Concerto, The Film (Cinemalaya 2008)

Concerto, The Film (Cinemalaya 2008)

Jul 8, '08 12:45 AM for everyone

My husband is watching my rehearsals at the CCP Main Theater because he will shoot the performances of Galaw Galaw that I’m directing. It's a show featuring dance groups in the country.

Paul Morales, the artistic director of the Airdance Company, approaches him and says, “Nonoy, would you consider acting in my film?”

“What film?” Nonoy asks.

“A film about my family, during World War II. I’d like you to play the father.”

“Sure!”

Back home, my husband chuckles as he relates the invite to me.
(He is a former danseur of Ballet Philippines.)

“You’re gonna be a film actor?!?” I ask. “Discovered in your 50’s while watching my rehearsal???”

Paul Morales is a dancer/choreographer himself who has done successfully in theater and film. Well, okay.

Paul Morales = dance.

Nonoy Froilan = dance.

“Was the ‘father’… a dancer?” I ask.

“No, a former miltary officer,” he replies.

“Uy! Bagay! You’re so masungit nowadays
anyways … just act like you do to (our son) Raffy. Wa ha ha!”

I can’t describe Concerto because I haven’t seen it. All I know is the film is based on a true story about Paul’s kin.

In a nutshell: a Filipino family moves to the forests of Davao during WWII where they meet
Japanese soldiers in a camp. In the hub of mortar blasts, endurance and survival, a musical concert marries war with friendship.

Interesting! Unique!

They shot the film at Casa San Miguel, Zambales, better known as the Bolipata brothers’ haven for artists.

The film features Jay Aquitana, Meryll Soriano, Shamaine Buencamino, Elijah Castillo and Alynna Lescano.

Incidentally, I watched Shamaine Buencamino in Floy Quintos's Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna at the CCP Labfest 4 recently. I’d like to take this opportunity to rave about her. Shamaine really nailed the role of the queen-wannabe president. Not once did she depart from the idiosyncrasies of the fabulous character that only an actress of her caliber can do justice to. I tried to catch her ‘act’ but not once, not once did she flinch. An eccentric role like that can open many windows to theatrical clichés – so dangerous to inept artists. But Shamaine, with her mind-boggling talent, was so credible and funny I was teary-eyed. She is one of God’s greatest gifts to the Pinoy performing arts. Shamaine is also appearing with her equally exceptional husband, Nonie Buencamino, in the film, Hubad.

Oops, back to Concerto. Okay,
some chismis. I tell Nonoy to give me a few inside stories so I can write about the film. Now this guy isn’t very talkative (unless he
has sipped about 5 glasses of wine.) “Please give me interesting snippets,” I beg.

He tells me that during one shoot the cast goes on a break and the young actors ask him about ‘ballet’. He tells them about ballet class, the positions of the arms and feet, the beautiful lines
that dancers work on. Meryll steps up to demonstrate her skills. She takes classes with Douglas Nierras, according to Nonoy. “Ang cute naman ni Meryll,” he adds.

Then he asks the girls to point their feet and discovers that Alynna has the gorgeous arches of a ballet dancer. “You should be a ballerina!” he exclaims.

“Then what?” I ask.

“That’s it. She has nice feet.”

“Noy! More … more …”

“Oh and I always took small bottles of wine with me to

Zambales. Viking and I had many discussions about life.”

“Noy, yes, but the film, the film …”

“Well, I wish we had more time to bond as a ‘family’. It kinda happened towards the end of the shoot. Sayang.”

“Zzzzzz …”

“Oh, and we had to huddle in one scene because the bombs kept coming. I insisted on a pseudo blast so we would know where the sound was coming from.”

“But why should you know that?” I inquire.

“So we can all bend in the same direction.”

“Ah! Choreography … zzzzz …”

“One night," he continues, "Jed – the stunt woman of Meryll at the piano – played a few songs. Pretty soon, we all started to sing. Very Loud. Si Garry Lim ang nagunguna. Saya namin! Shamaine, who was sleeping upstairs texted Paul to tell us to tone down.”

