KATORSE SHORTS special screening at the CCP Little Theater, July 17,
6:15 P.M.
Due to insistent public demand, the Katorse Writers Group, a
collective of young writer-filmmakers who were part of Ricky Lee's
14th scriptwriting workshop, will be having another special screening
of their short films at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP)
Little Theater on July 17, 6:15 P.M.
Katorse Shorts, as they are more commonly known, showcase short
films with themes ranging from the romantic to the absurd to the
tragic – a program that is meant to bring to the consciousness of the
Filipino audience the short film as a form that can hold its own.
Headlining the program, which is part of the fourth Cinemalaya
Philippine Independent Film Festival, is Richard
Legaspi's "Ambulancia" (Ambulance), grand prize winner of the Viva –
Pinoy Box Office (PBO) Digitales 2 short film competition and the
best short narrative at the first Quisumbing-Escandor Film Festival
for Health. It was previously screened in competition at the fifth
Naoussa International Film Festival in Greece this year and exhibited
at the Asian Film Academy 2007 Fellows Night in South Korea and ninthCinemanila International Film Festival last year. It will compete
next at the 10th International Panorama of Film and Video in Patras
City, Greece and at the 32nd Open Air Filmfest Weiterstadt in Germany
and will be shown in the Informative Section of the Pyongyang
International Film Festival in North Korea.
Showing again with Legaspi's film are similar award-winning and
internationally screened shorts such as Ogi Sugatan's "Ang Kapalaran
ni Virgin Mario" (The Fate of Virgin Mario), Grace Orbon's "Dead
Letter," Seymour Barros Sanchez's"Lababo" (Kitchen Sink), John
Wong's "Manyika" (Doll), and Anna Isabelle Matutina's "Walong Linggo"
(Eight Sundays).
However, compared to its week-long Indie Sine screenings at Robinsons
Galleria, the line-up will include two new selections from the group,
Matutina's "Ika-siyam na Palapag" (Ninth Floor) and
Sanchez's "Pagbugtaw" (Waking Up), which is part of the "Guimaras:
Short Films on the Oil Spill."
"Ika-siyam na Palapag" tells the story of a young woman's futile
attempt to reach the father of his unborn child while she wrestles
with the idea of abortion. It won third best short film at the 19th
Gawad CCP Para sa Alternatibong Pelikula at Bidyo and also competed
at the Creteil International Women's Film Festival in France and
Malescorto International Short Film Festival in Italy. It was also
exhibited at the Jakarta Slingshort Festival in Indonesia and 7th
Cinemanila.
Matutina's "Puwang" (Space Between), which was originally part of the
Robinsons Galleria Indie Sine line-up, will be screened instead as
part of the Cinemalaya 2006 Shorts B on July 18, 12:45 P.M. at the
CCP Silangan Hall. In addition, other Katorse short films,
namely "Blood Bank" by Pam Miras and "Panaginipan" (The Dreaming),
also by Matutina, will be shown on July 16, 12:45 P.M. at the same
venue as part of Cinemalaya 2005 Shorts.
Tickets to the screenings cost P50 to students and P100 otherwise.
For more information about the short films and the filmmakers, please
visit the group's website at http://katorseshort s.wordpress. com.
