CEBU, Philippines - On the third week of July, University of San Carlos-College of Architecture and Fine Arts will feature "Cinema from Cebu" as part of its ongoing educational film screening program "SineKultura".
Kerwin Go’s "Eskrimadors" will be screened today, July 18 at 5:30 p.m. at the CAFA Theatre.
Los Angeles-trained cinematographer Kerwin Go, who is director of independently produced "Eskrimadors: A Filipino Martial Arts Documentary" found it quite serendipitous that the initial release of the film here in Cebu, the other year, coincided with the enacting into law of Senate Bill 1424 which promotes arnis as national sport.
For him, that development brings with it a lot of promise for the art of stickfighting which was earlier known only as a peasant’s art. This is both a triumph of a culture that is undoubtedly distinctively Filipino and of the undertakings done in relation to promoting awareness.
"Eskrimadors is the first attempt to document our indigenous martial art from a Filipino perspective. Most of the documentaries on the art were made by foreigners. There is a big difference," said Go who described himself as a certified history buff as shown by his work on "Case Unclosed" featuring the story on the assassination of Antonio Luna.
Go meant that Pointsource crew would want to underscore through cinema how eskrima/kali/arnis is to Cebu the way kung-fu is to Shongshan mountain range in Henan Province, China and karate to Ryuku Islands of the Okinawa prefecture in Japan.
Further, the documentary would want to underline that although eskrima is commonly perceived as a stickfighting art, it is a complete fighting system, encompassing punching (suntukan), kicking (sikaran), locks and submission (dumog), and the use of a variety of impact and bladed weapons. In addition, eskrima knife-fighting techniques are considered the best in the world.
Much of what is known about the origins of the art is shrouded in mystery, he shared. Unlike kung-fu and karate which were originated and practiced by monks like those in the Shaolin monastery, and the nobility, eskrima was a peasant art. Its practitioners lacked the scholarly education to create written records and relied on oral traditions, he narrated.
In the early days, each tribe or clan practiced its own system of eskrima. These were closely guarded secrets which were passed on from one generation to the next. These techniques would be brought out into the open when the community was under threat from rival clans, piratical raids, and foreign invaders.
Eskrima rose to popularity in the late 70s when Bruce Lee and Filipino-American Dan Inosanto promoted the art through movies and seminars, Go further said. Interest soon took Doce Pares members to the United States to conduct a series of demonstrations. That initial foray by Cebuano martial artists soon opened the floodgates and Cebu became known as the mecca of eskrima/kali/arnis.
This is the inspiration behind the Eskrimadors. It features the legendary eskrima grandmasters of Cebu – Cacoy Cañete, Dionisio "Diony" Cañete, and Prudencio "Undo" Caburnay. Groups such as Doce Pares, Lapunti Arnis de Abanico, Teovel’s Balintawak, Nickelstick Balintawak and Liborio Heyrosa Decuerdas allowed the crew a sneak peek into the deadly techniques which have made Cebuano eskrima renowned the world over.
As for the question on why should the USC Film School screen Eskrimadors again, Antipuesto accentuated that, "More Cebuanos need to watch this docu-film because it takes us on a journey of discovering something about us as a people and our culture." (FREEMAN)