The Cinemalaya Film Festival is an event that is so dear to me – it has been my longest commitment yet.
I have been attending the renowned film fest since I started in the university, and my biggest influence then were my college professors and schoolmates. It started my passion for filmmaking and storytelling.
More than a decade later, going to Cinemalaya as a professional is like retreating from my busy world. It feels like coming home.
If it’s your first-time going to the festival, no worries, the cinephile community is very vibrant and welcoming. You’re guaranteed to come back again and again until it becomes an annual habit.
Here are some tips to make your first Cinemalaya experience one for the books:
Mingle around.
The best part about Cinemalaya, at least for me, is the vibe. It’s like a convention of film enthusiasts and a reunion of some sort, like homecoming week. I come across people from my university days, and it’s a fun way to catch up. Of course, that depends on my social battery.
You will see a lot of filmmakers, writers, and even actors casually roaming around the area and if you’re lucky, you get to have a chit-chat with them. National Artist Ricky Lee attends every single year!
Watch the gala screenings. 
The gala screenings are the red carpet days where you get to watch the film with the cast and crew. Cinemalaya releases the full festival schedule ahead of time, so you’ll know the schedule of gala screenings and you can plan accordingly. There’s no dress code for this, so you just come to the cinema just as you’d like.
In case you miss the gala and you’re deeply interested in the film, I highly recommend the Talkback screenings. The filmmakers will have a Q&A after the film, and if you’re lucky, some of the cast will also be there.
Visit the gallery.
Every year, there’s a museum-like display featuring the items used in the full-length films. During the Cinemalaya CCP days, this “gallery” is usually located below the beautiful, brutalist stairs leading to the ticket booth.
This year, the gallery will probably be somewhere in the halls of Ayala Malls Manila Bay, and while it’s going to look different (and we’re excited to see the new look!), it’s something not to miss.
Buy the merch.
Apart from the visual treat from the films and displays, Cinemalaya also sells merch like shirts, bags, caps and a lot more. They also partner with independent artists so you might fancy some artsy merch along the movie hall. One of my timeless favorites is the Taga-Indie merch – which is there almost every year.
If you have very limited budget for a merch, take home a printed festival schedule. It has all the details you need – from the film schedule to the synopsis. Cinemalaya gives them out for free. I collect this every year as mementos.
Know the existing promos.
Cinemalaya partners with various brands like Grab, so don’t forget to follow their social media accounts for some promos!
Bring your rain gear.
Lastly, since the film fest is always held in August a.k.a. typhoon season, be prepared for the rain. There is an inside joke within the community that goes, “it’s not Cinemalaya week if it’s not raining” and I think it is really part of the whole experience, whether we like it or not.
View the full Cinemalaya screening schedule here.
Entertainment
Street Fighter special look: Blanka vs. Ryu
Jason Momoa, Andrew Koji’s characters face off
Paramount Pictures has released a new special look for Street Fighter featuring Jason Momoa and Andrew Koji.
The short, minute-long clip shows the actors’ respective characters, Blanka and Ryu, in battle.
It opens with a chained prisoner struck by extreme electrical charges, transforming into the green-skinned, electricity-infused Blanka.
He unleashes a fierce roar. Meanwhile, Ryu drops into a fighting stance, but tells Blanka he does not want to fight him.
Forced to defend himself, Ryu then fires a signature Hadouken fireball towards Blanka, as the teaser cuts to the Street Fighter title card.
Street Fighter debuts in cinemas starting October 14. It is directed by Kitao Sakurai and stars an ensemble cast that includes Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoai as Akuma, and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson as Balrog, among others.
The film is set in 1993 when estranged Street Fighters Ryu and Ken Masters are thrown into combat when Chun-Li recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament.
Entertainment
Now Playing: Spider-Man: Brand New Day
It’s a must watch for Spidey fans who want to see Peter Parker enter his sad boy era.
The Holland-led Spider-Man trilogy is one of my favorite franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Compared to other series with admittedly disjointed plots, all of Spidey’s storylines have a clear thread leading from one to the next. Since the fourth entries after trilogies are historically lackluster, I had a lot of trepidation heading into Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Thankfully, all those worries were unfounded. Brand New Day follows the same throughline as its predecessors, once again reinforcing Spider-Man as the strongest franchise that Marvel offers fans today.
