Leo Cosmiano Baltar
Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, local cinema still struggles to stay afloat. Since the virus ravaged the Philippines, cinema-based activities have been halted, and theaters only began operating again with limited capacity in November last year. Film productions were also postponed in early 2020, forcing major studios and companies to lay off over 300,000 industry workers. So it is no surprise to witness a drastic decline in the number and quality of films produced amid the rapidly changing health crisis.
Fortunately, film festivals continue to provide Filipino creatives not just a space for their art but much-needed jobs as well, while a new Omicron variant looms over the country. In fact, new spaces for cinema have been born during the pandemic, such as the Sine Halaga Film Festival, despite the fluctuating audience numbers.
This month, the local industry finds another space in Sinepiyu, the flagship film festival of the Far Eastern University (FEU), dedicated to nurturing young, promising talents. “[It’s] more of celebrating different films from different regions,” Patrick Pangan, Sinepiyu 14’s festival director, told SFFR when asked how the festival was curated.
Now in its 14th year, Sinepiyu boasts 30 competition films out of over 70 submissions. The entries are scattered in two categories: All Tamaraws, an exclusive division for student filmmakers of FEU-Manila, and Interschool, divided into three genres namely Narrative, Documentary, and Experimental, which caters to all aspirants from various academic institutions across the country.
Pangan said that content remains the primary basis in determining what films are included in the official roster. Members of the selection committee also prefer a deliberation and ranking format than a point system.
But Pangan clarified that if a film were submitted by a regional filmmaker, it doesn’t mean that it would be automatically selected. “It really undergoes deliberation pa rin naman,” he added.
As its theme “Layag sa Agos ng Kwento” reflects, Sinepiyu still navigates the industry’s changing landscape amid the pandemic, with all its ebbs and flows.
Beyond ‘Zoom cinema’
Filmmaker and FEU film instructor Nico Hernandez, who helped develop and screen the entries for the All Tamaraws category alongside his colleague Jet Leyco, admitted that it is difficult to produce a film during these precarious times. “Talagang mahirap din para sa mga bata.”
But Hernandez said the good thing about this season of Sinepiyu is that the students were also given the opportunity to film outside their homes and not solely resort to Zoom recordings. “Ngayon talagang nakita mo ‘yung fire ng mga bata na lumabas to film, to shoot kasi mayroon na silang opportunities to do that kasi kahit papaano nag-relax talaga ‘yung mga protocols,” he added.
Pangan aired the same sentiment. “If we say kasi na if nakaapekto ang pandemic diba parang ang lalabas mostly na mga pelikula ay like ‘yung nag-emerge nga during the pandemic is ‘yung ‘Zoom cinema’ na tinatawag natin or through online platforms. But then, di naman ganun ‘yung nangyari. Marami pa ring nag-physicalize ng mga films nila talaga or nag-onsite ng pagshu-shoot,” he noted.
At least until May 15, Metro Manila and various areas in the country will remain under Alert Level 1 status, which allows production and filming activities as long as health protocols are followed.
In terms of quality, Hernandez said that, at least for All Tamaraws, the films are technically very strong. “‘Yung visual language na ginamit nila is very engaging to the eye, very attractive to the eye. But I think more than the form, I think it’s the richness of the stories that really helped kasi sometimes may mga form din naman na not too mainstream ‘yung look, but when you look at the story, talagang mas powerful siya over the others.”
Meanwhile, Vahn Pascual, one of the participating filmmakers under the Interschool division, said that filming his entry Mundong Walang Katiyakan served as his coping mechanism at the height of the pandemic.
“Kasi nag-o-overthink ako nung nasa gitna pa ng pandemic na bilang isang miyembro ng LGBTQIA+ community parang paano ‘yung magiging future ko pagtanda tapos dito pa sa lipunan natin na di naman gaano ka-open sa community ko,” Pascual told SFFR.
This is why Sinepiyu, alongside other film festivals, is important for young talents like Pascual, as it offers them a place in the industry. “Dito sa film festival na ‘to, mas napapalawak din ‘yung culture nating mga Pilipino katulad nung mga nasa regions nga kasi mas maraming taong nakakanood lalo na’t available din siya sa online, so mas accessible siya sa mga tao,” he added.
‘Mainstreaming regional cinema’
Like most film festivals in the pandemic, Sinepiyu is held in a hybrid format through online streaming via the FDCP Channel and in-person screenings in Cinematheque Centre Manila, with curated film programs that target a particular audience’s tastes. The film showings are also free of charge, whether one decides to participate in the physical moviegoing experience or settle for the smaller screen.
Sinepiyu also conducted talkbacks to examine the material and sociopolitical conditions that shaped the stories the filmmakers brought to the fore. In a sense, this is the festival’s attempt at engaging the audience beyond their viewing experience and providing them an access to important discussions, particularly in talkbacks that shed light on “Documentary as a Medium for Social Reality and its Role for the Upcoming Elections” and on “The Importance of Regional Representation in Films.”
However, one cannot deny that the screening and discussion spaces largely remain Manila-centric, especially for a festival which aims “to mainstream Philippine regional cinema.” This barrier is exacerbated by the country’s unreliable internet services and geographical restrictions as felt squarely by viewers residing in the provinces.
While acknowledging this issue of accessibility, Hernandez also pointed out the very availability of regional works that Sinepiyu hopes to highlight. “Most of the time, makikita mo na kung sino ‘yung mga nasa center ng lipunan, sila ‘yung nakakapag-produce ng pelikula and hindi natin nabibigyan ng opportunity ‘yung mga tao from the regions,” he stressed.
Pangan, meanwhile, cannot sideline the fact that the institutions to which the filmmakers belong are still a huge factor in the selection process. “Siyempre, majority pa din ‘yung [mula sa] Benilde, UP Diliman, [at] Mapua.”
This reality poses many questions: Are screening spaces really as inclusive as they are claimed to be? Do cultural conversations online reach those in the peripheries? How important is cinema in this time of abject precarity?
But this shortcoming does not solely fall on the shoulders of the festival organizers, because after all, “It takes a village when it comes to working in this kind of event,” as Pangan remarked.
One can only hope that, as it wades through the pandemic’s uncharted waters, Sinepiyu will carry on and not go off course.
Sinepiyu 14 ran from May 2-7, 2022. The Society of Filipino Film Reviewers is one of its media partners.