The San Diego Filipino Film Festival (SDFFF) kicks off its fourth year Tuesday night in National City and runs through Sunday with six features and more than 50 short films.
SDFFF opens with "When This is All Over," which uses the pandemic as a backdrop to explore the social class divide in the Philippines.
In contrast to the intimacy of "When This is All Over" is the closing night film on Sunday: "GomBurZa," a historical drama of three martyr priests — Mariano Gomes (Dante Rivero), Jose Burgos (Cedrick Juan) and Jacinto Zamora (Enchong Dee).
"In the Philippines we were colonized by the Spanish and they used Christianity to colonize us," SDFFF co-founder Benito Bautista explained. "And so because of that, we were given the opportunity to become seminarians and priests. (In) 'GomBurZa,' they are the three priests, they started the rebellion for independence. They're the catalysts that actually started the rebellion."
This movement fueled advocacy for the Filipinization of the Church and the story of the priests inspired others to continue the struggle. The film program describes "GomBurZa" as "an epic tribute to the people behind the birth of our Filipino consciousness."
And a completely different tone can be found in the centerpiece film "Marupok AF (Where Is The Lie)." It's an LGBTQ+ meta rom-com mixed with thriller elements played out on dating apps and social media and directed by Quark Henares.
New this year at the Festival is the San Diego Philippine Film Trade Fair.
"It's like Comic-Con of Filipino creatives in film," Bautista said. "So on one day, Oct. 5, we will not show a single film, but we will now concentrate on exposing service providers that are of our Filipino heritage, that are contributing to the film industry, content and everything."
SDFFF lists the following as part of the expo: film and media vendors; company presentations by SIKAP's AYO and EdukSine; panel discussions with Filipino American animators from Pixar, Disney and Netflix; a panel discussion on filming and producing incentives in the Philippines; a breakout room to connect with potential partners and film/media collaborators; and an after party mixer at the SDFFF Jury Awards and Filmmakers Night for exhibitors and panelists.
The Film Trade Fair takes place on Saturday at the Liberty Station Conference Center. The wildly diverse film selections will all screen at AMC Plaza Bonita, so no better way to celebrate Filipino American History Month then to check out some Filipino film and culture this weekend. It has been such a joy to see this festival grow in just four short years.
