Longtime political film and new media festival Pandayang Lino Brocka (PLB) daringly returns to small screens as it launched its 16th iteration at Gravity Art Space, Quezon City on Friday, November 15.
Land of Ruins
“Ideally, we would have liked for the filmmakers to give their take on this year’s theme which is Lupang Sinira, or Land of Ruins. The theme may generate various interpretations, but ultimately, it is rooted in the Filipino people’s longtime struggle with land and landlessness,” said Czyrene Farrales, PLB XVI’s festival director.
Farrales explained that the rigorous screening process brought down multiple entries into only ten films embodying the festival’s theme.
“We see the creativity and advocacy of the filmmakers as they present their takes on what ‘Lupang Sinira’ means to them. The result is a collection of films tackling pressing issues such as reclamation, climate justice, martial law, drug war, labor exploitation, national sovereignty, and the importance of press freedom and dissent especially in the midst of a worsening political climate,” Farrales added.
The festival’s lineup include the following:
1. Bughaw, Dilaw, Magugunaw! by Magik Skool Bus/FRMT 313
2. Dalangpanan by Ugmad Productions
3. Kon Mahunong ang Sulog by Ugmad Productions
4. Panatag by Allan Lazaro/Project V Media
5. Pitik ng Paglaya by Eksena Noventa
6. SAMASA by Ian Peter Guanzon
7. Sunugin ang Aparador! by Potesprods
8. Suwelas by Inaniko Productions
9. Tatlumpu Kami Rito by Salimbayan Film
10. Tingog sa Carbohanon by Cinecult Productions
PLB’s existence as the longest political film and new media festival proves its mettle in waging a current of counter-culture amidst the prevailing themes explored by filmmakers, especially in the film industry.
“Rarely do we see a non-profit film festival willingly offering free community and school screenings. Yet we see this as an avenue to open the audience to the realities of our society,” Farrales said.
She also added that the festival hoped to bring political films readily at grassroots-level through multiple screenings at every avenue available.
Directors weigh in
“[This venture] is an avenue for me to learn and see the creativity and processes of others when it comes to making art for the people. I took the chance to submit my film as an entry because I would like the opportunity to offer narratives that enrich awareness while emboldening my desire to create more stories [for the people],” said Gio Potes, the director of Sunugin ang Aparador! (Burn the Closet!).
Sunugin ang Aparador! offers a fictionalized narrative about two queer men, a local factory worker and a beautician, who sought each others’ solace and strength in the midst of a tragedy brought about by a fire razing a local slipper factory. Potes’ film, loosely inspired by the Kentex manufacturing factory fire in Valenzuela City last 2015, tackled themes of workers’ oppression intersecting with the discrimination faced by members of the LGBT community.
“The issue is still relevant. We have yet to see changes that will improve the conditions of workers especially in the midst of the skyrocketing prices of commodities. Sweatshops still prevail in some parts of the country. We only hear pronouncements [of the administration] of better programs for workers but we have yet to feel a significant impact,” added Potes.
Inaniko Productions’ Suwelas also tackled workers’ issues as the documentary film featured the shoemakers from Marikina and the looming future of the local shoe industry amidst the rise of imported commodities in the local market.
Meanwhile, some films in the showcase touted issues that made waves during the current administration, providing a timely commentary on the major stories of the country.
Allan Lazaro’s documentary film Panatag underscores the lives of the fisherfolk in Bajo de Masinloc, Zambales and their struggle for decent livelihood while caught between the territorial disputes in the West Philippine Sea. Gerard Bernardo’s Bughaw, Dilaw, Magugunaw!, on the other hand, is a silent comedy alluding to the diplomatic relations and power play between nations involved in the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). On the other hand, Zedrich Madrid’s Pitik ng Paglaya underscores the media’s power and importance in protecting democracy.
“Issues are important and must be tackled through any medium or any art form. It is important to use these talents or skills [as filmmakers] to share the people’s stories. [We must] be brave in tackling issues. We have the capabilities in showcasing these experiences,” said Kiara Ricamara, the director of Tatlumpu Kami Rito, a gripping drama exploring the drug war during the Duterte administration.
Ricamara highlighted the importance of shedding light on the previous administration’s drug war through the film, especially since the former president is now under a thorough investigation in both legislative houses. Duterte has since been implicated with the killings that took away more than 30,000 lives, most of them from urban poor communities.
PLB XVI’s selection also included regional films, with four entries hailing from Cebu. CIKIE Productions’ SAMASA showcased the stories of Cebuanons under the Martial Law era, while Cinecult Productions’ Tingog sa Carbohanon explores the looming privatization of the Carbon Market and its effect on the livelihood of small-time vendors in the area.
“Stories like these, especially from Carbon vendors are very reflective of the current situation or the current administration. Especially with the [festival’s] theme, Lupang Sinira. Their lives are there, their livelihoods are taken. We have to tackle these stories to shed light of the situation. You never know, these can also happen in other regions. We have to stand with the marginalized because they are the ones who provide us food. They benefit from us [when we support them] and we benefit from them,” said Lance Gabriel, director of Tingog sa Carbohanon.
Ugmad Productions’ Dalangpanan and Kon Mahunong ang Sulod featured a different image of Cebu. In Kon Mahunong ang Sulod, the dreamlike serenity of Cebu’s untouched forests and rivers are front and center, setting as the backdrop of an insightful drama about the negative effects of invasive development projects in Cebu.
Meanwhile, Dalangpanan, this year’s Jury’s Choice Award, presented the lives of the fisherfolk inhabitants of Cebu’s Shell Island amidst the looming reclamation in the area.
When asked about the importance of showing the films to various audiences within the Metro, Zhynnon Mantos, the director of the two films, shared the importance of intersectionality of issues faced by the people.
“Open your eyes to the stories of the regions. Recognize that the stories in the regions are not that different from the stories of the capital because our problems, our struggles, our difficulties are in one way or another shared. And that recognition of our shared struggle is also a call for our shared resistance,” Mantos ended.
Pandayang Lino Brocka is set to schedule screenings within various schools and communities.
 daringly returns to small screens as it launched its 16th iteration at Gravity Art Space, Quezon City on Friday, November 15.){kind=link}