The Philippine Online Chronicles

Those who eagerly await Mario O'Hara's Cinemalaya offering would be disappointed to know that the acclaimed filmmaker has decided to drop out from this year's festival, one of his friends announced Tuesday.

Movie scribe Dennis Adobas said that the director backed out of making his entry Ang Paglilitis ni Andres Bonifacio after his co-producer disagreed with the terms stipulated in the contract for co-production. O'Hara's co-investor in the project was Ellen Ilagan, talent manager of actor Alfred Vargas, who was supposed to play the title role.

Although selected films were awarded a production grant of P500,000 by the Grassroots Film Production and Distribution Inc., plus an additional P100,000 as post-production support, the amount would still be insufficient to fund the entire production. Without Ilagan to back him up financially, O'Hara decided to pull the film out of the festival altogether.

But O'Hara said that he will still finish the film within the year.

“Bago daw matapos ang 2010 ay gagawin ni Mario ang pelikula kahit hindi na para sa Cinemalaya. (Before the year ends, he said he will make sure to finish the film even if it's no longer for the Cinemalaya),” said Adobas.

Four movies remain vying for the "open category" of the competition: Mark Meily's Isang Pirasong Buhay, Joselito Altarejos' Pink Halo Halo, Joel Lamangan's Sigwa, and Gil Portes' Two Funerals.

History in Politics

O'hara, director of critically-acclaimed films Babae Sa Breakwater (2003, Gawad Urian Best Picture) and Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos (1976, starring Nora Aunor and Christopher De Leon), was cooking up a highly-anticipated political saga which revolves around the rivalry between Filipino greats Andres Bonifacio and Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo.

Ang Paglilitis ni Andres Bonifacio (The Trial of Andres Bonifacio) features the bitter feud between the Katipunan chief and the country's first president, which lead to the eventual "execution" of the former.

Backed up by volumes of books and historical records on the two, O'Hara said the film will reveal how the country's current political woes have all rooted from Bonifacio and Aguinaldo.

“Sa panahon nila nagsimula ang ganitong kasamang pulitika (Dirty politics began during their time),” said O'Hara.

“Nagsimula kay Andres at Emilio ang regionalism. Kasi 'di ba taga-Cavite si Aguinaldo at taga-Tondo naman si Andres. Ang taga-sunod ni Aguinaldo ay mga taga-Cavite o Batangas o Laguna at si Bonifacio mga taga-ibang lugar (Andres and Emilio were the firsts to promote regionalism. Aguinaldo, who hailed from Cavite would have supporters from Cavite and nearby provinces of Batangas and Laguna, while Bonifacio would also have his own supporters from his own region),” explained O'Hara of his premise.

“Ayaw ng taga-Cavite na ang maging pinuno nila ay taga-Tondo. O, 'di ba regionalistic 'yan? D'yan nagsimula ang kasamaang regionalism na nadala sa politika (Those who come from Cavite don't want leaders coming from Tondo. That's when regionalism became engrained in our political system)," he added.

“Napakahalagang maunawaan ang kasaysayan ng Pilipinas para umunlad tayo ng totoo at hindi pang-ibabaw lamang. (It's very important to learn the history of the Philippines so that we can finally achieve real progress),” he declared.

The 2010 Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival will run from July 9 to 18 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites