UPV professor brings Ilonggo cinema to Tokyo

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Associate Professor Kevin Pison Piamonte of the Division of Humanities, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, presented a paper at the 17th Asian Conference on Arts and Humanities, or ACAH2026, held May 9–13, 2026, in Tokyo and online.

The conference was held at the Tokyo International Forum and online, providing an international platform for scholars, artists, and practitioners to exchange ideas across the arts and humanities.

Piamonte presented his paper, “From Region to Resonance: The Language, Labor, and Legacy of Ilonggo Cinema as Cultural Counter-Narrative,” under the Media and Literature Studies session on May 12.

He also served as session chair for the oral presentation session.

His paper examines how regional filmmaking in Western Visayas, particularly Ilonggo cinema, functions as a cultural counter-narrative to the Manila-centric Philippine film industry.

Framed through postcolonial theory, vernacular cinema studies, and autoethnography, the paper argues that regional cinema should not be treated as peripheral but as central to reimagining national identity and authorship in Philippine media.

Drawing from his experience as a filmmaker and creative producer with ERK Film Production, Piamonte explored how language, location, and lived experience shape the political and aesthetic dimensions of regional films.

The study contributes to ongoing conversations on Philippine cinema, regional cultural production, and the role of local filmmaking in expanding the narratives of national cinema.

ACAH2026 was organized by the International Academic Forum, or IAFOR, in partnership with the IAFOR Research Centre at the Osaka School of International Public Policy, Osaka University.

The conference encourages academics and scholars to exchange ideas in a forum that promotes dialogue across national and disciplinary borders.

Piamonte is an associate professor and UP Artist 2 at UP Visayas, where he teaches film and advertising in the Communication and Media Studies program.

He completed his graduate studies at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom under the British Council’s Chevening Awards.

He is also an award-winning filmmaker, fiction writer, and theater director whose works have been recognized in local and international platforms.

Among his notable works are “Solo,” which won best short film at the 69th FAMAS Awards, and “Lugta Ke Tamama (Land from God),” which screened at the Busan International Film Festival.

His other works have also been selected and recognized in film festivals such as FACINE, BINISAYA, the Mindanao Film Festival, Gawad Alternatibo, and other international platforms.

Piamonte’s participation in ACAH2026 affirms UP Visayas’ continuing contribution to scholarship and creative practice in the humanities.

It also highlights the university’s role in advancing regional cinema, Ilonggo cultural expression, and Philippine media studies in international academic spaces.