Ateneo de Naga University
College of Arts and Sciences
Media Studies Department
Dalan: 1st Bicol Film Festival
Rex Eric R. Perez
AB Journalism-2
I’ve never been to a film festival before so I was quite excited to be one of the spectators of the first ever Bicol film festival: Dalan. I felt a great surge of exhilaration when I saw Howie Severino’s name on the program, I was thinking “is this for real?” as I examine a leaflet (from sir “Toots”) with curiosity and enthusiasm. When the day of Howie’s talk about making documentaries came, I nearly upset my digital camera as I took pictures, acting very much like a paparazzi. Too bad I have a class before the talk ends and so I left, casting an envious eye to those who were lucky enough to have no academic obligations that day. Maybe, I should spend my allowable absences more wisely next semester. But a load of 26 units and multi-faceted roles of website news writer/messenger/clerk/photographer/proofreader in the President’s Office leave me hardly any free time except perhaps a few minutes to smoke and puff out all the stress in my system. Whew, it really is tough being a scholar especially if you are naturally idle like I am…
I was amused and glad to know that the entries of the Media Studies Department won several awards. One of those films, Kasambahay has my NSTP classmate Noela as the lead actress while another was “starred” and “staffed” by my co delegates at the 2008 Pinoy Media Congress, yet that didn’t stop me from having criticisms especially about the authenticity of the latter film’s script or the concept of Necrophilia to be more specific. Because someone told me that it was a sort of adaptation of his story (this person was not part of the staff of that film) and he claimed that they (he and his friends) planned to make a movie out of it but they were disheartened after the production of the said film which curiously has a similar script as that of theirs. Anyway, this is just an alleged intellectual property rights violation. I do hope that I will have a time to get the side of the accused (not legally) party and clarify this matter just to be fair and to feed my curiosity…
Anyway, it was groundbreaking for Bicol’s Media Studies, Arts and Literature, Digital and Animation to have this pioneering film festival. Not only because of excellent resource speakers and writers like Kristian Cordero and Vic Nierva but also because of the skills honed (especially that of the film fest participants), the amount of knowledge shared to students and the great contribution to Bicolandia’s heritage that this endeavor had brought about. If there was one thing I like most about the film entries it was the fact that they are generally indie in nature, without the aesthetic qualities of mainstream films. It has been a cliché to say that “Life is so unlike the movies”. During and after Dalan, the movie industry and the media were vindicated. Indeed Mass Media should always look for fresh and creative ways to exhibit life’s truth even if these truths may be inconvenient. For life, is not all about grand entrances, breathtaking climaxes, and eventful exits. There will always be dull moments and people will not always speak words of wisdom and oh yes, it is quite unlikely if not impossible to have a rosy white skin in a tropical country like ours, unless of course you have a portable ozone layer as an umbrella. There you go about typical scenes and stereotypes which are undoubtedly the qualities of commercial or mainstream movies. It has often been said that the Media is only a reflection of society, true enough it is. But it’s a dead passive role and an incredulously lame excuse for the sake of ratings and profits. For If the Fourth Estate is to do its part in the building of a better Filipino Society it must help cultivate and affirm values and not to partake on the distortion of people’s ideas of wants and needs, beauty and ugliness and success and failure. After all, the Press is the undisputed idol of the people and precisely because it is greatly revered and have the power to persuade the populace, it might as well start being what Chief Justice Reynato Puno coined as a “Moral Force” even amidst the highly competitive atmosphere of the Mass Communication Industry.
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