FILM and the HISTORY of PHILIPPINE CINEMA

FILM (also called movie or motion picture)

series of still images on a strip of plastic which, when run through a projector and shown on a screen, creates
the illusion of moving images (wikipedia.com)
combination of theater, music and visual arts
image, time (actual, diegetic), motion (24 frames/sec), sound, lighting, sequence and composition are basic
elements of a film

HISTORY

began in late 1880s with the invention of a movie camera

Initially, films were mostly shown as a novelty in special venues
movie theatre became the venue for the common people to experience the arts as opposed to the actual
theatre
Thomas Edison is credited for the the Kinetograph the first practical moving picture camera and
the Kinetoscope.
with the dilemma of synchronizing movement and sound, silent films emerged, accompanied by live musicians
like that of the vaudeville
Film d'Art (1908) in Europe paved the way in making films with a serious artistic nature, commissioning only the
best dramatists, artists and actors
WWI was the period of transition for motion pictures as the exhibition of films changed from one-reel films to
longer shows consisting of a feature film of four reels or longer
By the 1920s, the US reached its era of greatest output, producing an average of 800 feature films annually or
82% of the global total (Eyman, 1997)
Wartime propaganda created a renaissance in the film industry in Britain
The onset of US involvement in World War II also brought a proliferation of films as
both patriotism and propaganda.
War time also brought an interest in more fantastical subjects.
Cold War reflected on films manifested in themes such as invading armies of evil aliens (e.g. The War of the
Worlds)
1950s also marks a 'Golden Age' especially for Asian cinema.
The 1950s was also the first 'Golden Age' for Philippine cinema with the emergence of more artistic and mature
films, and significant improvement in cinematic techniques among filmmakers. The premiere Philippine directors
of the era included Gerardo de Leon, Gregorio Fernndez, Eddie Romero, Lamberto Avellana, and Cirio Santiago
(LVN Pictures, Sampaguita Pictures, Premiere Productions and Lebran International).

PHILIPPINE CINEMA (source: NCCA)

Theater is also the foundation of cinema in the Philippines. Theatron emerged during the pre-Spanish era while
zarzuela (a traditional Spanish one-act comic opera with satirical theme) and vaudeville (a stage show consisting
of various acts, such as singing, dancing and comedy) flourished during the reign of the Spaniards.
The Spanish Operetta or musical comedy introduced by a political deportee from Spain, Don Narciso de
Escosura, at Teatro de Binondo or Castellano in 1848, was given impetus by Don Alejandro Cubero, the father of
Spanish zarzuela in the Philippines, at Teatro Filipino on Calle Echague.
The Tagalog zarzuela found a home at Teatro Zorilla, the only surviving 19th century theater located at the
corner of Calle San Pedro (now Evangelista) and abbreviated the Iris which formed part of Calle Azcarraga (now
Recto). It provided ready material for the nascent Filipino silent motion picture.
In 1896, a Spaniard by the name of Pertierra, prepared to launch his first movie show in Manila at Christmas
Time. But for some reasons still unknown to this writing, Pertierra failed to make his presentation despite
several published announcements to this effect.

Finally, on January 1, 1897, the first four movies namely, Un Homme Au Chapeau (Man with a Hat), Une scene de
danse Japonaise (Scene from a Japanese Dance), Les Boxers (The Boxers), and La Place de L' Opera(The Place L'
Opera), were shown at the Salon de Pertierra in Escolta.
By August, 1897, Liebman and Peritz presented the first movies on the Lumiere Cinematograph in Manila. The
new cine was set up at Escolta, corner San JacintoThe inaugural show was presented to the general public in
August 29, 1897.
Antonio Ramos, a Spanish soldier, using the Lumiere as a camera, locally filmed Panorama de Manila (Manila
landscape), Fiesta de Quiapo (Quiapo Fiesta), Puwente de Espaa (Bridge of Spain), and Esceas Callejeras
(Street scenes), in 1898. Ramos thus became the first motion picture producer in the Philippines.
Among the pioneers who left documentary evidences of their visits to the Philippines were: Burton Holmes,
father of the "Travelogue" who made the first of several visits in 1899; and made the Battle of Baliwag
Film showing was not resumed until 1900. The man who opened the first hall exclusively for movie viewing that
year was a British named Walgrah who naturally called his establishment Cine Walgrah, located in Intramuros.
The second movie house was opened in 1902 by a Spanish entrepreneur, Samuel Rebarber, who called his
building, Gran Cinematografo Parisien, located in Quiapo. In 1903, Jose Jimenez, a stage backdrop painter, set
up the first Filipino-owned movie theater, the Cinematograpo Rizal in in front of Tutuban Train Station
The first story film made in the Philippines- Rose of the Philippines may have been produced on location in
Manila in 1909 by the IMP Company-- Carl Laemmele's Independent Moving Picture Company, out of which
grew the Universal Pictures Corporation.
The first picture with sound reached Manila in 1910. Though, the silent movies were never shown in silence
starting with the first show in 1897.
By 1930, the talking pictures were already one year old in the country with the showing of Syncopation, the first
American sound film, in Radio theater, Plaza Santa Cruz.
On December 8, 1932, an article came out in Graphic magazine featuring the movie, Ang Aswang (The Vampire).
The feature enthused that the said film will be the country's first talkie.
But the honor of having made the very first talkie properly belongs to Jose Nepomuceno. His Film Punyal na
Guinto (Golden Dagger), which premiered on March 9, 1933, at the Lyric theater, was credited as the first
completely sound movie to all-talking picture. Nepomuceno is dubbed as the Father of Philippine Cinema.
In 1937, the first Filipino movie to achieve international plaudit was Zamboanga, a picture starred in by
Fernando Poe and Rosa del Rosario.
Manuel Conde's Genghis Khan, released in 1950 was a rave at the Venice Film Festival in 1952; and dubbed in
French, it was shown in Paris in 1954 and was remade by Hollywood.
Undoubtedly, the 5th and the 6th decades were the Golden age of Philippine cinema with subsequent films
making a mark in the overseas scene: Kandelerong Pilak, Ifugao, Anak Dalita, Badjao, Anak ng Dagat, to name
just a few, swept awards at the Cambodian, Asia and Berlin Film Festivals.
During the 5th decade of the 20th century, Filipinos awesomely seen Hollywood's first full length picture in living
Technicolor. Filipino local producers presented too, during this period, their own full length pictures in color and
one of which was Prinsipe Amante (Prince Amante).
Board of Censors for cinematographic films was established in 1912. It was in constant operation until it was
superseded by the Board of Censorship for Moving Pictures in 1929 now the Movie and Television Review and
Classification Board (MTRCB).
The government also imposed the first taxes on film in 1915, the same year income taxes were imposed.
Realizing the importance and the contributory value of the movie industry to the government; and to have a
closer supervision and extend the much needed assistance to the industry, a Presidential Decree was issued
creating the Film Academy of the Philippines.
The 1970s and 1980s were considered as turbulent years of the industry, bringing both positive and negative
changes. The films in this period now dealt with more serious topics following the Martial Law era. In addition,
action and sex films developed further introducing more explicit pictures. These years also brought the arrival of
alternative or independent film in the Philippines.
The Philippines, being one of Asia's earliest film industries, remains undisputed in terms of the highest level of
theater admission in Southeast Asia. Over the years, however, the film industry has registered a steady decline
in the movie viewership from 131 million in 1996 to 63 million in 2004.