Rizzalyn Vales

Creating a new breed of storytellers Film is the art of creating a visual representation of an idea and putting it to life. It is putting together and editing simple video clips to form a sequence then infusing it with artistic cinematography and musical scoring to create a story. In this digital age, filmmakers, whether aspiring or professional, can do so much more with the tools available to them. In this light, Powermac Center came up with Pixelworx Cinemansanas, a campaign for aspiring artists with a flair for storytelling using digital devices. The theme for this year’s competition was “Start something new.” The challenge was to create an original short film using Apple devices — that is, entries must have been edited and shot using Apple products. The competition rolled out with two categories: student and professional. The student category invited enrolled students from high school and college or universities, while the professional category was open to local residents. Among the entries for this year’s Pixelworx Cinemansanas’ student category were Pagkilala by Joel Griffiths; Flared by Seliada Asilo; The Boy Who Spoke by Jaime Mari Joaquin Asido Morados; Panawagan by Jhon Christopher Danez; Pinta ng Mata by Raymund Angelo Joaquin Magturo and Suadade by Jhon Francis Onofre. For professional category, there were Byahe sa Buhay ng mga Batang Bagot by Dylan Ray Agcaoili Talon; Seven by James Edward Golla; Nostalgia by Ma. Cinderella Viluan Capadiso; Gulong by Rian Simon Magtaan; Ang Payo ni Tita Whitney by Jessie Villabrille and Sumurot Kat i Agos (Sumabay sa Agos) by Olivia Bianca Briones. Since March, a series of workshops were conducted for the campaign. Live demonstrations were held in select Powermac centers. Chosen mentors/ambassadors included Yam Laranas for cinematography/direction, Ricky Lee for scriptwriting and Mario Cornejo and Monster Jimenez for film production. According to Cornejo and Jimenez, the qualities they look for in a great digital short film is the heart of the artist. “Kailangan authentic yung paggawa ng pelikula. And every time I see that, I let them know that this movie makes me feel alive. That’s my one and only condition when I choose my favorite film,” said Jimenez. Yam Laranas, for his workshop, used a variety of equipment to help him create a film. Impressed by the camera work of the film entries, he added, “Always find a new way to shoot. I believe that anybody can shoot and make a film.” Ricky Lee, meanwhile, said, “Your conscious mind is a liar. When you write using your mind, you’ll end up writing the beautiful visuals. You’ll write based on what is good and beautiful in your eyes. But when it is your subconscious, you will write something that is not copied from the other’s perspective. So I always encourage (you) to write what you feel.” He advised aspiring filmmakers and writers to always go back to the “hugot” or the thing that your heart says. “You should open yourself to possibilities so you can open the world. Like when you are writing your character, it should be open to the audiences, too, so they can relate.” Aside from the workshops, there were in-store activities with demonstrations of applications used for making a film with the mentors. Winning entries For the student category, the winner of Golden award was Pagkilala by Joel Griffiths, a story of a hiker who unexpectedly crosses path with another stranger and ends up finding something better. The Platinum award went to The Boy Who Spoke by 14-year-old Jaime Mari Joaquin Asido Morados. The story is about a boy who never says a word, but plans to change the world. He only knows the word “design.” Flared by Seliada Asilo bagged the Diamond award. It is a story of a blind boy who turns his dark life into a colorful one through his imagination. In the professional category, the Golden award went to Ang Payo ni Tita Whitney by Jessie Villabrile. It is a story of a battered girlfriend who realizes that she needs to follow Whitney Houston’s advice on love. The Platinum award was given to Seven by James Edward Golla. The story is about Carlos, chief accountant in a firm who is bastardized by social media after someone takes his photo maliciously and it goes viral. The film addresses issues in an era of misinformation and quick assumption. Diamond awardee was 23-year-old Dylan Ray Talon for his exceptional and contemporary documentary film Byahe sa Buhay ng mga Batang Bagot. During his interview with the Daily Tribune, he said he came up with the idea of capturing moments with his friends while on an out-of-town team building activity. After that, he started filming everything he and his friends did and came up with a theme of life documentation. “My friends are loud and I’ll be (deemed) too old (if I) ask them to just mellow down. So instead of being a killjoy, I thought of recording the crazy moments, even the dullest, with my friends. Because no matter what happens, I’ll always end up going back to where our friendship all started and all the memories of the past, which I can never take back. Life is a once in a lifetime journey and I’m just playing it right and enjoying it,” Dylan said. As Yam Laranas said, “Everyone can be filmmakers. You just have to believe in yourself and see things in your own perspective.” — Contributed by Rizzalyn Vales