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Against Oblivion: Philippine Shorts from Cinemalaya and Sundance Film Festivals

  • NYU Espacio de Culturas 53 Washington Square South New York, NY, 10012 United States (map)

Organizer: Sulo: The Philippine Studies Initiative at NYU, Espacio de Culturas at NYU, and NYSEAN

Type/Location: In Person / New York

Description:

Sulo: The Philippine Studies Initiative at NYU, NYSEAN, and NYU Espacio de Culturas are pleased to present a selection of standout Philippine short films that premiered in the 2020s at the Cinemalaya and Sundance Film Festivals.

Featured Films:

ABOGBAYBAY / SHOREDUST
PR Monencillo Patindol | 2024 | 16 min

During the COVID-19 pandemic, brothers on a remote island await the arrival of their mother’s ashes.

Cinemalaya NETPAC Award

AN SADIT NA PLANETA / THE LITTLE PLANET
Arjanmar Rebeta | 2021 | 12 min

Arjan is awakened by a mysterious voice, and he finds himself alone on a little planet called Planet I.

Cinemalaya Special Jury Prize/Audience Choice Award/NETPAC Award

BLACK RAINBOW
Zig Dulay | 2021 | 20 min

A 12-year-old boy, living with his indigenous Sambal Aeta family in the mountains, struggles to fulfill his dream of going to school and learning how to read the legal documents, forcing their community to give up their ancestral lands.

Cinemalaya Best Short Film/Screenplay/NETPAC Award
Star Awards – Short Film/Director of the Year

CROSS MY HEART AND HOPE TO DIE
Sam Manacsa | 2023 | 18 min

Exploring themes of work exploitation and sexual obsession, the film tells the story of an underpaid office worker whose deadening routine is broken by a persistent caller.

Cinemalaya Best Short Film/Director
New York Asian FF – Best Short Film
Venice IFF – Official Selection
Berlin IFF – Official Selection
Singapore IFF – Best Short Film Director
Clermont-Ferrand Shorts FF – Official Selection
Hainan IFF – Best Short Film

THE HEADHUNTER’S DAUGHTER
Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan | 2022 | 15 min

The film tracks a young indigenous woman who leaves her family and tribe behind and travels through the Cordillera mountains to try her luck in Baguio city as a modern country singer.

Sundance Best Short Film
Chicago IFF – Best Narrative Short
Clermont-Ferrand Shorts FF – Official Selection
Uppsala IFF – Uppsala Award in Memory of Ingmar Bergman

THE NEXT 24 HOURS
Carl Joseph Papa, Jasmine Mendoza-Yu | 2025 | 15 min

After a sexual assault, a young woman navigates a cold and bureaucratic system over the course of 24 hours, struggling to reclaim control of her body, life, and sanity.

Cinemalaya Best Short Film

VOX HUMANA
Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan | 2024 | 22 min

In the aftermath of an earthquake, the police find a strange man in the woods. A zoologist, a sound recorder, and a news team confront their own selves and issues of indigenous identity, modern alienation, and colonial mentality as they interact with the stranger.

Sundance Official Selection
Toronto IFF – Official Selection
Clermont-Ferrand Shorts FF – Student Prize
Valle de Guadalupe IFF – Best Narrative Short
Chicago IFF – Best Live Action Short

Registration:

To attend the event in person, please register here.

 
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Education in Rural Context: Challenges and Possibilities for Educational Access and Quality

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The Camphor Tree and the Elephant: Religion and Ecological Change in Maritime Southeast Asia