For the past few years, I have made several short films and co-organized film events. Gutab, my recent project is the first short film that I have solely written, co-produced, and directed in the midst of the pandemic. In this particular project, I only had limited budget and resources, but I was able to incorporate our town’s mat weaving culture and convey a message that will empower women and remind them that they are not mere objects confined inside their homes.
Gutab, together with eight other short films from our CMS 177: Directing the Narrative class under the award-winning writer and director, Arden Rod Condez was showcased on KTX PH, a worldwide online streaming platform based in the Philippines.
SYNOPSIS
Set in a small provincial town, the film centers on the story of two young women named Jo-an and Sabel. Jo-an is known for winning different local beauty pageants. She is the epitome of an innocent and beautiful young woman. Sabel, on the other hand, is a mat weaver’s daughter and a free-spirited eighteen-year-old who dreams to be free from certain societal constraints. The two young women's last encounter together before Sabel leaves home urges Jo-an to make a life-changing decision.
Cast and Crew
MAJOR STAFF
Director – Mary Andrea Palmares
Producers – Mary Andrea Palmares, Jun Masangcay
Screenplay – Mary Andrea Palmares
Creative Consultant – Arden Rod Condez
Director of Photography and Editor – Caleb Maglunob
Second Camera Operator – Jun Castillo
Drone Operator and Sound Design – Marc Riomalos
Casting Director – Gene Darwin Espares
MAJOR CAST
Jo-an – Demee Louise Daypuyart
Sabel – Kristina Bagac
AWARD AND RECOGNITION
Recently, this short film got into the Viddsee Juree Awards Visayas and Mindanao 2021's Top Ten Selection and won Silver Prize. Viddsee Juree Awards is an annual film festival that celebrates the best short films from Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Masyado Pang Maaga (2020) is a three-minute film that shows what an unusual morning is like for me in the midst of the pandemic. I made this short film as a requirement for our cinematography and editing class under writer and director Jose Ruel Garcia. We were tasked to make a day in a life video using different camera angles and points of view. I entirely shot this film inside our house using my DSLR camera. Aside from considering this film as a class requirement, I also made this one to somehow share the grief and pain I have experienced brought by losing someone too soon.
Roles: Director, Cinematographer, Editor, and Actor
Lost Touch (2020) is an experimental film about a journey through the mind of someone who completely lost touch with her passion and childhood aspirations. In this experimental film, I pushed myself to shoot at night, and incorporated an artificial rain effect to add more weight and drama to the visual narrative.
Roles: Director, Cinematographer, and Editor
Actors: Frances Palmares and MJ Palmares
Photo of My Mind (2020) is a one-minute music narrative featuring Song Ga-in’s Photo of My Mind. It illustrates how certain memories give back life to those who no longer exist. I shot and edited this project as another requirement for our cinematography and editing class. We were tasked to experiment with different lighting techniques to tell our chosen narrative. In this particular project, I utilized the only available light sources I could find such as bonfires, small lamps, and some candles.
Roles: Director, Cinematographer, and Editor
Actors: Dave Artucilla and Demee Louise Daypuyart
Table for Two (2019) is a short narrative that allows us to eavesdrop on a conversation between two individuals at a local coffee shop. The tension between their exchange then leads to an unexpected revelation at the end of the film. In this project collaboration for our gender studies class under filmmaker Jean Claire Dy, I got to conceptualize the story and be in charge of the camerawork. This short film was produced by K9 Films Production, an independent film production team that my classmates and I have established in 2018.
Roles: Story Writer and Cinematographer
Production Team: Jezreyll James Cabasag, Kate Villanueva, Jose Levy Biojan, Robert Solas, Mariah Vianca Quinesio, Ejay Figuracion, Jun Masangcay, Marv Aranjuez, Flory Ann Tacuban, Regine Torremoro
Bagahe (2018) is a short film that tells the story of an orphaned young girl trying to make ends meet for her older sister, and disabled brother diagnosed with epilepsy. In this film project, I was tasked to be one of the cinematographers and we were able to incorporate different camerawork influenced by Italian Neorealism and the French New Wave.
Role: Cinematographer
Production Team: Jezreyll James Cabasag, Kate Villanueva, Jun Masangcay, Maria Kydylee Torato, Natasha Domingo, AJ Patrick Ga-an, Regine Torremoro
Western Visayas Cinema Padayon Project
The Western Visayas Padayon Project is a collection of efforts launched to promote the craft of filmmaking in the regions, initiated by our CMS 179: Special Topics in Cinema class, a course dedicated to study and promote regional cinema. The objective of this project collective is to empower regional filmmakers by championing collaboration and creative breakthroughs within the region.
Under this tentpole project, we were able to organize a virtual film showcase entitled BAGONG SIBOL: Films from the Emerging Filmmakers of UP Visayas Iloilo. Bagong Sibol has launched nine short films made by nine equally talented student-filmmakers under the CMS 177: Directing the Narrative class of Arden Rod Condez, a multi-awarded writer and director. The films were streamed on KTX Philippines from April 26 until May 07, 2021.
In this certain project, my task was to create, edit, and publish various publicity materials that will encourage viewers to watch and support regional films featured in the Bagong Sibol showcase.
Sinematahum: An Ilonggo Youth Film Festival
Aside from being a student who has a passion for filmmaking, I am also the current Operations Manager of Armslength Productions, a university-wide student organization that spearheads an annual filmmaking event called Sinematahum: An Ilonggo Youth Film Festival which aims to promote budding local filmmakers in the province. This event is organized by Armslength Productions, in cooperation with City Time Square-Iloilo and CineKasimanwa, the largest regional film festival in the Philippines.
As the Operations Manager of Armslength Productions, my task was to manage and process the necessary letters, permits, and other required documents to successfully conduct the event.
