Transitioning into filmmaking has never been difficult for Ilonggo
film director Ronnie Poblacion, a native of Janiuay, Iloilo. After
finishing college with a degree in BS Mechanical Engineering at the
University of San Agustin, he pursued photography. He was also an
artistic director for cultural shows, tourism consultant,
composer/lyricist and 3-time national champion in photography. Last
year, he submitted his original movie script entitled “Beadworks”
together with screenwriter Rene Cordon to the Film Development Council
of the Philippines (FDCP). It was successfully chosen and financed by
FDCP as one of the official entry to the first Sineng Pambansa
National Film Competition. For almost 5 months, Ronnie with his
creative team in RNP Production held casting audition for the final
cast and shot the movie in Iloilo City, Guimaras and mainly in
Janiuay, Iloilo. “Beadworks” tells about the plight of a poor Ilonggo
family whose livelihood relies on crafting and designing beadworks for
gowns and dresses. The story is centered in the character of
“Voltaire” played by Chuck Luat, who was considered as Poblacion’s
discovery actor. During the Sineng Pambansa National Film Festival
held in Davao City last June 29-July 3, the movie earned positive
reviews and praises from film enthusiasts. The same impression was
expressed by Ilonggos during the movie’s Gala Premiere last July 20 at
SM Cinema 3 with another repeat this coming August 5 at the same
venue.
Pouring his heart and ideas in making “Beadworks” a cinematic
sensation in the region, Poblacion gamely answered questions for an
interview to promote the movie…
How does it feel to be one of the people behind in popularizing
regional filmmaking?
I feel morally bound in sharing my filmmaking experiences to the young
and aspiring filmmakers in the region. I take pride to be one of the
grantees of Film Development Council of the Philippines wherein I had
the chance to film my winning story. In the process of production, a
lot of Ilonggos were involved such as actors, production assistants,
production designers, and scriptwriters. Additionally, we were just
complying with the mandate of FDCP, to realize that we were already
doing something in preserving the culture of the province of Iloilo
and the whole region VI. I feel honored to be one of the prime movers
in popularizing filmmaking in the Visayas.
Can you tell us about your inspiration and concept behind ”Beadworks”?
I already have this story in my mind when I left for the US. It
happened that FDCP was looking for the next Filipino film masterpiece
so I asked the help of Mr. Rene B. Cordon, a literary writer to
organize my story in script form and submit before the deadline last
year. Fortunately, we were one of the finalists and I was given a
grant in form of seed money to shoot into film my winning story. The
story is about a struggling family who were exploited and dragged into
the abyss of hopelessness and poverty. I put a lot of artistic twists
and religious treatments to make it more entertaining and inspiring.
What are your criteria in choosing the cast for Beadworks?
“Beadworks” has a lot of character requirements. We announced
auditions to complete the cast and were fortunate to find good Ilonggo
actors. Some of them have stage and theater experience. My lead Chuck
Luat is backed up by an acting credentials at International Academy of
Film and Television. As matter of fact, he has done a lot of short
films and won Best Actor at Sinulog Film Festival in 2010.
Can you tell us the hardest part of making this movie?
Based in my experience, the hardest part in making a movie is the
filming itself. Most especially if it requires multiple locations that
will be hampered by bad weather. You involve a lot of people procuring
permits, licenses and require intensive planning, coordination, and
the issue on budgetary constraints in logistics. Filming is only half
of the production work, the other half and the hardest of all is the
Post Production. We did have a hard time in our post production that
took us more than a month to finish.
What makes Chuck Luat a promising lead actor for your first full-length movie?
Chuck fits the role to a tee. Presently, he is the only Ilonggo actor
with a genuine acting talent, good looks and backed up with good
credential from an international acting school.
Since the movie was shown earlier in Davao City for the film festival,
what are the initial response of the movie-goers?
We got good reviews in Davao most especially from students. As a
matter of fact, there is a request for us for another screening in
Davao. The Gala Premiere in Iloilo City last July 20 at SM Cinema 3
proved our acceptability to the Ilonggos. We invited viewers from
different sectors such as people from the academe, religious, business
community, local press, LGUs, students and we got positive reviews.
Since then, we were very busy entertaining press interviews from the
local media. “Beadworks” is the pride of every Ilonggo according to
them and it makes us proud of our rich cultural heritage. By popular
request, we are bringing back our movie’s director’s cut this coming
August 5, 12:00PM at SM Cinema 3.
Aside from a typical family drama, what are the significant ideas that
you wanted to emphasize in this movie?
Aside from its well-established story, I realize that Ilonggo culture
and religious practices were embedded in the movie. The inclusion of
famous tourism sites, landmarks and religious events made “Beadworks”
very Ilonggo and we hope to please Ilonggos all over the world.
What are your visions in regional filmmaking that would uplift Ilonggo culture?
I have this big Ilonggo dream of making Iloilo as the filmmaking
capital in the Visayas by giving better opportunity to all aspiring
filmmakers for a sustainable regional film industry. These filmmakers
will help us preserve our rich culture and will record history for the
future generations through films.
What makes this movie interesting and important for every Ilonggo to see?
“Beadworks” is a must see for every Ilonggo. It will inspire them to
develop a sense of pride as Ilonggos.
Do you have other movie projects in mind that you would love to pursue someday?
There's already next project coming up for us. We are starting our
research to validate the authenticity of the story of this “Ilonggo
action film.” We will start before the year ends and hopefully finish
it by first quarter next year.
No comments:
Post a Comment