The Philippines’ Lav Diaz won the Special Mention Prize in the Horizons (Orizzonti) Documentary section of the 64th Venice International Film Festival for his nine-hour entry, “Kagadanan sa Banwaan ning mga Engkanto (Death in the Land of the Encantos).”
INQUIRER EXCLUSIVE
Brad Pitt ‘stunned’ by Venice Best Actor win
By Ruben V. NepalesInquirerLast updated 08:28pm (Mla time) 09/11/2007
TORONTO, Canada—“I was stunned.”
That was his reaction, Brad Pitt told this reporter, when he received the news that he had won the Best Actor award in the 64th Venice Film Festival for his performance in “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.”
Pitt is here for the Toronto International Film Festival, where the same film is an entry.
The actor got the call from his producing partners who were in Venice for the awards night ceremonies just before his scheduled interview with this reporter’s group, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
Pitt, who won for his portrayal of America’s most famous outlaw, said he was with his partner, Angelina Jolie, when the call came through.
He recounted: “My first reaction was, ‘Huh?’ I did not expect it. It’s a great honor … to be part of the list of actors who won … I’m still processing this.”
Pitt expressed elation at Cate Blanchett’s Best Actress prize for portraying Bob Dylan in the bold, experimental “I’m Not There,” which shared the Special Jury Prize with “La Graine et le Mulet.”
He said his triumph was especially rewarding since “The Assassination,” written and directed by Andrew Dominik, was plagued by production problems and delays and took three years to make.
Casey Affleck, who plays Robert Ford, said of his co-star’s victory: “It’s a well-deserved honor for Brad. He really put himself in the hands of Andrew. He could have said, ‘I can do this on my own.’ But he submitted himself as a ‘puppet’ of Andrew in the best possible sense of the word. He gave another dimension to Jesse James.”
Dominik said, “I am thrilled for Brad. Directing him and this movie was like playing cowboys and Indians but on a more sophisticated level.”
Ang Lee duplicated his Venice triumph two years ago for “Brokeback Mountain.” The Chinese director’s “Lust, Caution” won the Golden Lion top prize award.
The Philippines’ Lav Diaz won the Special Mention Prize in the Horizons (Orizzonti) Documentary section of the festival for his nine-hour entry, “Kagadanan sa Banwaan ning mga Engkanto (Death in the Land of the Encantos).”
Brian De Palma was declared Best Director for “Redacted,” a drama on the Iraq conflict.
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www.labiennale.org/en/cinema
Lav Diaz competes in the Venice Int’l Filmfest
By RICKY LO
The Philippine Star
We haven’t heard from Lav Diaz in ages, haven’t we?
The "eccentric" director, who once dismissed entries in a Metro Filmfest as "stupid," has not only beaten lung cancer but also his colleagues to the 64th Venice International Film Festival (VIFF) in Italy which is listed as one of the Top 10 prestigious filmfests in the world.
Yes, Lav’s new film, Kagadanan sa Banwaan ning Mga Engkanto (Death in the Land of the Enchanted), is competing in VIFF which will run from Aug. 29 to Sept. 8. Kagadanan will also be the closing film of the Orizzonti Section of the filmfest.
This piece of good news was relayed to this corner by Funfare’s "international correspondent" Ferdinand Lapuz who is now in Toronto to prepare for the filmfest there in September and to cover the shooting of Echo, the Hollywood remake of Regal Films’ Sigaw by Yam Laranas who’s also directing Echo. Lapuz will do a diary-style story about Iza Calzado who’s starring in Echo with Jesse Bradford (Flags of Our Fathers) and Scottish actress Louise Linton.
Here’s an excerpt from the letter of invitation from Marco Miller, VIFF director, to Lav and Vanja Kaludercic, producers of the film retitled (for the VIFF) Death of the Poets (of which Lav is the scriptwriter, cinematographer and editor):
Dear Lav Diaz and Vanja Kaludercic,
I am happy to confirm that the film Death of the Poets by Lav Diaz is invited to the Orizzonti Section of the 64th Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica, to be held in Venice from August 29th to September 8th, 2007. The film will be premiered as part of the Orizzonti Competition and it will be screened as Closing Film on Saturday, September 8th.
Please note that the participation of the film in the Official Competition of the Mostra requires that the film will be presented in Venice as a world premiere... and that you will fill in the entry-form
I thank you for your cooperation and for contributing to the success of the 64th edition of the Mostra with the participation of your films.
I will be happy to welcome you all in Venice.
