History of Philippine Cinema

Ø  We were able to go back in time and have a sneak peak of what the Philippine Cinema had and has to offer from then and up to now. The documentary shown in our Cinema101 class started from whom invented kinetograph, Thomas Alba Edison and his invention’s development.

1893

            The world’s first studio and laboratory in New Jersey was established

1895

            In  Paris, France, Louis and August Lumiere invented cinematograph responsible for mass viewing of films.

1897

            First film using Lumiere cinematograph was shown.

Ø  Antonio Ramos, a Spanish military man filmed in the Philippines; Panorama de Manila, Fiesta de Quiapo, Puente de Espana and Ecsenas Callejeras. He is also the first motion picture producer in the Philippines.

1909

            Rose of the Philippines was the first story and full length film shown in the Philippines.

1912

            `Board of Censors for cinematographic films was established.

1920’s

            First Golden Age of Filipino Cinema

1929

            Board of censors for moving pictures was established.

Ø  Cine Walgrah owned by Walgrah was the first movie house.

Ø  Dalagang Bukid by Jose Nepomuceno was the first full length Filipino film.

1930’s

Ø  Julian Manansala was the father of Nationalistic films

1939

Ø  LVN Productions was established.

1940-1946

            More than 50 films per year was made during these years

1950’s

            Films became more artistic and economic in a sense that it made money and grew into big business via an institutionalized studio system.

Ø  BIG THREE in Philippine Cinema

LVN Productions

Sampaguita Pictures

Premier Productions

1960’s

Ø  5 Independent Movie Companies

RTG

Everlasting Pictures

Tamaraw Studios

Hollywood FarEast

Balatbat Productions

1970’s-1980

            The Hay Days of Philippine Cinema

Mid 80’s-90

            Local films gained profit more than foreign films

  Millennium new comers

Star Cinema of ABS-CBN 2

GMA Films of GMA7

1996-1999

            164 films a year

2000-2003

            82 films a year

2004

            Only 52 films were produced

           

           

Mowelfund Plaza Tour

As a part of the curriculum of our Cinema100 class, we were tasked to go on an educational tour at Mowelfund Plaza in Quezon City. MOWELFUND, according to its official website mowelfund.com stands for MOVIE WORKERS WELFARE FOUNDATION, INC., a non-stock, non-profit social welfare, educational, and industry development foundation organized and established in 1974. It was founded by then San Juan Mayor and President of the Philippine Motion Picture Producers Association (PMPPA) Joseph E. Estrada for the welfare of workers in the Philippine motion picture industry.

The tour went well and it was more than what we expected. Luckily, we even got the chance to see Mowelfund’s ambassadress Mrs. Boots Anson Roa who had a quick talk about the life behind films and how it evolved to what it is at present.  We were all enlightened with what she talked about because we all know for a fact that she is a very experienced and effective actress before and even until now, she still shares to the media industry what she has and has been known for.

After Mrs. Roa’s talk, we were allowed to enter the museum without any companion, we had and enjoyed the whole museum to ourselves. We read on the history of film and even played with some of the actual props used in the production years ago. Moreover, costume, gowns and tuxedos worn on special occasions and award nights were also in the museum all in good condition and good as new. Some equipments like old school video cameras of different sizes and capabilities were also preserved in the museum.

Having a tour at Mowelfund tour was like having a tour back in the golden days of Philippine cinema. Given the opportunity to visit such beautiful museum, also gave us the privilege to witness how pure, artistic and rich our country really is when it comes its history in films. Mowelfund obviously continues to provide every visitor an experience worth keeping and remembering.

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Independent Filmmaking

             As a part of our lesson for midterm in our Cinema101 class, our professor let us watch a documentary about independent filmmaking and filmmakers in Hollywood whom were not just independent but made it huge in the field. From the word itself independent, these were directors who chose being self-reliant than engaging to mainstream film industry. 

The documentary featured some directors having a talk on why they chose to be independent. One of their common reasons was when you are an independent filmmaker, you are able to control all that you want your film to look like, feel like and sound like basing on your own choice, genre, style and ideas. In other words, independent filmmaking gave them the freedom to express their unique artistic style which mainstream filmmaking limits.

