Promising Filipino entertainment

People who really know me understand that I am nationalistic. I have big dreams for the Filipinos and the Philippines but that would be another post. For now, allow me to start with a particular sector - Filipino entertainment. In the recent holidays, Filipino movies were allowed to be shown  without any competition from foreign films, via the Metro Manila film festival. I promised myself that inasmuch as I watch foreign movies, I should watch local movies. My family and I watched Sisterakas this weekend. I would honestly say that it wasn't the quality I expected from Star Cinema. I've been watching local movies, especially those of Star Cinema. However, if its sole purpose was to give the people a good laugh then I think it's just fair to say that it achieved such purpose. It felt like the characters were simply doing stand up comedy. Understand that people are providing negative comments about the movie but to me, I think Filipinos still chose it over the other movies because they wanted to relax and have a good laugh over the holidays.

John Lloyd-Bea tandem is always a hit but I learned that their latest teleseries is about to end. It didn't have a good run. This should be a realization to Filipino film makers and entertainers. We should try to reinvent teleseries and movies. I think we've been tired from watching dramatic soap operas. The story line would start differently but would end up in the same path as other soap operas - lead star and antagonist switched at birth, two guys chasing the same damsel in distress, antagonist reaching the height of violence to make it hard for the lead starts, etc. Filipino entertainers and filmmakers should learn from Asianovelas. Most of them have light story lines and with minimal violence. Their culture is also highlighted. Most Koreanovelas I watched are conservative. Filipino teleseries and movies would star bankable young stars and love teams. They would play the roles of characters beyond their real age; some of the themes are even too mature for these actors.

I believe that if we want Filipino entertainment to flourish like our Asian neighbors, we should be different. We should not copy our Western and Asian neighbors. We should stop doing revivals or remakes and explore other talents and story lines. We should also be proud of our rich culture and let it show in our movies and teleseries. We need to show the world the "Filipino brand" of entertainment.

I find great promise in plays and theatrical performances. I think we should support these shows. At the same time, producers should show local production as well. Some plays are actually local production of international plays like miss Saigon, phantom of the opera, etc. I think we should have more of Ramahari and other locally made plays.

If I was younger, I might not admit that I am watching local movies or shows. Why? Because some people associate watching local movies and shows as "jologs," and cheesy. You are not posh if you watch local shows. You are not intellectual either. I think we should also change this mindset. We should support our own. Yes, not all local movies and shows are great but not all foreign materials are great either. To make Filipino entertainment flourish, the effort should be the same between the Filipino viewers and the entertainers. The Filipino entertainers should provide quality shows and movies. The Filipinos, in return, should acknowledge and support local productions.