“Yan, intriga! Then what happened?”

“I dunno. I was in bed na but I think Paul went to the group and joined them.”

“Noy, ahm … how do you feel about acting in a film?”

“Nice!”

“I’d probably cringe when I see your face as big as the Main Theater proscenium.”

“Oo nga no?!?”

“How was Paul as director?”

“Pretty calm. He’s good!”

I giggle. “Did you call him ‘direct’ like actors call film directors?”

“Nope, I couldn’t. I just called him ‘Paul’.”

“You know what? I still don’t know what to write.”

“Just tell people to watch the film!”

“Maganda ba? Have you seen the trailer?”

“Nope.”

“Well a lot of people told me they saw an excerpt. They said it really looks good!”

“I actually think so,” he smiles.

"Noy, you're on your 5th glass of wine. How come you're not too talkative?"

"Because I had very few lines in the film. Kinukuha ko lahat sa tingin. I think the military character rubbed off on me."

"Sige, tulog na lang tayo."

Please watch the premiere night of Concerto on July 18, CCP Main Theater at 9pm . I can't wait to see the film with you !!!

For more info, call CCP Media Arts, telephone 832 1125, locals 1704 & 1705. KITAKITS at the CCP from 11 to 20 July 2008 at mag-kwentuhan tyo!

Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival 2008

Hubad, the film

HUBAD

It’s funny how I got involved in the CCP’s WiFi Dance Festival, Labfest 4 Theater Festival and now the Cinemalaya Film Festival. As I’ve said in my previous blogs, my husband was asked to judge in WiFi, my daughter had her stage debut in Labfest, and now my husband and daughter have their film debut as actors and my sister as a film director in Cinemalaya. No escape. Ain’t complaining though.

Let me write about Hubad first, since it premieres early on July 13, Sunday, at the CCP Little Theater at 6 pm.

This film began as a play, Hubad,
I remember Denisa being anxious about choreographing Irma and Nonie – her first time to work with the theater luminaries. I assured her that she was in good hands and the collaboration turned out to be a scream.

The triumph that followed drove Denisa to dig deeper into the real significance of the play – the prohibitions of our sexual conventions and the lies that accompany them. My Bohemian sister – who stayed in New York for 13 years – knew there was something deeper than the parodies, something that was not funny at all.

She and film-maker Mark Gary sat with the two writers to develop the script. They interviewed artists and probed into the financial, emotional, mental, physical and spiritual anguish of their artistic lives. Veering away from a comic viewpoint and penetrating the dim realities of the performing arts proved taxing for all. Rody Vera and Liza Magtoto bowed out, writer Ron Bryant came in and left, my other sister, Beatrice and Dennis Marasigan, as well as the main actors in the film, lent their most insightful hands.

The readings went on as the script evolved, much like what we see in the film. So in effect it was a film writing itself complete with exasperating inter-relationships and views. The screenplay didn’t make it in Cinemalaya but Denisa and Mark kept going; getting financial aid from the NCCA, family and friends. CCP allowed use of its venues in the shooting.

So now there is Hubad, the film. It is not just about a married couple’s sexual fantasies but about artists living heartrending realities. Wounding. Entertaining. Aching. The film is so real it’s almost uncomfortable.

It helps that it has the country’s best actors. Peque Gallaga, Irma Adlawan, Nonie Buencamino, Dennis Marasigan, Shamaine Buencamino, Mailes Kanapi and Audie Gemora – these people don’t just act. Watching them is like stealing into their private lives and you are afraid of being caught.

Add to the list, Jon Santos, Mae Paner, Madeleine Nicolas, Arthur Acuña, Robbie Guevara, Tess Jamias, Adriana Agcaoili, Mike Unson and the Tanghalang Pilipino actors, susmariosep ang swerte ng anak ko … err, that would be Mica Froilan.

No Filipino film has ever dealt with the realities of Art in such a savagely direct way. I hope that, in seeing this movie, people will appreciate the predicament of artists, the very people who imitate them. The film is not just about artists though, but about human beings trying to endure. There is a bit of us in each character that’s embarrassing to watch. Laugh, cry, be humiliated, feel guilty or be avenged. Hubad’s nakedness mirrors our own revolting flaws and it’s time we looked them in the eye.