Best regards,
— MARCO MILLER
Director
Only two other Filipino films have so far competed in the VIFF, Manuel Conde’s Genghis Khan (which inspired a Hollywood movie) in the ’50s and Jeffrey Jeturian’s Tuhog in 2002.
Kagadanan was shot in Bicol and partly in Pila, Laguna, on a budget (including post-production work) of P500,000. Its running time is eight hours like Lav’s other film, Heremias Part 1. His previous films include Ebolusyon ng Pelikulang Pilipino, 11 hours; and Batang Westside, five hours, which was also shown in filmfests in Europe.
Kagadanan features a cast of non-stars, namely Roeder Camanag, Perry Dizon, Angeli Bayani, Sophia Aves and Gemma Cuenca.
Lapuz added in his report: "The 64th edition of the VIFF will be articulated according to the established outline: The Venezia 64 section will present the films competing for the Golden Lion; some of the most important works of the year will screen Out of Competition, while the Orizzonti Section is set up to provide a picture of new trends in cinema. The international short film competition Corto Cortissimo, is also in the line-up."
The members of the jury are all important figures in the VIFF’s recent history — Catherine Breillat, Jane Campion, Emanuelle Crialese, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Ferzan Ozpetek and Paul Verhoeven, with Zhang Yimou as chairman.
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Closing night honors for Lav Diaz film
By Ruben V. Nepales
INQUIRER.net
Last updated 08:17am (Mla time) 07/28/2007
LAV DIAZ'S "Kagadanan sa Banwaan ning mga Engkanto" ("Death in the Land of Encantos") has the closing night honors in a sidebar section of the coming
Venice Film Festival.
The new work of the trailblazing Mindanao-born Filipino filmmaker, described in the festival's website as "one of the astonishing new South East Asian auteurs," is
entered in the Horizons (Orizzonti) Documentary section of the prestigious festival.
Known for his audacious, marathon films such as "Batang Westside" and "Ebolusyon ng Isang Pamilyang Pilipino" ("Evolution of a Filipino Family"), Diaz is up against such directors as Jonathan Demme and Julian Schnabel. Last year, renowned director Spike Lee won the award in this category for "When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts."
The festival on the Lido, which is celebrating its 64th year, described Lav's latest opus as "The story of the great Philippine poet Benjamin Agusan, who returns to his place of birth, Padang, which has now been destroyed. Agusan lived in Russia for seven years, on a study grant, teaching and leading workshops at the university. He continued to write poetry, and published two books which describe his sadness. He made several videos, fell in love with a Slavic woman, but immediately lost a child and almost went mad. He returned in order to bury his father, mother, sister and companion, to heal wounds, or create new ones, to reminisce and reflect, to confront Mayon, with its cruel beauty, his former muse and inspiration in his youth. He went home in order to face the country he had loved and hated so much: the Philippines. "
The festival runs from August 29 to September 8.
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Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2007 20:52:47 -0400
From: Marketing - TIFF
Subject: Films from the Philippines at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival
FILMS FROM THE PHILIPPINES
Our commitment to films from the Philippines dates back over two
decades. For great directors like Lino Brocka, Toronto was a second
home. More recently we have premiered important digital films from
the new generation using this cutting edge technology to make truly
independent cinema.
2005 heralded an introduction to digital Philippine cinema with
Brillante Mendoza's first feature film The Masseur.
2006 brought Jeffrey Jeturain's Kubrador (The Bet Collector),
featuring a stunning performance by Gina Pareno; and Mel Chionglos
Twilight Dancers, which struck a balance between steamy drama and
serious social comment
2007 presents a unique opportunity to emerging and established
filmmakers in the Philippines to showcase some of the most exciting
contemporary cinema in the country today, as well as create
benchmarks in making films with limited resources in the digital
video format.
DEATH IN THE LAND OF ENCANTOS Lav Diaz, Philippines
After seven years, Filipino poet Benjamin Agusan (Roeder Camanag)
returns to his hometown of Padang after Super Typhoon Durian
devastates and buries it under mud. He wanders around the obliterated
village meeting old friends and lovers. Shot in rich black and white,
DEATH IN THE LAND OF ENCANTOS expresses an inexhaustible belief in
the regenerative power of both nature and art.
SLINGSHOT Brillante Mendoza, Philippines
An intimate glimpse into the lives of small time crooks in Manila
during a simultaneous election period and Holy Week.
PHILIPPINE SCIENCE Auraeus Solito, Philippines
Eight Philippine Science High School students come of age during the
politically volatile 80s, a time filled with excitement and fraught
with anxiety
