Cinematheque hosts Mexican film festival for Cinco de Mayo

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

The Cinematheque Center, under the Film Development Council of the Philippines or FDCP (the national government’s arm for promoting the cinematic arts) will be hosting a Cinco de Mayo Film Festival featuring 5 thought-provoking films from Mexico.

In partnership with the Embassy of Mexico, the FDCP aims to celebrate one of the most popular Mexican festivals around the world, screening a sample of Mexico’s cinema industry, and with such a wide array of films to choose from, viewers of all ages, backgrounds, and interests, will surely find a film that will leave them wanting more.

Featured films include Maquinaria Panamericana by Joaquin Del Paso (2016), Leona by Isaac Cherem (2018), Novia Que Te Vea by Guita Schyfter (1993), Cria Puercos by Ehecatl Garcia (2018), and Mas Amaneceres (2013) by Jorge Leyva.

All of these films will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles.

Maquinaria Panamericana (“Panamerican Machinery”) shows the aftermath of a machine company after the boss dies—bankruptcy, loss of employment, and lack of sustenance. The film has won top accolades at the Guadalajara International Film Festival, the Tucuman Film Festival, and the Leyva Film Festival.

The films Leona and Novia Que Te Vea (“Like a Bride”) both showcase the upsetting reality of traditional families, in which characters have to make important personal choices, showing a sentimental, more romantic side of Mexico’s film industry while catering to Filipino cultural sensibilities.

Cria Puercos (“Esmeralda’s Twilight”) focuses on the grief after the antagonist’s husband died and after her son left, which would be changed by a piglet.

Mas Amaneceres (“At Dawn”), meanwhile, focuses on the lives of two children from distinct points of life and how their actions affect each other’s lives. This film was distinguished as Best Debut Film at the 2013 Guanajuato International Film Festival.

Cinco de Mayo is an annual Mexican festival celebrating their victory over French Empire forces in the Battle of Puebla in 1862, in what is now known as the city of Puebla de Zaragoza.

Entrance is free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis. For further information, please visit the Embassy of Mexico’s official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/embamex.filipinas/ and the FDCP website at https://www.fdcp.ph/.

Interested viewers may also visit the FDCP Cinematheque Iloilo at the Ground Floor of the B&C Building at Solis corner Iznart Streets in City Proper, or call them (033) 335 0543.