One of the major contributions of independent filmmaking was paving a way to African-American films. However, in mainstream filmmaking, African-American actors did not get the chance to play main roles which is obviously a form of racism in some way. Spike Lee, an African-American independent director, directed a movie with his fellow-citizens as cast.

Le Mepris (1963)

          Le Mempris (Contempt) is a film directed by Jean-Luc Godard based on the novel Il disprezzo (A Ghost at Noon) by Alberto Moravia.

The film is about a married couple, Paul Javal and Camille Javal, and their struggles and negotiation with an American film producer, Jeremy Prokosch who would like to produce a film adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey. He first hires respected Austrian director Fritz Lang but he was not satisfied with Lang’s interpretation of the film. So, Prokosch decided to hire Javal instead but he is having second thoughts on whether he should accept the deal because he was thinking about the money and expression which led his relationship with his wife, Camille to lie low.

As a part of our class last Wednesday, our professor let us watch this movie and it is undeiable that the whole class enjoyed it. Everyone was so into the film, so quiet and so engaged in following the flow of the married couple’s life and problems.

Cinematography and editing wise, I noticed that the scenes in the movie were all so long that it took 20 minutes or more per scene in just one location. Continuity in the camera shots and angle were also highly noticeable that sometimes, I got bored watching it. Specially the scene of Paul and Camille arguing then making up in their apartment. I think it composed almost half the running time of the film.

Our professor asked us if Camille Javal really love her husband, Paul Javal. In my own opinion, I think that she really did love him it’s just that she fell out of love right when Paul started being so busy and flirted with another girl. Camille is the kind of woman who is very beautiful and charismatic that he could get any man she wants. Guess I wasn’t so wrong because she even got away with the playboy millionaire Prokosch which led to the death of both of them. Camille is also a fame and money whore and for me, her sudden death is just her karma.

The Star (reflection paper)

         Our professor in Cinema101 let us watch American Cinema, a series exploring film history and American culture in films through the years. The second episode of the series was all about The Stars during the early years of Hollywood films and as discussed in the documentary, Hollywood cosidered that the talents of the stars could save film production from its financial problems. Critics, film scholars, and studio publicists see stars as marketing tools, cultural icons, and products of the industry.

           The Star episode talked about the life of the movie stars on and off the camera, how they controlled cinema for a while, and how did it all change over the decades. The documentary featured a lot of famous faces including Jack Lemmon, Julia Roberts, John Waters, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden, Arthur Wilde, Jane Russell and Joan Crawford. 

           Fans of Hollywood and its history might not learn anything they haven't heard before but this is still a very entertaining piece. You would learn a lot about the life of the stars then even the star system as they call it. The Star system was a method of creating, promoting and exploiting movie stars in Classical Hollywood Cinema. These stars weren’t expected to be the best in acting, singing or dancing. They mainly focused on the image of the stars, how they act out, dress, behave in public. 

The New Hollywood and Independent Filmmaking (summary)

            It was during the 1960’s when blockbuster movies The Sound of Music (1965) and Dr. Zhivago (1965) paved a way for a seemingly healthy Hollywood industry which yielded huge profits. However, after this short dominance in films, problems came in the way when television networks, who used to pay high prices to broadcast films, ceased the bidding for pictures therefore resulting to loss of millions in profit of Hollywood companies by 1969.

            To counter the million profit loss of the producers, they created deviant films targeting the young people. These include Dennis Hoper’s Easy Rider (1969) and Robert Altman's M*A*S*H (1970). Although these two films were successful, other films aimed at the young audience featuring campus revolution and uncoventional lifestyles lead to disappointment in the big screens. On the positive side, films catering to a much broader audience did help lift the industry and the most successful were Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather (1972), William Friedkin's The Exorcist (1913), Steven Spielberg's Jaws (1975) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), John Carpenter's Halloween (1918), and George Lucas's American Grffiti (1913), Star Wars (1977), and The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Brian De Palma’s Obsession 1(976) and Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver (1976) and  Raging Bull (1980).

            These directors were known as the film brats who attended various film schools unlike those earlier Hollywood directors who hadn’t had the chance to. Eventhough this is the case, the new breed of directors based their films on the ideas and styles of the previous directors. The only difference is that, given the knowledge they gained from the film schools, they were able to enhance or improve old ideas therefore making it look, sound and feel new for the audience to appreciate.

