{"id":28421,"date":"2023-06-30T08:14:47","date_gmt":"2023-06-30T08:14:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/m2comms.com\/?p=28421"},"modified":"2023-08-23T04:32:28","modified_gmt":"2023-08-23T04:32:28","slug":"filipino-documentary-filmmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/m2comms.com\/2023\/06\/30\/filipino-documentary-filmmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Filipino Documentary Filmmakers to Keep on Your Radar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Documentaries are no longer textbooks in motion. Filipino documentary filmmakers have helped solidify the medium in the age of online streaming platforms.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Documentaries are media frequently consumed in the Philippines. Many of us grew up watching television shows such as \u201cKapuso Mo Jessica Soho<\/em>,\u201d \u201cReporter’s Notebook<\/em>,\u201d \u201ci-Witness<\/em>,\u201d and \u201cInvestigative Documentaries<\/em>,\u201d which used various documentary types<\/a> to narrate their stories.  The accessibility of these documentaries allowed us to recognize the value of the medium and has led to a growing appreciation for documentary films beyond TV screens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The State of Documentary Films in the Philippines<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2020, the Filipino Documentary Society launched Daang Dokyu<\/a>, a film festival showcasing Filipino documentaries from the 20th century to the present. The event aimed to provide Filipino films a space to be highlighted and celebrated as a stand-alone medium, not a subgenre of fiction film. Daang Dokyu was founded by filmmakers Jewel Maranan, Baby Ruth Villarama, Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala, and Monster Jimenez.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Documentary films have also populated online streaming platforms in the last two years. A 2021 TIME Magazine article<\/a> dubbed the rise of documentary films as \u201cdocu-mania.\u201d For instance,  Tiger King<\/em> (2020) ranked 5th<\/a> among the most streamed shows on Netflix in 2020. The Great British Baking Show<\/em> also ranked 7th. Others worth mentioning are Amy<\/em> (2015), Gaga: Five Foot Two<\/em> (2017), Miss Americana<\/em> (2020), and Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry<\/em> (2021). The medium allowed music icons to show the intimate parts of their lives beyond what is aired on mainstream media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Filipino Documentary Filmmakers<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As documentary films grow in popularity, Filipino filmmakers from different backgrounds continue to experiment with the medium through video journals, expos\u00e9s, or biopics, among many others. We list down six Filipino documentary filmmakers you should keep on your radar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Adjani Arumpac<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
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Photo source The Movie DB<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Filmmaker Adjani Arumpac<\/a> is most notable for her documentary film about the war in the southern Philippines<\/a>: War Is a Tender Thing<\/em> (2013).<\/a> Narrated through the lens of her family history, Arumpac unravels the gruesome truth of the Moro conflict featuring the director\u2019s parents, uncles and aunties, cousins, and neighbors. Using the impact documentary style, the filmmaker aims to draw empathy for marginalized communities affected by war. This unique filmmaking approach humanizes the Moro conflict, its victims, and its perpetrators. It is also worth noting how rarely the situation is talked about in mainstream media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arumpac is also known for Nanay Mameng<\/em> (2012),<\/a> a biopic of a Filipina urban mass leader, and Count<\/em> (2021),<\/a> a 13-minute documentary that plays with the idea of internalized historical misalignment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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