Admittedly, in the beginning, when my sister yakked about her ideas I thought it was all baloney. A film about theater?!? Who’d be interested in that?!? Kapatid, mag choreograph ka na lang. But after I saw the film – she is right. Artists are fascinating … especially when they are this genuine.

DIRECTORS’ PROFILES

Denisa Reyes

One of the country’s leading choreographers, Denisa Reyes holds an impressive line of choreographic works ranging from classical ballets to modern dance pieces to her name. A former member of Ballet Philippines, Denisa earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Dance at the State University of New York with a Rockefeller grant. As a dancer, she joined several dance companies, and later produced and choreographed major dance concerts most significantly “NEO-FILIPINO” in New York City.

In 1990, Denisa returned to the Philippines and choreographed numerous works for Ballet Philippines. As Artistic Director of Ballet Philippines, the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ resident dance company, Denisa introduced the NEO-FILIPINO Dance Series, her most significant contribution to the Philippine dance scene. It served as a platform for inter-disciplinary collaborations between local and foreign artists from all over the world.

She has obtained several grants from the Rockefeller Foundations’ Asian Cultural Council, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and is a recipient of the City of Manila Outstanding Artist Award.

Today, Denisa continues to cross borders. In 2005, she formed samasamaGROUP with fellow artists. She directed her first documentary for artists’ advocacy and multi-media collaborations. She directed her first documentary “The Power of Dance” about the street children of Manila and produced “Sandalang Bahay” (The Leaning House) which went on to become the official selection to the Newport Beach Film Festival and the Fribourg International Film Festival in 2006. “Hubad” (Naked) will be her first feature film.

Mark Gary

Mark Gary is a senior mentor for the International Academy of Film and Television in Cebu, Philippines. He also works as director and director of photography for television commercials such as Sprite, Wrigley, Sarah Lee and Unilever and several award-winning music videos and short films over the past years.

Mark is a graduate of Fine Arts from the University of the Philippines and studied film at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has won awards in Communication Arts, Print and How Design.

A co-founder of samasamaGROUP, Mark Gary directed “Sandalang Bahay” (The Leaning House), which had its European premiere in Fribourg, Switzerland and was an official selection at the Newport Beach Film Festival in California in 2006 and Osian’s Cine Fan in New Delhi in 2007. The film had its theatrical release in Manila in 2006 and 2007. “Hubad” (Naked) will be his second feature film.

CAST

Andre Joaquin PEQUE GALLAGA

Carmen Manahan IRMA ADLAWAN

Delfin Bustamante NONIE BUENCAMINO

Nestor Manahan DENNIS MARASIGAN

Leah Bustamante SHAMAINE BUENCAMINO

Maffi MAILES KANAPI

Teddy Audie Gemora
Gerry Arthur Acuña
Mica Manahan Mica Froilan
Mr. Koh Robbie Guevara
TV Soap Director Jon Santos
TV Soap Writer Adriana Agcaoili
Malou Tess Jamias
MAC Head Panelist Madeleine Nicolas
Voice Coach Mae Paner
Mike Unson as Himself
Radioactive Sago Project as Themselves
Extra roles Tanghalang Pilipino Actors

PRODUCTION TEAM

Producer samasamaGROUP
Directors Denisa Reyes and Mark Gary
Based on Story by Rody Vera and Liza Magtoto
Scriptwriters Ron Bryant, Denisa Reyes and Mark Gary
Director of Photography Miguel Fabie III
Assistant DOP Ivan Sarenas
Associate Producer Beatrice Homann
Line Producer Dodo Lim
Assistant Director Jamie Jumaquiao
Production Manager Lea Sio
Production Design Bianca Davidas
Art Director Ching Danseco
Make-up and Wardrobe Rey Decena
Gaffer Boni Martin
Sound Dempster Samarista
Boom Operator Omar Ali
Production Assistants Jam Mercado
Margaux Salazar
Rafael Froilan Jr.
Editors Dempster Samarista and Mark Gary
Sound Design Mark Cabaluna
Graphics B and C