            Independent filmmaking from the word itself, requires a lot of budget that was why many directors switched into mainstream filmmaking. Yet other directors who managed to create big budgeted films on their own, conveyed an experimental attitude.

            Lastly, these film brats continued to help in the betterment of Hollywood cinema by creating innovations to cater for a much broader audience.

           

           

Un Chien Andalo 1929 (reaction paper)

           As we took up French Surrealism in films, we watched Un Chien Andalou directed by Luis Buñuel in 1929, a Surrealist short film for us to know or have an idea what surrealism is all about. The film was in black and white and it was a silent movie meaning characters were not delivering any dialogues so we based our understanding of the film just depending on how the characters act including their facial expressions, gestures and movements but there was a background music or instrumentals which added drama or effect to the film.

            Surrealism, being referred to as ‘dream-like,’ Un Chien Andalou on it’s part contained images which ranges from  erotic, frightening, funny, strange, and symbolic. The film for me was very confusing because of its abstractness specially when one scene could not be connected to the other and so on. It was artistic in a way but as I watch the film a couple of times, I could not see any sense that it made or gave to the audience. Maybe for those who critically thought about it and saw sense in the film. Maybe there was. But for me, the film was just created to play with the minds of the viewers by letting them see scenes such as cutting of eyeball, ants coming out of one’s hand, pulling two priests and two grand pianos with dead donkeys on top of it, and the closing scene wherein half of the bodies of two characters were already excavated from the soil. These scenes would rarely happen in real life that’s why it is dream-like.

            It takes a very artistic mind for one to appreciate surrealist films since it shows unusual, daring and subversive scenes.

Film Noir (reflection paper)

Film going in the late 1940’s was like going to the candy store, it was for everybody.  The colorful costumes, fancy music and lively performances were all that comprised the film society then. But Film Noir is not about all that fancy stuffs.

            Film Noir is also known as black film which could be considered as dark and mysterious showing stories about the life in the streets,  shady characters, crooked cops, twisted love and bad luck. Furthermore, film noir is really about the darker side of human nature.

            Martin Scorcese, a director, grew up in the era of film noir which showed him the darker side of humanity in an honest way. By saying in an honest way, directors of film noirs got their inspirtation based on what was currently happening in the society in a much deeper context focusing mainly on a person’s anxiety. The reasons why they kill people, matters concerning about each character’s personal interests which resulted to multiple complications in the story.

            Film Noir being films in black and white made it more mysterious in a sense that it added more drama and effect which led the viewers to be affected emotionally, psychologically and critically. In my own context and belief, the black and white effect in the film noir paved a huge way for it to be known before and even upto now wherein when talked about film noir, black and white films come to the minds of some film viewers. The black and white phenomenon was somehow a recall of what film noir looked like back in the days.

            Narration or soliloquy of the major characters was also one noticeable factor in the film noir. A character was always presented with monologue which represented his unspoken thoughts and ideas in mind.

            Women in film noir were portrayed to as more dominant over men when it comes to the point wherein women of long hair, tight clothes and long fingernails decide to seduce men who are by nature, are easily attracted and persuaded by women.

             To sum it all up, film noir allows one’s imagination to take over where the material is not exactly exemplified. It challenges the mind to think, have a battle over curiosity and the emergence of psychological phenomenon.

           

German Expressionism (notes)

German Expressionism

            The effect of World War I made a huge impact in the production of German films, in this case, it was relatively lessen. French, American, Italian and Danish films were shown in Germany’s 2000 movie theaters. Although America and France banned German films to be shown in their movie theaters, Germany on the other was not even in the position to ban French and American films because if they do so, their theaters would have little to show.

The term “Expressionism” in Germany meant “modern art” and a rejection of traditional Western conventions dating back to the Renaissance. Compared to French expressionism, German expressionism tackled more about the relationship between art and society, politics and popular culture.

Even though Expressionism is frequently considered to be an art movement, German Expressionists included novelists, poets, and playwrights in addition to artists. The German Expressionist collection housed in Hornbake Library’s great strength is the literary aspect of the movement. The collection is a mix of serials and monographs of arts journals, political journals, novels, and plays.

