A Filipino is named Best Director at the Cannes. Yes, it is the Cannes and not something else.
I do agree with Richard that this event, indeed, is a happy day in Philippine cinema, besides the three other Filipino films in the same competition. I'm not much of a film geek since I haven't gone beyond plot and aesthetics to appreciate a film - though I believe I have some more sense regarding my choices for filmviewing than most (yes, that's the ego talking) - so I know I won't be able to appreciate some of the indie films produced today, notwithstanding Mendoza's. But this victory speaks much of what Philippine cinema has achieved. And to think this film was up against the works of Lars von Trier, Almodovar, Campion and Tarantino (they're the only directors I've heard of before now) I do hope to be able to watch and appreciate this and many other films produced today, since this period can indeed be the Golden Age of Philippine Cinema.
start here...
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
ranting somewhere in philcoa
Eyes hurting, eighty-peso dinner gobbled down in less than 20 mns., yellow lights flickering in my eyes as the multi-propellered ceiling fan tries to keep me cool.
staring at the pc monitor for 9 straight hours isn't something i'd gladly do but i'm doing it through my own fault. i'm putting myself and ma'am djanna into a lot of pressure rushing the writeup of my thesis like this when i've had two whole sems and the start of the summer term to write it. i've never worked well planning things ahead, or doing things ahead for that matter. Papers photocopied and pdf files downloaded semesters ago only got to be read now, less than a week before final manuscript submission and it's not like it's very easy to do a writeup and look for supporting data in other references when the data you obtained seem quite out of the ordinary, the expected trends were not there. and the data changed from one phase to the next. and i'm not really sure how much to assume, and how much to keep searching in the world wide web. does it surprise you that i'm writing this on paper? well, i am a bit surprised. i can't believe i'm still writing, like i can still churn out ideas on paper. it's been a long while since i've last written my ideas on paper. and it's been awhile since i've written anything this long so my hand is kinda hurting.
why are Filipino TV networks so intent on fueling the stupidity and prejudice that already abound? i've at for less than an hour in front of the boob tube, switching the channels from one station to another. this was around 6-7 pm on a sunday evening. many families would be at home, kids watching whatever's on tv unguided. TV says: it's right to make fun of fat people, of who they are and what they wear; it's good to make fun of gays, and make them do ridiculous things for the rest of the TV-watching public to see. Why do you make kids do antics on TV and frighten them while doing it, all the while catching the whole thing on tape? Why twist public service announcements so that the public including kids could laugh at them? why make kids act like adults, delivering lines which would not benefit you or them, teaching kids watching that it's alright to be like them and do as they're doing. The Waldorf style of teaching is right: television should not be viewed by kids...
Hmmm... I gues i've had enough ranting. my eyes want to go close already. one more thing. there has been so many online communication tools already, different sorts of RSS readers, twitter/plurk, and many others i don't know about: del.i.cious, diggit, stumble. i tried seeing what twitter was all about. was tempted to create an account for a bit. but then i'm not online all the time. and for me to fully make use of it, i have to subscribe to other users using it. that'll add to the tons of things i read on the net or the other things i have to do when i'm online. maintaining an online presence is not very easy. but i'm in [it already]. it'll be hard to get out of it. so there, i think i need to sleep already.
staring at the pc monitor for 9 straight hours isn't something i'd gladly do but i'm doing it through my own fault. i'm putting myself and ma'am djanna into a lot of pressure rushing the writeup of my thesis like this when i've had two whole sems and the start of the summer term to write it. i've never worked well planning things ahead, or doing things ahead for that matter. Papers photocopied and pdf files downloaded semesters ago only got to be read now, less than a week before final manuscript submission and it's not like it's very easy to do a writeup and look for supporting data in other references when the data you obtained seem quite out of the ordinary, the expected trends were not there. and the data changed from one phase to the next. and i'm not really sure how much to assume, and how much to keep searching in the world wide web. does it surprise you that i'm writing this on paper? well, i am a bit surprised. i can't believe i'm still writing, like i can still churn out ideas on paper. it's been a long while since i've last written my ideas on paper. and it's been awhile since i've written anything this long so my hand is kinda hurting.
why are Filipino TV networks so intent on fueling the stupidity and prejudice that already abound? i've at for less than an hour in front of the boob tube, switching the channels from one station to another. this was around 6-7 pm on a sunday evening. many families would be at home, kids watching whatever's on tv unguided. TV says: it's right to make fun of fat people, of who they are and what they wear; it's good to make fun of gays, and make them do ridiculous things for the rest of the TV-watching public to see. Why do you make kids do antics on TV and frighten them while doing it, all the while catching the whole thing on tape? Why twist public service announcements so that the public including kids could laugh at them? why make kids act like adults, delivering lines which would not benefit you or them, teaching kids watching that it's alright to be like them and do as they're doing. The Waldorf style of teaching is right: television should not be viewed by kids...
