The success of a cinephile

He had been an “indie” before the term became a euphemism for artistic indulgence. His was an “alternative” spirit who challenged local Hollywood preference by importing a French film in the ‘70s.

At first glance, no one would think that Antonio L. Cabangon Chua, or ALC, is a pioneer in the local independent film industry. Not with those diamond-studded wristwatches, flashy cars and buildings in Makati, Manila and Mandaluyong.

Raised single-handedly by his mother, Aling Dominga, ALC learned early the fine art of survival: Catching fish and collecting driftwood from the Pasig River; gathering leftovers from a nearby Mandaluyong GI camp; and shining boots of American soldiers. The shoeshine box is now a keepsake, reminding ALC of the time he was hungry and went barefoot to school.

After school, the 11-year-old ALC looked after their sari-sari store. His only recreation was the movies. But he could only catch the last full shows from the Riverside Theater in Mandaluyong, which was located along the river. The boy literally had to swim the cold evening waters just to get home.

Fast forward, 25 years later: He buys moviehouses. On top of the list is that rundown Riverside he would rename Amor Theater. At one point, he was operating nearly 30 moviehouses in Manila and in the nearby provinces, including Bellevue, Aliw in Baliwag and other sites, and Vista in Manila and Pasay, etc. (Now, perhaps due to high costs and competition with theaters inside the malls, ALC maintains only Vista Cinema on Recto Avenue.) He established himself as a young businessman, giving a Midas Touch to everything from pawnshops to media networks.

He put up Perlas Production in the ‘60s. Crowds lined up to watch a series of action flicks with Eddie Fernandez as the main starrer. After 12 films, Fernandez got involved in a real-life crime. Film producer ALC quit his production outfit. Yet, the cinephile in him continued to thrive.

Next stop: Setting the wheels of justice via a French film. ALC had long acquired the rights to a movie with Alain Delon. Problem was he couldn’t get a playdate. Enter two Filipino nurses in Detroit accused of murder in the mid-‘70s. Upon hearing this, ALC put up the Campaign for Justice Foundation. ALC rang up military connections, booked the film, and helped raise $500,000 for the two nurses. As there was still money left from the campaign, 375 scholarship certificates were distributed to armed-forces dependents.

ALC saw the potential of cinema to create change, so he buckled up an existing movie house syndicate by establishing his own theater chain. The brave move put an end to percentage cuts once deftly directed by the Cinema Mafia and paved the way for the creation of the Metro Manila Theater Association in 1983. Rightly so, ALC was its first president.

His first major film production was Fernando Poe Jr.’s Kahit Butas ng Karayom, Papasukin Ko. It was shown prior to the papal visit for the beatification of Lorenzo Ruiz in 1980. The generous ALC donated more than P30-M of the film ‘s earnings for the Pope’s visit.

Through the years, the merger of commerce, faith and art has been at the heart of the ALC Group of Companies. He had a covenant with the late National Artist Nick Joaquin (who authored the first volume of ALC’s biography) to develop new writers through the annual Graphic Literary Awards. After all, ALC owns the Brown Madonna Press, which is responsible for publications such as Mirror Magazine, Business Mirror, Cook and the Philippine Graphic. In memory of his writer-friend, ALC also put up the Quijano de Manila Foundation to nurture young writers.

National Artist Napoleon Abueva was tapped by ALC to do a sculpture of the Transfiguration of Christ for ALC’s Eternal Gardens Memorial Shrine in Baesa, Novaliches.

Though his constant company sounds like a roster of the Philippines’ Who’s Who, ALC still prides in calling himself taong-lupa. Everyone knows that his achievements are enough to buy him a political seat, but his taong-lupa attitude won him over.

Now 74, ALC has reconstructed the Manila Grand Opera House into the eight-storey Manila Grand Opera Hotel. He also has a P10-B, 20-hectare work-in-progress, the Filipiniana Tagaytay Estate.

His life could have looked good on celluloid. For ALC, his romance with the silver screen continues, although if there are movies still worth watching, these are the movies that he never got to produce. In his mind, images of his life become more vivid with the passing of time. It involves a boy, his mother and a river to cross between them.