Sineng Pambansa Horror plus Film Festival begins Oct. 29 at SM Cinema Branches Nationwide

Direk Peque Gallaga, Lore Reyes, Romy Zuzara, Gil Portes and Boy Vinarao @ Presscon of Sineng Pambansa

 

The Film Development Council of the Philippines, in partnership with SM Cinema, will present the Sineng Pambansa Horror plus Film Festival, which opens on October 29, 2014 and will run until November 4 in all SM Cinema branches nationwide

 The films participating in the festival include “T’yanak” co-directed by Peque Gallaga and Lore Reyes, “Hukluban” by director Gil M. Portes, “Bacao” by director Edgardo Vinarao, and “Sigaw sa Hatinggabi” by director Romy V. Suzara.

Direk Lore Reyes, Adrian Cabrido, Mailes Canapi and Peque Gallga @ Presscon of Sineng Pambansa

Featuring an A-list cast with Judy Ann Santos in the leading role, “T’yanak” is actually a remake of Direks Peque and Lore’s 1988 classic “Tianak,” which won Best Sound at the Gawad Urian Awards and Best Cinematography at the FAP Awards in 1989.  Juday is not new to the horror genre, as she also starred in the horror flicks “Ouija” (2007) and “Mag-ingat ka sa…Kulam” (2008).  The superstar will play the character of Julie that was popularized by Janice de Belen in the original classic. Direks Peque and Lore hope to take full advantage of technological advancements such as computer-generated imagery (CGI) to bring their film to life, unlike the first version which relied on the use of puppets.

Krista Miller and Kiko Matos @ Presscon of  Sineng Pambansa

Kiko Matos and Adrian Cabrido @ Presscon of Sineng Pambansa

Director Gil Portes’ Hukluban was inspired by his 1983 drama thriller “Gabi kung sumikat ang araw,” which features a cursed woman who is beautiful woman at night but transforms into a hukluban, an aging old woman, by sunrise.  Immortal, the woman can only hope for true love to break the curse. The updated “Hukluban” examines the plight of the cursed woman, Mira (played by Kritsa Miller), over the span of three eras over six generations and her search for true love and a man played by actor Kiko Matos. Direk Gil explained, “This love is an unfulfilled love, an unrequited love, because of her condition.  How do you marry a girl who is so beautiful and young in the night time, but the moment the sun rises you become an old woman, a crone.  This is the story.”

China Roces, Regine Angeles, Vangie Labalan, Direk Romy Suzara, Lance Raymundo, Alvin Anson and Hero Bautista @ Presscon of Sineng Pambansa

Direk Romy’s “Sigaw sa Hatinggabi” is about an investigation into possible murder of a battered wife whose husband is well known.  The presence of spirits in “Sigaw sa Hatinggabi” was inspired by the belief of many Filipinos that the spirits of the dead return to visit the living.  Direk Romy is too one of the believers of spirits from his own personal experiences, sharing “when FPJ [Fernando Poe, Jr.] died, I get to dream about him often. Then when Rudy Fernandez died, he returns to me in my dreams. So, there I believe that spirits are amongst us.”  The legendary FPJ was supposed to star in Direk Romy’s “Tahimik  Ngunit Mapanganib” before the actor’s untimely death in 2004, and Rudy “Daboy” Fernandez was a dear friend of the director’s, both having worked in the 1981 action drama “Pepeng Shotgun.”

In “Bacao,” Direk Boy transports us to his home province of Isabela in northern Luzon. A native of Isabela himself, Direk Boy explained in an interview how corn, as their primary source of livelihood, has shaped every aspect of their society, down to the family structure. “Bacao means ‘mais’ or corn in the Isabela dialect… Since bacao is so easy to grow, you want to have a big family, give birth to more children, get pregnant again and again...The same with bacao, just plant it once, it’ll flourish.” 

 

Sa presscon ng Sineng Pambansa pawang pinuri ng mga director ang kanilang artista sa mga pelikula nila. Nakakadala daw ang bawat eksena ni Juday sa Tiyanak lalo na sa drama banggit ni Direk Peque sinabi nito na may sariling diskarte at atake sa pag arte si Juday. Maituturing naman daw na under rated actress si Regine Angeles para sa pelikulang Sigaw sa Hatinggabi at sinabi rin ni Direk Romy na Do not watch the film if you are faint of heart as it is sure to be filled with twists. Naikwento naman ni Direk Boy ang dahilan kung bakit may plus ang Horror Film Festival ng Sineng Pambansa ito ay sa kadahilanan na idinagdag ang pelikula niya dahil ang Bacao ay originally para sa Scripwriting Genre Film Festival ng FDCP na hindi naituloy ngunit natapos na niya ang kanyang pelikula kaya nagkaroon ng plus para sa genre ng kanyang pelikula na suspense thriller. 

Pinuri din ni Direk Boy ang husay sa pag arte at sa tapang  sa pagpapasexy ni Michelle Madrigal sa pelikula. Kung ang pelikulang Bacao ang plus para sa edisyonng ito ng Sineng Pambansa para naman sa Hukluban ni Direk Gil ang plus dito ay ang  tema na mala “porno” raw biro ng kaibigan niya rin na director na si Direk Joel Lamangan dahil sa maiinit na eksena sa pelikula nina Kiko Matos at Krista Miller. Naikwento rin sa presscon ni Krista ang kanyang mala horror na karahasan sa last shooting day ng pelikula kung saan siya ay muntik ng malunod at may lalaking espiritu daw na laging nakasunod sa kanya sa shooting. Malaki ang pasasalamat ng apat na director sa FDCP sa seed grant na ibinigay para sa pelikula sa suporta at sa tiwala bilang mga director upang magawa ang nais nilang gawin bilang isang artist. Sabi nga ni Direk Peque na it’s time to give honor to the artisst and its much better to do a film with tight budget na walang maraming nakikialam.

Direk Peque Gallaga, Lore Reyes, Romy Zuzara, Gil Portes and Boy Vinarao @ Presscon of Sineng Pambansa

Individual Gala Premieres of each film will be held in the week prior to the festival’s start, with “Bacao” on October. 20 at the SM Megamall, “Hukluban” on Oct. 21 at the SM North Edsa, “T’yanak” on Oct. 22 at the SM Megamall, and “Sigaw sa Hatinggabi” on Oct. 23 at the SM North Edsa. The premieres are to be attended by the films’ directors and cast and crew, and will also be open to the public for free, on a first-come-first-serve basis, due to limited seating capacity.

This year’s entries to the first ever Horror plus Film Festival stretch the limits of horror, just in time for Halloween weekend. The Sineng Pambansa HORROR plus Film Festival will run from October 29 - November 4 at SM Cinema branches nationwide.