Hmmm... I gues i've had enough ranting. my eyes want to go close already. one more thing. there has been so many online communication tools already, different sorts of RSS readers, twitter/plurk, and many others i don't know about: del.i.cious, diggit, stumble. i tried seeing what twitter was all about. was tempted to create an account for a bit. but then i'm not online all the time. and for me to fully make use of it, i have to subscribe to other users using it. that'll add to the tons of things i read on the net or the other things i have to do when i'm online. maintaining an online presence is not very easy. but i'm in [it already]. it'll be hard to get out of it. so there, i think i need to sleep already.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Rundown of events of the past month (and some things I want to remember)
March 14 (5 am) to March 15 (6 am) - Marj Darunday's thesis shoot - was part of the PD team, got to do clapper roles, as well as edit log notetaking, jao mapa was there, and there was a highly-charged scene that proves how actors can be so talented
March 28 – futsal tournament at DA – 3rd out of some teams
March 29 – Weekend Futbol League – FC Sikad vs. Oscariz FC; played D during 2nd half
Apr 1 – Macel and her nephew Gabe played with us at Sunken; afterwards went with Macel and Joyce to Gabe’s grad party and his grandma’s bday party at their place in Loyola Hts – love the baked seafood dish and the mango cake (which joyce said she preferred less, but which she ate with relish over the strawberry cake nonetheless)
Apr 5 – UP ORG Batch Party – appeared as Katja, the original Palaboy (haha), met Romeo Lee and saw other mems go gaga over the videoke and what-have-yous
Apr 7 – enrolment for summer
Apr 10 – went home
Apr 14 – came back to UP for urgent talk with thesis adviser
Apr 17 – Jack Daniel’s Music Tour Philippine Leg at NBC Tent with the killer collaboration of Cynthia Alexander and Nyko Maca – great performances from other bands including Corporate Lo-Fi (new favorite), Razorback and Urbandub (yes!); also ran into Angcoy, an old high school friend, and his friends, one of whom was Alex Medina, brother of the famous Ping. We drank some Jack Daniel’s courtesy of Vivian N. Limpin, who had a VIP pass (yahoo!) and Angcoy, who treated me to two glasses (the drinks and food there were way pricey)
Apr 18 – met with Joyce at Trinoma after coming from Peri and had a long, insightful talk about the complications of life (mine, mostly)
Apr 19 – Joyce and Macel were at the Tour of the Fireflies (I had wanted to join, but plans interfered), and instead, I was with the Sikad team for the Corinthians’ futsal tourney at Club 650; got eliminated, but was a good experience nonetheless
Apr 22 – first time to eat at Le Coeur – liked the mini-baguet, treat by Macel
Apr 24 – Ariel came by the house (impromptu, I guess) and we ended up watching Wong Kar-Wai movies (Chungking Express (yay!) and Happy Together – he said Kaneshiro Takeshi was gwapo (which he really is, till now), and I agreed with him when he said Tony Leung Chiu-Wai was gwapo during this certain scene) and talking about his lovelife (and whatever goes in between)
Apr 25 – watched Happy Together because I didn’t understand it when Ariel was here, mainly because he was making kwento; I love the shots, and the messages of Wong
Apr 30 – ate Klur treated me to dinner at McDo
May 1 – played football again after a long while as D (really an exhausting job especially since there were only two of us besides the keeper protecting our goal most of the time), then went to the wake of Ate Ria’s mother
May 3 – went biking with Joyce and Macel – from UP to Xavierville at Ricky Lee’s home to meet with ate Vivian Limpin, to Sta. Lucia, to Village East at Ana and Peter’s home (where we ate twice – lunch and snacks – and watched two movies – Wolverine (the copy was still in the post-production stage) and Vantage Point; and I’m reminded why kids are good to have around), to Libis, to Katipunan, then to LB and finally depositing the bikes at Sonic (at around 6), we went home tired and in need of rests and baths to which, I woke up the following day sore in the arms and around the bottom butt area because of sitting long in the bike seat
In between all these – I’ve watched Daria Season 1 which made me miss it so I’m looking forward to watching other episodes at youtube; Bokura Ga Ita (at first, it seemed like a fairly simple love story, but after marathoning some episodes last night, it surprisingly has a lot to say about love; a few Bleach episodes – still a long way to go before the final battle for the Hogyouku; Antique Bakery – besides the yaoi hints and actual scenes, interesting subplots for each of the characters; finished Princess Hours (the ending was kinda rushed and a bit plain if you take everything that’s happened over all the other 25 episodes), still watching Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya; started on 1 Litre no Namida (promises to be a tearjerker); read the Secret History of the Pink Carnation, some kinda historical fiction during Bonaparte’s time like the Three Musketeers; reading Middlesex, absolutely engaging and the allusion to the gods of Mt. Olympus is fun/imaginative and has me wondering how the Greeks have changed from then to now; saw Kuya Jug once when he visited after being in Osamis for quite awhile already
