Filming significant human experiences

January ended by creating a momentous transition to February, a National Arts Month. This is through notable, linked activities-Brillante Mendoza Film Festival at SM Consolacion and Cebu's 10th Annual Sinulog Documentary and Short Film Festival Screening and Awarding. Both provide an immensely artistic indulgence.

Fortunate to be in the "meet and greet" of the man behind award-winning short films like "Manoro," "Kaleldo," "Foster Child," "Kinatay" and "Lola", Brillante Mendoza is the first Asian movie director to win in the Cannes Film Festival and was recently given the prestigious titles of Chevalier in the Order of Arts and Letters by France and Asia's People Award, as he made a stop in Consolacion, Cebu last Jan. 27 and 28 to promote his independent movies.

Mendoza won Best Director at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival for his film Kinatay. Directed sixteen films since 2005, his 2009 film Lola won the award for Best Film at the 6th Dubai International Film Festival. His 2012 film Captive was shown in competition at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival. His 2012 film Thy Womb competed for the Golden Lion at the 69th Venice International Film Festival.

As a neorealist, Mendoza's films depict the lives of ordinary people in extraordinary situations, set against the universal struggle of life, love, and death. He has been earning critical acclaim, notably for his distinct style of social realism-cum-social commentary.

As an auteur, he expresses statements that are entirely not in line with contemporary mainstream cinema. By using social realism, he gains cinematic power and relevance in making sociopolitical commentary.

Its powerful role as a catalyst of change and specifically its educative function for social transformation cannot be under stressed. Alternative cinema, independent films (indie films) are making waves in the film industry. They are "ultimately about original and creative storytelling by independent filmmakers who are not afraid to try new techniques or take risks when they tell their stories." They support new breed of filmmakers and encourage creative writers for profound advocacies highly contextualized on local arts, culture and traditions.

Truth to this, entries of the February 1, 2014 10th Annual Sinulog Video Documentary and Short Film Competition and Awarding highlighted local contextualization.

The FREEMAN photojournalist Aldo Nelbert Banaynal bagged the award for best video documentary. His entry entitled "The Keeper," was also adjudged as best story, best director, and best packaging. The story revolves around Banaynal's real-life late grandmother, Estrelita "Titang" Diola, the keeper of the original Sinulog beat.

"Aftershock" won the award for best in production design, best story, best direction, and best actor for Matt Daclan. It tells the story of a broken-hearted man who tried to commit suicide twice, but fate intervened as the two calamities that recently devastated Visayas. The actor's energy was sidetracked to helping the calamity victims.

"Sagbayan." The documentary features the quake-ravaged town of Sagbayan in Bohol. Five children went missing in Sagbayan and were believed to have been buried alive when a landslide occurred.

For this year's entries, evident were themes like belief, hope, love, and faith with the recent devastations caused by earthquakes and typhoons in the region. The intentions were geared towards how to inspire many people to stand up and overcome the challenges of time.

In Cebu, without a doubt, there are a growing number of institutions and filmmakers who are beginning to recognize the potential of film either for promoting human rights and instigating social change or to depict a significant human experience. This is so because film has the ability to put a human face and a human experience to the statistics. It creates a connection and framework for empathy.

Creative people use films to provide experience that the viewers value. It has power to tell stories, express emotions, and elicit ideas.  Firmly tied to their social and economic context, film communicates information and ideas. It shows us places and ways of life we might not otherwise know. The experiences are often driven by stories, with characters we come to care about.

It seizes us to a journey of life's significant experiences that are mentally, emotionally, and spiritually engaging.