A design colleague, a vice consul, and an invited director — ka-Tropas all — found themselves reunited at the ParisCinema 2008 rooting for the only Filipino feature-length film entry which was declared winner of le Prix de l'Avenir, the Youth Jury Award, at the 2008 Paris Cinema Festival in France on July 10, 2008.
Isabel Templo, Angela Ponce and Aureaus Solito, joined by Isabel's sister Margie Templo of Arkeo Films — an invited Festival workshop participant — were more than a happy tribe of Pinoys when Jun Libiran's Tribu was announced the worthy recipient of the jury prize.
Tribu, set in Tondo in the City of Manila, the 2007 winner of the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, is a digital film about the violence rapper gangs live through. Tondo is often featured in the news for incidents involving violence, and in many cases used as the example of slum life and urban poverty. It is also Jim Libiran's birthplace. Having two gangs in the film — fierce rivals in real life — enact their off-screen realities on screen is in itself an amazing tour de force.
Tribu is Jim Libiran's MA thesis at the University of the Philippines under Media Studies and Film and is his first feature-length work.
The Philippines is this year's Festival's country of honor represented by the largest number of Filipino independent cinema delegates so far.
This year, after Brazil, Korea and Lebanon, the Paris Cinema IFF will celebrate the notable and noted renewal of Philippine cinema in a special tribute. A chance to discover the new talents and the emerging creative energy of this Latin, Catholic island in the heart of Asia...
With a screening program of about 30 films and the presence of numerous guests, this event will showcase both young directors and great names of Philippines cinema.
Our entries, delegates and participants did our country proud, the international viewers have spoken; it's our turn to do our share by patronizing our own films.
Poster: ParisCinema 2008 official poster: http://www.pariscinema.org/
Links / References
Cinemalaya entry review, The International Herald Tribune, Nov. 1, 2007: In "Tribu", real life Filipino gangs collaborate on screen" by Carlos H. Conde
Tribu details, synopsis, filmmaker's bio and statement from the International Forum of New Cinema, 2007 in PDF format
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