March 28 – futsal tournament at DA – 3rd out of some teams
March 29 – Weekend Futbol League – FC Sikad vs. Oscariz FC; played D during 2nd half
Apr 1 – Macel and her nephew Gabe played with us at Sunken; afterwards went with Macel and Joyce to Gabe’s grad party and his grandma’s bday party at their place in Loyola Hts – love the baked seafood dish and the mango cake (which joyce said she preferred less, but which she ate with relish over the strawberry cake nonetheless)
Apr 5 – UP ORG Batch Party – appeared as Katja, the original Palaboy (haha), met Romeo Lee and saw other mems go gaga over the videoke and what-have-yous
Apr 7 – enrolment for summer
Apr 10 – went home
Apr 14 – came back to UP for urgent talk with thesis adviser
Apr 17 – Jack Daniel’s Music Tour Philippine Leg at NBC Tent with the killer collaboration of Cynthia Alexander and Nyko Maca – great performances from other bands including Corporate Lo-Fi (new favorite), Razorback and Urbandub (yes!); also ran into Angcoy, an old high school friend, and his friends, one of whom was Alex Medina, brother of the famous Ping. We drank some Jack Daniel’s courtesy of Vivian N. Limpin, who had a VIP pass (yahoo!) and Angcoy, who treated me to two glasses (the drinks and food there were way pricey)
Apr 18 – met with Joyce at Trinoma after coming from Peri and had a long, insightful talk about the complications of life (mine, mostly)
Apr 19 – Joyce and Macel were at the Tour of the Fireflies (I had wanted to join, but plans interfered), and instead, I was with the Sikad team for the Corinthians’ futsal tourney at Club 650; got eliminated, but was a good experience nonetheless
Apr 22 – first time to eat at Le Coeur – liked the mini-baguet, treat by Macel
Apr 24 – Ariel came by the house (impromptu, I guess) and we ended up watching Wong Kar-Wai movies (Chungking Express (yay!) and Happy Together – he said Kaneshiro Takeshi was gwapo (which he really is, till now), and I agreed with him when he said Tony Leung Chiu-Wai was gwapo during this certain scene) and talking about his lovelife (and whatever goes in between)
Apr 25 – watched Happy Together because I didn’t understand it when Ariel was here, mainly because he was making kwento; I love the shots, and the messages of Wong
Apr 30 – ate Klur treated me to dinner at McDo
May 1 – played football again after a long while as D (really an exhausting job especially since there were only two of us besides the keeper protecting our goal most of the time), then went to the wake of Ate Ria’s mother
May 3 – went biking with Joyce and Macel – from UP to Xavierville at Ricky Lee’s home to meet with ate Vivian Limpin, to Sta. Lucia, to Village East at Ana and Peter’s home (where we ate twice – lunch and snacks – and watched two movies – Wolverine (the copy was still in the post-production stage) and Vantage Point; and I’m reminded why kids are good to have around), to Libis, to Katipunan, then to LB and finally depositing the bikes at Sonic (at around 6), we went home tired and in need of rests and baths to which, I woke up the following day sore in the arms and around the bottom butt area because of sitting long in the bike seat
In between all these – I’ve watched Daria Season 1 which made me miss it so I’m looking forward to watching other episodes at youtube; Bokura Ga Ita (at first, it seemed like a fairly simple love story, but after marathoning some episodes last night, it surprisingly has a lot to say about love; a few Bleach episodes – still a long way to go before the final battle for the Hogyouku; Antique Bakery – besides the yaoi hints and actual scenes, interesting subplots for each of the characters; finished Princess Hours (the ending was kinda rushed and a bit plain if you take everything that’s happened over all the other 25 episodes), still watching Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya; started on 1 Litre no Namida (promises to be a tearjerker); read the Secret History of the Pink Carnation, some kinda historical fiction during Bonaparte’s time like the Three Musketeers; reading Middlesex, absolutely engaging and the allusion to the gods of Mt. Olympus is fun/imaginative and has me wondering how the Greeks have changed from then to now; saw Kuya Jug once when he visited after being in Osamis for quite awhile already
