Cebuano indie films to be aired on cable TV

CEBU, Philippines - Visayan independent filmmakers who have long been looking for a venue to exhibit their movies on television now have the chance to do so, with the recent agreement inked between a Cebuano filmmaker and Bluewave, a satellite facility committed to providing Cebuano film content programming to over 200 cable channels in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Bluewave Media Marketing Corporation, a digital technology and media marketing company, collaborated with Cebuano filmmaker and producer of Visayan indie films Leonardo V. Chiu to feature his film portfolio in the Meridien Vista Gaming Corporation (MVGC) Sports and Entertainment Channel (MSEC). The said channel is currently received by 100 cable TV operators and available to 400 subscribers around the country.

To show their seriousness in providing Cebuano content, they will have for their initial transmission next month two of Chiu's earliest films: "Nagbreakfast Ka Na Ba?" (which won a special award at the San Francisco Film Festival) and "Murio-murio Alley." They are still in the process of looking for other Cebuano partners and indie filmmakers interested to submit their body of work for screening, with Chiu, who will act as Cebu's programming officer, disclosing that the talent fee is rather handsome and guaranteed in a contract.

Present during the MOA signing cum press conference at IPARS Spanish restaurant held June 15th was Bluewave General Manager Alex S. Villamar who expressed his excitement with the partnership and the opportunity being opened to indie talents who struggle to gain acceptance in the mainstream.

"Usually, indie filmmakers don’t have the resources to show their work in the mainstream venue. Except for the real good ones and those being funded by Cinemalaya, no one wants to give a chance to indie films since there are normally no big name actors in it. So this is the reason why we are here," said Villamar.

The indie film segment of MSEC will feature Tagalog, Cebuano and Ilonggo movies starting this July from 1 am - 12 nn. Villamar added that aside from Chiu, the works of other Cebuano indie filmmakers Kerwin Go and Lito Tabay are also set to be shown. Barring any hitches, they are also planning to mount a Visayan Film Festival to be held next month. By 2012, they hope to start a cable channel devoted to indie films 24/7.

Bluewave and MVGC have also teamed up to create a Business and Leisure Segment on the MVGC Sports and Leisure Channel that will showcase prime tourist destinations, resorts and hotels in the Philippines. With the new entertainment segment, they anticipate that more cable operators will now carry the MSEC channel which at present is available at no cost to cable operators.

Interested indie filmmakers can contact Bluewave's business development consultant Jun Posas at 09177639777, 3217653 or email at info@bluewave mediamarketing.com.