Barako at Robinsons Galleria's Indie Sine

We take a break from our Boracay Series for awhile. I received an e-mail from a classmate of mine in a Marra Lanot feature-writing workshop, Gina Verdolaga about the Indie Film Barako. Gina is now the media coordinator for East Indie Pictures.

Barako will be having its commercial run from July 9-15, 2008 at Robinsons Galleria's Indie Sine (Cinema 8). The press release describes Barako as "...a thought-provoking, relevant commentary of our times..." The movie premiered at the Cinemalaya at the Cultural Center of the Philippines last year.

The director of the film is Manolo C. Sulit, a poet and author from Batangas. He takes "...a slice of his hometown's history and created a story about how a young man galvanizes his town mates into actively participating in their community's economic and political growth, painting an evolved picture of Philippine democracy as the narrative recalled Filipino losses in the Philippine-American war..."

Emman Pascual is co-director for the movie and is also director of photography. The movie stars Arnold Reyes, Leo Martinez, and features poets Vim Nadera, Mike Coroza, and even National Artist for Literature, Bienvenido Lumbera.

Barako has the support of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA). You can check out their website at www.barakothemovie.com You can also view and search for the trailer at YouTube.

As for Gina, it has been years since we corresponded so it was good to hear from her again. She came out with her first book in 2006 under NCCA's Ubod: New Authors series. She likewise writes a monthly movie review column for Fish, a teen zine of Shepherd's Voice Publications, Inc.

So, watch a movie and check Barako out! We will back to regular programming (Boracay), next time.