Boxing in the Philippine Islands

Philippines

2011

6 Min

Black and White

None

Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
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PROD Raya Martin, Arleen Cuevas

ED Lawrence S. Ang

Locarno (Corti d'artista), Rotterdam (Spectrum Shorts)

Synopsis

Boxing is a national pastime in the Philippines. Every Manny Pacquiao fight is a cause for national celebration. During the course of a match, crime rate is non-existent. The fight is projected in movie theaters, where it becomes an extension of the spectacle. On screen, aspiring boxers are undergoing training. On top of these images, the glamorous coverage of Pacquiao is transmitted back to analog signals, where his “image” finally struggles with others. –Locarno Film Festival

Director

Raya Martin

Raya Martin was born in 1984 in Manila, Philippines. He graduated from the University of the Philippines Film Institute in 2005 and worked as writer and researcher in local television, newspaper, radio and online magazines. His short film “The Visit” won the Ishmael Bernal Award for Young Cinema in Cinemanila International Film Festival, 2004, and his documentary, “The Island at the End of the World”, won best documentary at the .mov International Digital Film Festival 2005. His first feature film, A Short Film about the Indio Nacional (Or The Prolonged Sorrow of the Filipinos) won the Lino Micciche Award at Pesaro Film Festival, Italy in 2006. He is the first Filipino filmmaker to be accepted in the prestigious Cannes Festival Cinefondation Residence in Paris, France. —Independencia Films