By the late fall of 1911, the Expressionist groups, Der Blaue Reiter and Die Brücke, as well as artists, such as Kathe Kollwitz and Ernst Barlach, were being referred to as “expressionists.” By April 1911, the Berlin Secession, guided by Lovis Corinth, grouped the French Fauves—Derain, Vlaminck, and Matisse in one room and labeled them as “Expressionists.” The Fauves were considered to be ultramodern in their break from Impressionism, taking the passivity of the older movement’s objectivity to an activated subjectivity. Despite the fact that some German artists had already exhibited with these French artists as early as 1910, they were not included in this groundbreaking exhibition.  But soon, the German artists, emboldened by a series of Secessions, developed their own brand of the avant-garde.

            Trying to counter the rigid competition from imported Hollywood films after 1924, the Germans also began to imitate the American product. The resulting films though sometimes impressive, diluted the unique qualities of Expressionist style. Thus, by 1927, Expressionism as a movement died out. Although the movement ended, Expressionism as a trend or film style never really or entirely died out.

The Film School Generation (activity)

1. Which of the movie directors made which films?

The generation of young directors sometimes called the movie brats made some of the most successful films of all time. They created the phenomenon of the blockbuster movies and they are the following:

• ·         Francis Coppola : The Rain People (1969); The Godfather (1972); The Godfather Part II (1974); Apocalypse Now (1979)

• ·         George Lucas :  Electronic Labyrinth (1968); THX 1138 (1971); American Graffiti (1973); Star Wars (1977); New York New York (1977)

• ·         Martin Scorsese :  Mean Streets (1973); Who’s that knocking at my door (1972); Taxi Driver (1976)

• ·         Brian De Palma : Hi Mom (1969); Sisters (1973)

• ·         Steven Spielberg : Amblin (1968); Duel (1971); Jaws (1975)

• ·         John Milius : Marcello, I’m so bored (1970); Dillinger (1973); Big Wednesday (1978)

2. Who are the directors that think of themselves and think of the audiences and what are the effects?

           

              Most of the directors featured in the documentary consider filmmaking as an art, an art that has been an integral part of their lives ever since they started being active in the field. They consider filmmaking as an outlet of what they feel or self expression and what they want their audience to feel right about when they start watching their films. Moreover, aside from filmmaking being an outlet to them, it has also been a business profitting millions of dollars. On the other hand, even if sometimes they had to work with a limited budget, they still has the passion to continue making interesting films for their audience.

           According to John Milius, filmmakers should explore personal things that they know in the field of filmmaking. For him, filmmakers should think of themselves first and their personal interests because that is how he does it. Meanwhile, tv or filmmaking for Steven Spielberg is not an art form but rather it is a job. George Lucas also thinks of himself whenever he makes films because he said that for him, whatever feels right is where he goes to.

On the other hand, according to Martin Scorsese, even if sometimes they had to work with a limited budget, he still has the passion to continue making interesting films for his audience. In line with this, Brian De Palma said in the documentary that he is pleased with the reactions given by his audience therefore he considers his audience in making his films. Francis Coppola also considers his audience’s feelings in making his films because they are the one who gives life to the industry.

           

French Impressionism and Surrealism (summary)

French Impressionism

French Impressionist Cinema, also sometimes known as The First Avant-Garde or Narrative Avant-Garde, is a name for a loose association of French films and filmmakers operating primarily between 1919 and 1929.  It is generally considered to be one of the important branches of early international cinema and its influence today is widespread.

France, being one of the centers of film in the medium's formative years, did not escape from the trauma that World War One left therefore reducing the country to a struggling minor part in film history after 1918. France's film exports were mostly limited to those countries with which it already had steady cultural exchange such as Belgium, Switzerland and other French colonies. This was because France was unable to compete with Hollywood which dominated the market by the end of 1917 producing eight times more than local or domestic footage.

The most significant move was the firm’s encouragement of younger directors who were so unlike their predecessors. The previous generation considered filmmaking as a business while the younger filmmakers compared cinema as to be art meaning poetry, painting and music. Cinema, they said should be an occasion for artists to express feelings, be purely itself, and should not be borrowed from theater and literature.

