A special exhibition that features the interesting lives and impressive works of Philippine National Artists for Film Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal marks an early celebration of the Philippine cinema’s 100 years of existence.
Called “Brocka, Bernal and the City,” the exhibition honors the legacies of the iconic auteurs at the 12th Floor Gallery of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) School of Design and Arts (SDA) Campus.
Apart from creating some of the country’s finest films and commencing the remarkable cinematic journeys of the industry’s leading actors and actresses, both Brocka and Bernal were known as street parliamentarians during the dictatorship whose narratives encapsulated advocacies, battled political censorship, championed film workers’ rights, shared comprehensive gender depictions, and demonstrated the power of the artist in initiating social change.
The exhibition examines how the two creative geniuses used Manila as a milieu that greatly impacted on the lives of Filipinos. It features a series of user-directed film showings where the viewers can freely choose which among the significant pieces are screened.
Brocka’s “Maynila sa Kuko ng Liwanag” (1975) and Bernal’s “Manila By Night” (1980), which projected a critical reflection of the urban experience at that time, headline the selections.
Other masterpieces available on view are Brocka’s “Insiang” (1976), “Jaguar” (1979), and “Bona” (1980) as well as Bernal’s “Ikaw Ay Akin” (1978), “Relasyon” (1982), “Broken Marriage” (1983), and “Working Girls” (1984).
Two separate spaces have been allocated for the works of Brocka and Bernal, while a third area is dedicated to recent Brocka- and Bernal-inspired movies such as “Manila” (2009), starred and co-produced by Piolo Pascual, and “Anino” (2000), directed by Raymond Red.
Brocka, Bernal, and the City likewise features recorded interviews from the individuals who have worked with the filmmakers on and off the camera, to include scriptwriter Clodualdo del Mundo Jr. and actors Bembol Roco, Cherie Gil, Gina Alajar and Ronnie Lazaro.
Film scholar Ed Cabagnot, directors Nonon Padilla, Peque Gallaga, Mel Chionglo, and Jose Javier Reyes, who serves as chairman of Benilde’s Digitial Filmmaking (DFilm) Program, will also impart their insights. Pascual and
Red will share how the works of Brocka and Bernal motivated them as artists.
Contemporary artworks of the members of the Urban Sketchers of Manila that illustrate some Manila hotspots used by the two directors as shoot locations are displayed and are for sale during the exhibition.
“Film is always relevant because it is a reflection of society, and Brocka and Bernal’s films showcase that,” Center for Campus Art (CCA) director architect Gerry Torres noted.
“They were activists who voiced out what they saw were the ills of society at that time and what ills they were protesting against then are still around, some even became worse,” he added.
Spearheaded by the CCA, Torres believes that this exhibition will focus on the future crop of Benildean filmmakers-artists who continued to fight their battles despite the dangers.
“Brocka and Bernal used their craft to try to correct what was wrong in society and that is one important lesson that I hope the students see,” he shared. “I want them to remember that through their art, they can at the very least create awareness about certain issues and hopefully affect change.”
The exhibition is part of the series of activities in line with the 30th anniversary celebration of College of St. Benilde, its contribution to the commemoration of 2019 as the 100th year of Philippine cinema.
The exhibit is open to the public from January 25 to April 29, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the 12th Floor Gallery of DLS-CSB, SDA Campus, 950 Pablo Ocampo (Vito Cruz) Street, Malate, Manila.
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