Lav Diaz film is first-ever Phl entry at Locarno Fest

Fresh from its win of the Grand Festival Prize at the recently-conducted World Premieres Film Festival Philippines, the Lav Diaz epic Mula sa Kung Ano ang Noon will compete at the Concorso internazionale of the 67th Locarno Film Festival, Aug. 6 to 16. Produced by the Film Development Council of the Philippines and Sine Olivia Pilipinas, Mula is set in the Philippines in 1972 during the implementation of Martial Law by Pres. Ferdinand E. Marcos.

The announcement was made at the official festival press conference held July 16, according to a Funfare Update contributor. Mula is said to be the first full-length Filipino film to compete at Locarno Filmfest’s Main Competition. It is eligible for the prestigious festival’s highest award, the Padro d’oro or Golden Leopard Grand Prize.

Founded in 1946, the Festival de film Locarno has occupied a special place among the major film festivals as one of the oldest in the world alongside Cannes and Venice. Lasting for 11 days every August, the Swiss-Italian town of Locarno, directly located in the heart of Europe, becomes the world capital of auteur cinema. The 2013 festival presented over 219 feature films, 59 short to mid-length films and represented 46 countries. An audience of 162,919 people attended the acclaimed festival.

Diaz was quoted as saying that the title of the film, Mula sa Kung Ano ang Noon (From What is Before), is taken from the Latin phrase a priori, “which is used in Western philosophy as knowledge independent of all particular experiences, an argument/justification on the essentiality of truth that is easily gleaned even without empirical evidence.”

The story of the film revolves around the lives of poor villagers in one of the remotest regions of the Philippines before Martial Law was declared. Loosely based on real events and characters, the film examines how an individual and collective psyche responds to extreme and mysterious changes in social and physical environment. The epoch that was Marital Law, then obscures everything that is essentially Filipino and brings the Philippines into its darkest period.

Daniel rocks post-Yolanda Kasadyaan Fest in Tacloban

Not many people know that Daniel Padilla spent his childhood days in Tacloban City where his mom, Karla Estrada, comes from. He hasn’t forgotten his roots.

Daniel recently rocked Yolanda-hit Leyte Province in a homecoming show titled Pasasalamat Pusong Waray: A Thanksgiving Concert as part of the celebration of the Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival.

Produced by DJP Production and Entertainment in cooperation with My Phone and ABS-CBN, the show also featured Daniel’s screen partner Kathryn Bernardo, Jason Fernandez, Franchize and Kris Angelica in a jam-packed Leyte Sports Development Center in Tacloban City. Front acts included local chick rocker Bjean Navarrete and Icot Idol singing contest winners.

Daniel also graced the cover of 8, the leading travel and lifestyle magazine of Eastern Visayas, where he reminisced his growing up years in Tacloban and how it remains close to his heart. Edited by homegrown talent Aaron James Almadro, 8 will return to its regular issue soon after the calamity halted its production momentarily.

Dingdong reads poems in Law of the Heart

Election lawyer Romy Macalintal’s radio program, The Law of the Heart is Love, is marking its fifth anniversary with Dingdong Dantes as special guest-poem reader. He read two English love poems by James J. Metcalfe, Thank You, God and My Pride and Joy; and one Tagalog poem by Jose Corazon de Jesus.

Dingdong was swamped by employees of DWBR, Bureau of Broadcast and Philippine Information Agency who practically stayed in the recording room of DWBR until the end of the pre-taping session.

Said Romy, “Dingdong was so kind enough to accommodate his adoring fans for that once-in-a-lifetime photo op with him. He was mobbed, kissed and embraced by his cheering fans. During the interview, Dingdong narrated how he started his career. He was also very proud of his current work as a Commissioner-at-large of the National Youth Commission where he said he spent his spare time with the youth on matters pertaining to the protection of the environment.”

Dingdong’s episode will be heard this Saturday (July 19) from 8 to 9 p.m. with replay the following day (July 20) over DWBR, 104.3FM. The program was adjudged the 2013 Best Entertainment Radio Program by the Catholic Mass Media Awards and the entire proceeds generated from advertisements of the sponsors of the program directly go to the scholarship fund of Mission Guided by Mary Foundation for about 600 elementary and high school students from various Catholic parishes nationwide.

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