A brand new day indeed
Coming from No Way Home, Brand New Day still has Peter Parker live a new life as a literal nobody where no one remembers who he is. So begins his existence as just Spider-Man with no friends or family.
When a new and unseen threat ravages through New York City, Spidey starts to wish that he still had friends to help him out, which leads him on an inevitable collision course with Ned and MJ. Ironically, it also leads him to other characters in the city, including the Hulk and the Punisher.
A cacophony of villains
When I first saw the trailer, I was worried about the astounding number of villains from the get-go. After all, one of the biggest problems in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3, the most maligned entry in Spider-Man movie history, was the villains. Though far from the movie’s biggest problem, having too many bad guys without a solid plot led to its terrible reception. You can see why Brand New Day’s trailer raises some flags.
If you were thinking the same thing, Brand New Day does indeed have a cohesive plot. Everything flows neatly into one another. Each emotional beat of Peter feeling for his solitude mixes well with the action. In here, fight scenes feel like they have a purpose.
And there is a big bad here. It’s not just a collection of guys that Spidey has to go through. That big bad, who shall not be named at this time, doesn’t feel like just a placeholder for Peter’s internal struggles. They have a character of their own and their own struggles to solve. I wouldn’t say they’re at the level of Loki just yet, but they definitely have a better go at it than most of the MCU’s other villains.
Marvel’s New York City finally debuts
Despite being a prime location since 2012’s Avengers, New York City never really felt like the quintessential city for superheroes in the comics. In the movies, the city was just another city to be ravaged when a new villain comes along.
For the first time, Brand New Day makes the city feel like a lived-in world with a bunch of superheroes living in the neighborhood. And they do pop up.
Does Peter have a scientific problem that only a very specific hero can solve? It’s a good thing Bruce Banner is just around the corner. Does he need some muscle? Well, the Punisher is skulking around somewhere. Plus, there’s even a succinct reason why other superheroes can’t help out.
In this way, Brand New Day presents itself more like a comic book series than a one-off movie. It’s like following the story alone from issue to issue. It’s not the most perfect adaptation of the landmark city, but it goes a long way from just another ravaging of New York.
Peter’s sadness
Everything here hinges on Peter’s loneliness. Despite meeting a trove of characters across the cinematic universe, Peter yearns for time with his loved ones. But they’re gone.
Unlike the past three films where he always had someone to go home to, he has no one here. Tony Stark is dead. Aunt May is gone. Happy has gone to parts unknown. Ned and MJ have no memory of him. Brand New Day has a way of making you feel for his aches, whether the way he still keeps track of MJ or some physiological changes as a result of his predicament.
It also helps that the movie’s big bad has similar motivations. Both serve as perfect mirrors against each other, elevating both their stories effectively. And that’s all I’ll say about that.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a few steps behind from being a perfect Marvel movie, but it’s still an extremely strong part of the Spider-Man mythos. The trilogy, now quadrilogy, remains Marvel’s most consistent franchises to date. It’s an absolute must-watch.
Entertainment
UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony hits Makati in October
Determination arrives in October.
For so small of a game, UNDERTALE quickly made it into the gaming world’s hall of fame. Despite being only a decade old, the small title has had a major influence for modern-day gamers because of its unique gameplay, its lo-fi art, and, of course, its catchy soundtrack. If you’re a fan of UNDERTALE’s soundtrack, a unique concert experience is headed your way.
On October 17, Film Concerts PH, in partnership with SOHO Live, is hosting UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony at the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell, Makati.
The concert will be performed by the Filharmonika Orchestra and conducted by Thanapol Setabrahmana. Personally curated by creator Toby Fox and developed by Lambert Jackson with Materia Music, the concert experience showcases the game’s most recognizable tunes laid over gameplay footage playing simultaneously. Plus, for the world tour, the experience will have expanded scoring.
In the game, you play as a small child stuck in the mysterious Underground filled with interesting characters and monsters. Unlike traditional RPGs, UNDERTALE asks players to choose between building relationships and chasing after wins. It’s a unique experience that’s defined by whether you chose to make friends or fought your way to the top. It teaches players to value different ways to solve problems, all while showering them with its one-of-a-kind humor.
Pre-sales for the concert, exclusively for members of the Film Concerts PH community, start on August 4. Public sales, however, will start on August 11 via Ticketmelon.
SEE ALSO: The hunt begins: The Witcher in Concert hits Manila with surprises in tow
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