By Pepper Marcelo

Almost from nowhere, Brillante Mendoza has risen to become one of the most prominent figures in the Filipino film industry. 

With only 10 films under his belt, he has garnered prizes and citations from all over the world, capped by the selection of his latest film, Lola, as the Best Film in the 6th Dubai International Film Festival from Dec. 9-16.

Lola bested over 513 entries in the Muhr Asia-Africa feature film section, winning US$50,000 (or P2.3 million) for Mendoza. The festival describes the independent film, which focuses on poverty, as a “simple tale, yet loaded with emotion and profound moral dilemmas.” Lola, which top-bills veteran actresses Anita Linda and Rustica Carpio, was also the country’s “surprise” entry in the Venice International Film Festival last September.

The Dubai prize is Mendoza’s third major honor in 2009 — after winning Best Director awards in the Cannes Film Festival (France) last May and in Sitges Film Festival (Spain) last October for his film Kinatay.

As is usually the case with other Filipino trailblazers who have made their marks on the world stage, it is sad to note that Mendoza’s achievements and stature are relatively unknown and underappreciated in his own country. This is partly explained by the fact that the local independent film industry, or indie, as it is popularly known, is a minor blip in the Philippine movie sector.

Be warned

Those curious or interested to watch any of Mendoza’s of movies may be in for a rough surprise. First, his films are not usually exhibited at the nearby mall or multiplex (though he has become a virtual mainstay in the international films and arts festival circuit). And though critics and fans have admired his serious, provocative films as being “thought-provoking” or “challenging,” there are some detractors that have labeled his films, such as Kinatay, Serbis and Foster Child, as “unwatchable.”

But the 49-year-old director relishes the fact that his films are so passionately debated. In an interview with Planet Philippines, he says his goal is to challenge audiences and present them with the brutal, oftentimes explicit truths, about his homeland. This, he adds, may not go over well with audiences raised on Hollywood blockbusters or on homegrown star-driven melodramas.

“First and foremost, when I’m doing a film, it has to be a truthful story,” says Mendiza. “If it’s based in the Philippines and it’s a true story, you can’t remove that – the culture, the people – whether it’s good or bad. Mga fantasy, hindi totoo yan. Wala na sa realidad. You will forever live in the delusion that it is a perfect world, and it’s not.”

Originally from Pampanga, Mendoza started in film in the late 1980s as a production designer, creating sets and backgrounds for mainstream film directors such as Chito Roño, Peque Gallaga, and Celso Ad. Castillo.       With his efficiency and unique ability to do so much with very little resources, he rapidly became one of the most sought-after set designers in the country. In the 1990s, after approximately a dozen movies under his belt, he shifted to television commercials and advertising, doing work for multinational companies such as Proctor and Gamble and Unilever.

First directorial job

In 2005, he got his biggest break when he was offered to direct the film Masahista (The Masseur). Despite the limitations imposed by a low budget, he found immense satisfaction in direct-to-video filmmaking.  

“I had an awakening, a realization,” he says. “I thought at the time I was making good money from advertising, and that was it. That was my life. I didn’t realize there was this other level of fulfillment. Eventually, I left advertising.”

Both he and the producers had modest goals for Masahista, namely, acceptance into one or more foreign film festivals. Eventually, it was accepted and exhibited in the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland.

His experience in leaving the country for the first time and interacting with Europeans was an eye-opener, which further emboldened him. “During the Q and A after the film screening, one member of the audience commented, ‘I’m not really aware of your cinema, and I’m not exposed to the Philippines, but when I saw your film, I saw your people, your culture and your country.’ I was surprised she saw all that in the The Masseur!”

Other works followed in quick succession: Tirador (Slingshot), which focused on criminal life among a group of inner city youths; Foster Child, which told the story of a poor woman taking care of abandoned children; Serbis, which is about an adult movie theater and the dysfunctional family that runs it. These works have been exhibited and recognized in film festivals all over the world, making Mendoza one of the most celebrated filmmakers the country has produced since the late Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal in the seventies and eighties.  

Making up for lost time

His directorial career started relatively late; he was 45 when he made Masahista. But film buffs were pleasantly amazed at the speed in which he was churning out film after film – from two to three per year – prompting a writer in the New York Times to comment that he was “making up for lost time.”

Mendoza says that he is not in a rush, he works almost non-stop simply because he finds complete happiness and satisfaction when doing a film. “I don’t see filmmaking as work. It’s a life. It’s something I enjoy doing everyday.”

He credits his experiences both in his career and personal life in setting the stage for his success. “Kaya pala hindi ako nakagawa ng pelikula nang mas maaga. I was building experience. I couldn’t have achieved the depth for Masahista if I made it in my 20’s.”

His successive works have always found a place for exhibition and competition in various film festivals all over the world. While Foster Child was accepted in the Cannes Film Festival for exhibition, and his follow-up film, Serbis, actually competed, it was Kinatay that firmly placed Mendoza on the word map.

“To have three successive films in Cannes is such an achievement for me,” he beams proudly.

Kinatay (Slaughter) tells, almost in real-time, of the brutal rape and murder of a prostitute as witnessed by a law student. While many critics raved about Mendoza’s vision, some came out with negative critiques of his uncompromising treatment of the grisly subject matter. Noted American critic Roger Ebert infamously called Kinatay “the worst film” he’s ever seen in all his years attending the festival.

Mendoza admits that he was initially affected by the negative criticisms, but the overall satisfaction is simply overwhelming.

“I never realized I’d go this far,” he says. “Not in my wildest dreams. Feeling ko, filmmaker na ako. Sarap ng feeling. . . I read the reviews, but I don’t have to agree with them. Maganda, pinaguusapan. My films don’t get unanimous positive reviews. Whether people say one thing or another, nagkakaroon ng discussion, and that’s what films are all about. It’s healthy.”

Mendoza wants to put all the acclaim and recognition aside and focus on making more films. “There’s so many stories I’m developing.”

Though he understands that audiences may not appreciate or even like his work, he says there is no denying that he is bringing necessary truths to light. “I want them to think and be emotionally involved in the film. I don’t want to entertain; we have enough entertainment. Especially here, with commercial and Hollywood films. I’m just trying to show an alternative cinema that you can watch once in a while and experience.”

He offers no apologies for his style, concept and focus. “I’m a filmmaker from a Third World country. I can’t present something that’s like Hollywood. I’ll show you something like this; it’s more realistic and heavy, and it’s all that I have. Ito lang ang kaya ko ipakita.”