ACTOR PROFILES

PEQUE GALLAGA
1996, Best Director for “Magic Temple” awarded by Metro Manila Film Festival
1996, Best Screenplay for “Magic Temple” awarded by Metro Manila Film Festival
1983, Gawad Urian Award for Best Direction for “Oro, Plata, Mata”

NONIE BUENCAMINO
2006 Best Supporting Actor for “Batad” by Golden Screen Awards
2005, Best Actor in a Drama Performance awarded by Asian TV Awards
2005, Best Actor in a Musical Performance awarded by Aliw Awards
1997, Best Supporting Actor in a film performance awarded by Star Awards
1996, Best Supporting Actor in a film performance awarded by Star Awards

IRMA ADLAWAN
2007, Best Stage Actress for “100 Songs of Mary Helen Fee” awarded by Aliw Awards
2006, Best Stage Actress for “Ang Pokpok ng Ohio” awarded by Aliw Awards
2005, Best Stage Actress for “Speaking in Tongues” awarded by Aliw Awards

DENNIS MARASIGAN
2007, Best Screenplay for “Tukso” awarded by Cinemalaya Film Festival
2006, Best Adapted Screenplay for “Sa North Diversion Road” awarded by Gold Screen Award

SHAMAINE BUENCAMINO
2007, Best Actress for “Confessionals” awarded by Cinema One

MAILES KANAPI
Mailes’ recent works include Dulaang UP’s “As You Like It”, “Sepharad” and “The Passion of Christ”; Tanghalang Pilipino’s “ Bakereta”, “Orfeo sa Impyerno” and “Insiang”; “Three Sisters” and “The Return of Flor with the Virgin Labfest. She has collaborated with the Necessary Stage’s MOBILE for the Singapore Arts Festival and “Philippine Bedtime Stories” with the Rin Ko Gun Theatre Company in Tokyo. Film credits include “Tukso” and “Endo” for Cinemalaya 2007.

AUDIE GEMORA
In the local theater scene, Audie Gemora is revered as the "King of Philippine Musical Theater" for playing almost all possible roles onstage in his three-decade-old career.

He is President and Artistic Director of Trumpets, a musical theatre company and Producer of STAGES, a management group for young Filipino talents. He is also a sought-after host, singer and director of TV shows and corporate events.

ARTHUR ACUNA
Art is a Filipino-American leading actor in New York’s Asian-American theatre community. He is part of the Ma-Yi Theater Company gang of Filipino-American actors who took home 2003 Obie awards for ensemble performance in the memorable Magno Rubio. He has performed with Pan Asian Repertory, the National Asian American Theatre Company, Ridiculous Theatrical Company. He has played at the Public Theatre and Metropolitan Playhouse in NYC.

JON SANTOS
After stints as a student-actor at the University of the Philippines Repertory Company, Jon flourished in his one-man acts and became the country’s most celebrated mainstream TV comedian. With his chameleon skills, he is most unforgettable in his socio-political satires. His character impersonations helped pioneer stand-up ensemble acts that bubble in the lounge scene every election time in the Philippines.

Today, global Pinoys relishes Jon’s brand of comic wizardry in concert tours all over the world.

ADRIANA AGCAOILI
A graduate of the University of the Philippines, she has essayed major roles with the finest theatre directors in the Philippines. She played role of the young mother in samasamaGROUP’s “Sandalang Bahay”. Adriana remains a mainstay of acclaimed children’s shows for the country's major TV network ABS-CBN. She has done over thirty TV commercials and has written and directed numerous trade shows here and abroad.

MICA FROILAN
A political science major from La Salle, Mica began her professional career in SykesAsia working as Team Manager. For a stage debut, Mica plays one of the major roles in “Amoy ng Langit” for Tanghalang Pilipino’s Virgin Labfest 4 at the CCP, 2008. She appears regularly as a MYX VJ and hosts special corporate events. “Hubad” is Mica’s film debut.