Cinemalaya Overview: NETPAC Premieres
Posted by Oggs Cruz on Monday, July 18, 2011 in Cinemalaya, Film Festivals, Trailers
The NETPAC stands for “Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema.” Where in other film festivals, they
only give out a prize, in Cinemalaya, they have an entire side program with eight new films.
Check out the entries after the jump:
Boundary
First-time feature film director Benito Bautista takes the stories from the mouths of the many cab drivers and into his film. With Ronnie Lazaro and Raymond Bagatsing on board, the film promises to be one unforgettable ride.
Gayuma
Alvin Yapan returns to his native Bicol to craft this dreamy tale of dancing Santo Ninos, unrequited passions, and love potions. Gayuma, grown from a literary exercise during Yapan’s college years into a film that dissects the intricacies of love and sacrifice, is a testament to its director’s writing prowess.
Huling Halik
Zig Dulay joins the ranks of Mike de Leon, Peque Gallaga,Joyce Bernal and Mike Sandejas as directors who exploited the lovely sceneries of Baguio to amplify the love in their love stories. With a title like Huling Halik, one can only expect tears and separation from this gay romance.
Liberacion
This is not a sequel to Raya Martin’s hauntingly beautiful take on history, although their titles are synonymous with each other. Adolfo Alix, that tireless storyteller who also has another entry in the festival under the Director’s Showcase, focuses on a Japanese soldier who, unaware that the war is already over, stays on to hide and fight.
Local Girls
Set in Iloilo, Ned Trespesces & Onnah Valera’s Local Girls has two girls strategizing their start-up business in time for the city’s yearly festival. “Don’t panic, it’s organic,” says the dude from the film’s unremarkable trailer. Hopefully, the film gets more original than that tagline.
The Natural Phenomenon of Madness
The Thank You Girls, about gay beauty pageant contestants who drive around Mindanao in their quest for a title, was a hoot. Thus, it is strange that Charliebebs Gohetia returns to directing with something so unmistakably somber. The Natural Phenomenon of Madness tackles the strangest of love stories, that of a rapist and his victim.
Nono
Milo Tolentino is most famous for his award winning shorts about kids and their misadventures while growing up. With Nono, Tolentino does not stray far from that territory. The only question now is whether or not the director can extend the fun of his shorts to feature film lengths.
San Lazaro
With San Lazaro, Wincy Ong cooks up a horror film from the most unlikely of places: Ramon Bautista, Ely Buendia, and the story of three misfits on their way to the titular town. With the names involved in the project, this is bound to be one fun film.
Header Image from Huling Halik
