar win could also lead to industry growth within the country to improve infrastructure and more training programs, the way that an Olympic gold medal could see an increase in the same areas of that sport.
Already, three titles were mentioned by Reyes in his presentation that could give us the global recognition the industry deserves: “Sunshine,” the documentary “Food Delivery,” and the upcoming Lav Diaz film, “Magellan.”
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