Mas maraming local producers, dinala ng FDCP sa Hong Kong Filmart!

Naniniwala si Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) Chair Joey Reyes na malaki ang maitutulong ng mga international film market upang muling lumakas ang local movie industry.

Masakit mang tanggapin pero talagang hirap ang industriya ng pelikulang Pilipino na makabangon. Walang masasabing box office hit bago at pagkatapos ng mga pelikulang Rewind at Hello, Love, Again sa nakalipas na dalawang taon.

Last week ay ginanap ang Hong Kong FilMart at so far, ito na ang may pinakamaraming delegasyon ang Pilipinas.

At alam ni Direk Joey na panahon na upang mas palakasin pa ang pagpapakilala ng ating mga pelikula sa ibang bansa.

Kabilang sa mga dumalo rito ang Viva Films na pinangunahan nina Boss Vic, Vincent and Valerie del Rosario, Regal Entertainment sa pangunguna ng mag-inang Roselle and Keith Monteverde, Rein Entertainment sa pangununa ni Direk Lino Caye­tano, Ms. Charm Guzman and Maryruth Maximo.

Nagkakaroon ng pagkakataon ang mga producer na kumonekta sa mga potential international distribu­tors and co-production partners at naipapakita nila ang exciting projects, kaya nagpapasalamat sila Direk Lino sa FDCP.

“I think, the producers sustain the industry, helping the producers, and at the same time, making them finally realize na hindi ka lang dapat mag-depend sa local market. Kailangan mo talaga mag-explore. Yes, mag-explore talaga. Kasi sabi ko nga [kung] aasa ka sa local market, out of all, lugi ka,” umpisa ni FDCP Chair Reyes.

Sa kasalukuyan ay tatlong genre ang pinu-push nila na alam niyang malakas ang magiging dating sa international market.

“One is animation, kasi ang daming magagaling na Filipino animators. The moment [na gumaling] sila, nagma-migrate. So, pinu-push namin ang animation business dito. And if you look around, ang daming animation content at ang kulang lang sa atin ay ‘yung laman ng ginagawa nating animation to make it global. Ikalawa ‘yong documentary. ‘Di ba mayroon ngayon ‘yong controversy sa documentary? Documentary filmmaking. And then third is the short films. Kasi may market ‘yan. Pero kasi we want to do full-length features. Ang mamahal. Tulad ng sa MMFF, hundreds of millions ang halaga. So, ang fighting chance mo na makabawi, juskolord ‘di ba?” paliwanag ni Chair Joey na mas gustong tawaging Direk Joey kesa Chair Joey.

Alam din niyang nasa critical transition ang ating industriya dahil sa pagbabago ng interes ng mga manonood. “Everybody is in a dysfunctional condition kasi we are going through a period of painful transition. [And] one thing is we cannot go back to 2018, the pre-pandemic days. Because it has changed. The pandemic really changed all of us. Changed our [way of living].

“We are talking now [about] the reasons for suffering, except for two countries, except for Indonesia and Malaysia. [Both] nagta-thrive and that’s mainly because very-very nationalist ang mga tao na iyon. Pina-patrionize ang mga gawa ng locals. And secondly, these countries are not primarily English speaking. So, they need subtitles to make them really watch what they like. The rest—Korea—is in a bad state. Although ang daming factors eventually brought that. So we’re not fully the ones who are suffering; it’s a worldwide thing. At sa atin lang—nakakasakit ng loob, imagine mula noong MMFF hanggang ngayon, wala na ni isang Filipino movie na kumita. Tapos in-admit ng CEA, Representative of Cinema Exhibitor’s Association, na ‘yong box-office receipt ng January 2025 is only 41% from January 2024. Kasi ‘yong January 2024, andoon pa ‘yong buntot ng Rewind,” dagdag pang paliwanag niya nang makausap namin sandali sa kanyang break sa FilMart noong nakaraang linggo.

Kaya’t ang delegasyon ng bansa sa katatapos na FilMart ang pinakamalaki.

“This is the largest delegation that went to Hong Kong, for the Hong Kong FilMart. Right here, in this pavilion, [they] are selling their content, their various products. Last year, the booth was half of this. Okay, but since there are 18), you [can] notice na may extension na. Dati hanggang d’yan lang ‘yong booth namin,” aniya pa habang itinuturo ang malaking bahagi ng booth ng Pilipinas.

“Oo, malaki ‘yong booth kasi ang daming nag-participate. At hindi lahat ng nandirito ngayon [ay] mga Pilipino lang. Mayroong mga buyers. Dito mga seller [and] ‘yong mga buyer umiikot pa. All in all, this is the first time that we’re about eighty-five Filipinos. Buyers, exhibitors, and sellers. It was mentioned noong mga kausap namin kanina, ‘yong mga representative ng Hong Kong FilMart, they mentioned [that it is] evident [that] there are so many Filipino buyers of contents, which is good because it is very dynamic, ‘di ba? And at the same time, one thing I enjoy about coming over here is it gives you a view of what’s happening all over the world, specifically this region.

“Can you imagine [na] walang nanonood ng sine sa atin? Pero tingnan mo [ang] activity dito. Ibig sabihin nalihis na sa ibang paraan ang entertainment. And you have to be aware of that in order to know what direction you bring entertainment in our country, and especially protect the producers,” pahayag pa sa amin ni Direk Joey.

Masakit aniya ang mga pagbabago pero : “An inevitable challenge kasi when change happens, it’s painful. When change happens, it’s painful, but it’s inevitable. [But] I always believe that [if] there’s a problem, there is always a solution. But if there’s too [much] solution, then it is not a problem; it is a situation. This is not a situation; it’s a problem that you hope will not be a situation. So, you just have to look at the problem here. The key is not only the agency but also other stakeholders. Lalo na ‘yong mga producers na, ‘uy taasan natin ‘yong antas ng ginagawa natin.’”

Ang nasabing ang massive film market ngayong taon ay naganap noong Marso 17-20 sa Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center, na may higit sa 760 exhibitors mula sa 34 na bansa at rehiyon.