Because of the school’s interest in giving narration considerable psychological depth, revealing the character’s consciousness, it was given the name Impressionist. The interest falls not on physical behavior but on inner action or the intention. Impressionist films exploit plot time and subjectivity. To intensify the subjectivity, the Impressionists’ cinematography and editing present characters’ perceptual experience, their optical impressions. Furthermore, they also experimented with pronounced rhythmic editing to suggest the pace of an experience as a character feels it, moment by moment.

Impressionism in films ceased in 1929 but its influences such as psychological nature, subjective camera work and editing were more long-lived.

Surrealism

            While the French Impressionist filmmakers focused on the commercial aspect of films, Surrealist filmmakers relied on private patronage and screened their work in small artists’ gatherings. Surrealist cinema was directly linked to Surrealism in literature and painting and it sought to register the hidden currents of the unconscious.

            Surrealist cinema is overly anti-narrative, attacking causality itself that is why many surrealist films tease us to find a narrative logic that is simply absent. Causality is as evasive as in a dream, instead we find events adjacent for their disturbing effect.

Trainspotting (reaction paper)

 The opening scene of the movie Trainspotting directed by Danny Boyle was two guys, Mark and Spud running away from two men of authority and while being chased, there was a voice over of Mark saying several things that comprises a good life which at first I thought was exactly what he wanted his life to be. But as soon as he finished enumerating, he ended it by saying that he chose not to choose life and he chose something else and the reasons are, none  he said. That scene already established that the whole story would be about his and his friends’ encounter with drugs and all that it takes in having a life depending on drugs, sex and violence.

At first, I was culture shocked at how Renton and his friends managed to have a life like that and live in such a filthy place. I can’t imagine how people, especially the young ones could depend that strongly on drugs and what it does to them. The five main actors in this film are all males and with a life threatening drug habit. Drama, comedy, crime and drug culture are the genres where Trainspotting can be classified. Drama was present whenever their lives as drug dependents was shown on the film. On the other hand, comedy was there during Spuds job interview which kind of lessen the seriousness of the film therefore giving it a light feel. Trainspotting showed crime and drug culture with the characters being drug dependents themselves.

Three of the main characters, Renton, Spud and Sick Boy had serious heroin addiction while the psycho one, Begbie is an alcoholic. Getting tired of the usual scenarios of having a platter of needle, spoon, lighter, and heroin in his life, Renton decided to get rid of this bad habit. But it wasn’t that easy at all, he even came to the point where he said to take one last hit but that one last hit resulted into an overdose. That was my favorite scene because the red carpet on his sides already gave the audience the idea that he is already close to his death.

When Renton finally chooses survival, he plunges into the sweats, chills, pain, cravings, and hallucinations of withdrawal. Wisecracking all the way, Renton stumbled his way into alcohol, heroin, and vomit. As he works through the deadly aftermath, he surrenders: "I'm going straight; I'm choosing life, starter home, junk food, family Christmas." As if there were nothing in between.

Hollywood Style (reflection paper)

Hollywood Style is one of the episodes of American Cinema which connects subjects varying from history, business, and English with other studies. Furthermore, it is the most suitable vehicle for developing visual and media literacy skills and can be used as a springboard for creative-writing attempts and media production. The Hollywood Style narrated by Joe Morton  introduces the broad themes and stylistic conventions of classical Hollywood film, a combination of strong protagonists and story structure, with powerful emotional and technical effects.

As an avid moviegoer, I learned to appreciate how movies were thoroughly thought of and how much effort was asserted just to put up those kind of productions back during the days despite the resources being limited. It was highly noticeable in the documentary how the production staff paid attention deeply on every detail that would be shown on screen, beginning with the lights, set, sounds, props, extras and the main actors and actresses.

The “Hollywood Style” being talked about in this episode of American Cinema is invisible storytelling wherein the main purpose of a mainstream Hollywood film, to tell you, the viewer, a story. Second, cross-cutting or inter-cutting, a primary narrative device of the continuity style. This technique pieces together sequences that occur at the same time but in different places in order to increase narrative tension. Lastly, point of view shot is a key device through which filmmakers create audience identification with characters in a film. This technique is often used to place the audience in the position of the main character.

The magic of movies is that they create their own universe. Hollywood Style is one of cinema’s most effective tools = tell the story; with “invisible style,” “style in the service of the story;” the movie might be beautiful, but essence is natural, illusionistic, drawing the spectator in.