Revisiting Huling Balyan ng Buhi
Posted by: Rhon / Category: Art, Culture, Entertainment, Film Production, Films, Indigenous People, Movie, Personal, Salida Production, experienceI was browsing over my very first blog site when I get to revisit again my fun experience during our shoot for Sherad Sanchez Film: Ang Huling Balyan ng Buhi As I was reading over my post about the film, I cannot help but go back on how things were and how I missed working with great people.
The Huling Balyan ng Buhi was the first full length film I have worked on to… being able to work with exceptionally skilled and artistic individuals brought so much learning for me on how working with a big production works.
The original title, Ang Huling Balyan ng Buhi, means “the last priestess of life” in the local dialect. Amid damp tropical hills and forests, the action revolves around several groups of characters on a curious collision course. A band of New Peoples’ Army communist rebels, including committed revolutionary Gigi and her boyfriend Ronald, camps in the mountains, while a detachment of government soldiers, one of them nursing a gay crush on another, bivouacs in the village. The local priestess, Manay, meanwhile, talks to rivers and may be mad. And a young sister and brother, wandering in the jungle, never quite reunite with their mother. Other than proximity, only the barest hints of a relationship exist between these characters, at least on the surface. The terrain of their souls is another story entirely. Fans of Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s jungle allegories will recognize the territory. Meanwhile, the NPA guerrillas complain about American imperialism and text-message each other deep in the bush, singing a wobbly rendition of the Internationale. The soundtrack, with music by Popong Landero and Matilda and folk songs of the Matigsalogan people, adds to the misty, dissatisfied mood.
—Kelly Vance
source: http://fest08.sffs.org/films/film_details.php?id=38
Director: Sherad Anthony Sanchez
Casts: Marilyn Roque, Jelieta Ruca, Ronald Argulles
1st Asst. Director: Adi Lopez
2nd Asst. Director: Merriam Faith Palma
Producers: Dax Canedo,
Cinematographer/s: Mike Babista, Mark Limbaga
Camera: Mike Babista
Asst. Camera: McRobert Nacario
Soundman: Macky Serapio
Music: Popong Landero,
Grip: Chico Pace, Rjay Sta. Teresa, Joel Sanggalang
Technical: John Barredo
Script and Continuity Supervisor: Eya Lozano
Art Department: Joel Geolman, Joy Ruste
Documentary Department: Sharon Mae De los Santos, Nimrod Napoles
Tags: Adi Lopez, Ang Huling Balyang ng Buhi, Cinemaone Originals, Dax Canedo, digital filmmaking, Film, film festivals, Filmmaker, Filmmakers, filmmaking, Independent Filmmakers, McRobert Nacario, Mike Babista, on filmmaking, Rjay Sta. Teresa. Chico Pace, Salida Production, Sharon Mae De los Santos, Sherad Sanchez
