APM - Asian Project Market

2023 Project

Logline

New ‘tee-girl’ Isabel, feels strangely drawn to Dr. Palanca, the president of the country club where she works. But as Isabel starts to piece together a more violent picture of what lies behind the country club’s pristine facade, she comes to realize that what began as an innocent infatuation with Dr. Palanca is rooted in a more sinister, shared history.

Synopsis

The Alabang Country Club is a 74-hectare compound boasting enough facilities to keep the creme-de-la-creme of Philippine society distracted from and unaffected by the country’s many socio-political problems. Among these facilities is the driving range where Isabel (17) works. Isabel is a ‘tee-girl’ who spends her whole day teeing-up balls for golfers as they practice swinging their steel clubs just inches away from her face. Despite being new to the job, Isabel already finds herself indulging her curiosity and often escapes the driving range to explore the lush greenery of the surrounding golf course, which reminds her of the hometown she left behind.
Out on the golf course, Isabel encounters Dr. Palanca (60), the country club president. Isabel slowly develops an infatuation for the man who presides over the country club, and is eventually given an opportunity to meet him when tasked with returning one of his golf irons. Isabel wanders the various alcoves of the country club’s facilities in search of Dr. Palanca, but never seems able to find him. Instead, she uncovers a slew of situations involving country club members, employees, and a group of visiting Chinese tourists; tableaus that paint a clearer and more disenchanting portrait of the country club and Dr. Palanca. Eventually, Isabel realizes that what began as an innocent infatuation with Dr. Palanca is, in fact, rooted in a more sinister, shared history.

Director's Statement

To my mind, the golf course is a perfect metaphor for Philippine society; a very large and fertile area of land, toiled and worked upon by so many, but ultimately enjoyed by only a privileged few. Filipinana is a film about violence. But not the kind of violence with easily identifiable victims and perpetrators, such as murder or rape. Rather, I’m interested in exploring an audio-visual language capable of depicting less visible manifestations of violence. When one can see and hear this invisible kind of violence, one comes to realize that the sound of a golf club striking a golf ball sounds uncannily like a gun-shot.

Producer's Statement

Rafael Manuel’s first feature project is an expansion of his award-winning short (of the same title), using humor to observe Filipino reality through a rhythmic and lyrical construction of absurdities in the most banal and unassuming aspects of life. It is a language that captures modern ennui and existentialism in the growing income gap of a rising Southeast Asia, conveyed in a unique tone that allows audiences to laugh first and ponder later. This disillusionment is just one reflection of many he wants to convey of the Filipino condition, one that should resonate internationally. The feature’s form is minimally complex, non-classical, musical, and morbidly humorous, promising to cement Rafael’s reputation as a director of the future.

Director's Profile

Producer's Profile