Cinemalaya on a Monday

I've been dubbing July as a Cinemalaya month for three years already and a UAAP month also in a way. Hehe. The 7th Cinemalaya just opened last July 15 and it will run till the 24th. Every year, it becomes a venue for independent directors to showcase their short films plus also a time for more experienced directors to show something new and fresh. This would be my 3rd consecutive year attending this festival. Since my first experience last 2009, I've always been in anticipation for this comes July. I like how it showcases hidden talents that doesn't make it to the mainstream. Plus the stories shown mainly focuses on reality and some unseen stories that we won't normally know unless we existence it. This is the best time for visual artists to show something out of the norms. Good thing I only have a TThS sched this sem. One of the "perks" of being irregular. Haha!

I was already on CCP around 12pm for the 12:45 sched. I was planning to watch today Shorts A & B but Shorts A was already sold out so I just had "Ligo na U, Lapit na Me" for the 3:30pm slot. If only I had someone with along I would stay at CCP till the 9pm film. But I was a LONER of the day. Woohoo! Haha! Everyone was just busy with school because it was already preliminary week for some while others has classes/work. And besides I don't want to invite and force others who doesn't have an interest for this because it would just spoil the experience. Thank you CCP for having chairs on the lobby or else I'd be sitting on your stairs like a lost kid. Hehe.


SHORTS B:

Hanapbuhay - I'm about 5mins. late so I wasn't able to fully understand this story. It was only the film among the short that made the audience laugh. It kind of threaded different stories of people while the main character was a man who recently got a job. I don't even know what's the ending means.


Oliver's apartment - a scriptless film. It centered on aobsessive compulsive-compulsive American man who lives alone in his apartment. Then there's this girl who she looks out from his window every morning. This film would just let your mind do the story.


Immanuel - this entry was a bit hard to grasp in a way that I can't imagine how it would be like this happens in reality. It was all about working for survival. READ: oxygen cubes. I like how the story was built and the drama inside. It reached out perfectly.


Debut - define short. This story showed how ironic and how sad life would be for others regardless of how young.



Hazard - driving lesson between father and son that turned out to real life lesson. This film had the loudest clap, which it really deserves, among the 5 shorts. It was only a 15-20 minute film but the message it wants to show was tremendous. You know, being older doesn't mean you know much better. Doing the right thing is different from doing the appropriate thing.


Ligo na U, Lapit na Me

I never knew that this was based on a novel under the same title. It was a pseudo-gala night a while ago because the director, writer and some of the main cast were with us in the main theater. Eros Atalia the author of the novel "Ligo na U, Lapit na Me" was also there who was invited upstage to give a short message before the start of the film. I never even knew that he's a fellow Thomasian and a professor in the university, which explains some of the elements included in the story. I was even shocked with the appearance of our accountancy uniform (which btw can pass as a uniform of national bookstore and mercury drug staff) worn by lead actress while doing ... umm. =|


The film was starred by Edgar Allan Guzman as "Intoy" short for Karl * Lennon Villalobos and Mercedes Cabral as "Jen which I think did a great job portraying their role. It was already my second time spotting Mercedes in Cinemalaya with the first one where she portrayed a role as Pilipinas satirically describing our country, I forgot the title but it was one of the indie films that made a mark in me. I think she's already a veteran in the indie scene and even though she often portrays racy/sexy roles, keri pa rin! I still got respect for her. =]


This is a sex comedy film. Honestly, it kind of shocked me for the long scenes of intense love, kumbaga straight to the point, no cheesy lines or paikot-ikot, no censored parts. ow-em. haha! And that's coming from a "conservative" point of view. Hehe. The sexy scenes was at least shown in a way that it wouldn't look "super" malaswa. Ok, so enough of the sensitive parts, I can now erase it in my mind. Hehe. This might be "disturbing" for the younger ones who would watch this, strictly R-18, parental guidance is recommended. So moving on with the plot, it revolved around Intoy and Jen who acted as friends with "benefits" all the while with no strings attached. Ironic it is that Intoy's parents are even religious persons, kind of people who do Sunday service and fellowships. While Jen was a rich and quirky girl who do have tantrums and mood swings once in a while that Intoy cooly handles. Overall the film was nice, though I think some scenes were kind of dragged. It must say they made a good job in perfectly dropping the punch lines, benta lahat eh! Lol.


Now I hope AudProb would be cancelled tomorrow so I can continue this tomorrow with my classmates.


Cinemalaya has also expanded this time having a second venue at Greenbelt cinemas but still I'd choose CCP even though it would be less worry to wait for the next film at Greenbelt. Besides, Greenbelt doesn't give student discounts. =[