The Relationship Between Mechanics and Thematic Contents of Film Festivals: Implications on Philippine Film Industry

Abstract

The researcher has taken interest in this study because film is one of her interests, apart from the recent decline in the local film industry, particularly in the number of film produced, as well as the number of audiences for local films. Film festivals have played a great role in the industry as they were seen as a remedy to the decline in number of films produced, quality of those that were produced and the number of audience.. Currently, the biggest film festival for commercial films is the Metro Manila Film Festival, and for independent films, the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival. The author chose CPIFF and MMFF as they are considered as the most popular or recognized festivals for their respective streams. The films sampled from both festivals were from the year 2009. The author watched all the films from the said festivals in 2009. She also conducted interviews with people from the industry. Research materials and readings were also gathered. She first presents the history of film festivals, which is followed by the objectives and mechanics of the two festivals, including the rules and regulations, criteria, and judging. These are then compared and contrasted. The plot summary and thematic contents followed. The thematic contents were determined through interviews, published articles, and through the use of film appreciation guide by Jan Bone regarding thematic evaluation. The researcher found out that were similarities between the mechanics of the two festivals, such as having a board of judges and the freedom to choose subject and thematic contents for their films. However, the criteria’s effect on the festivals’ thematic contents was still influenced by other factors, leading to the differences between their mechanics. The most notable of these differences are the criteria and choice of participants. MMFF imposes rigid structure in its festival, thus very little thematic variations were present (concentrated on 2 out of 22 themes). As opposed to this, CPIFF afforded filmmakers more freedom with the absence of restricting criteria, therefore thematic exploration was encouraged (almost evenly distributed in 18 out of 22 themes). While commercial films serve as the income-generating body of the film industry, independent films provide the pool of fresh materials. It can be seen as a venue for expansion or development of the film industry, not just in terms of profit but in content, since exploration is encouraged. It could also allow increased visibility of Filipino films in international film scene, as well as the reinforcement of the function of film as an educational medium rather than purely recreational.