Lino Brocka
Encyclopedia
Catalino Ortiz Brocka is known as one of the greatest film director
s of the Philippines
. Brocka was openly homosexual and many of his films incorporated LGBT
themes into their often dramatic storylines.
Brocka was born in Pilar
, Sorsogon
. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music
and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago!.
In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (Weighed But Found Wanting), which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).
The following year he directed Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm
http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,421014,00.html. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila
looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso. The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography
by Mike de Leon
, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.
In 1976, Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light) won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.
Insiang
(1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival
. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum
area, Tondo
. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.
The film Jaguar
(1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or
at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival
. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.
In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.
In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr.
, eventually becoming one of the progressive organizations representing artists and cultural workers in the country.
The following year, Bayan Ko (This Is My Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos
, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival
, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.
Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer
(1988), which had to be secretly smuggled out of the country to avoid government censorship, Fight for Us
(1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).
For his fight against the Marcos regime, Brocka, in 1986 was appointed by President Corazon Aquino
to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
to draft a new constitution for the country. During his tenure in the commission, he eventually resigned.
In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival
.
On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City
, Metro Manila
. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film
.
His nephew Allan
is an American
film and television director.
Catalino Ortiz Brocka (April 3, 1939–May 21, 1991) is known as one of the greatest film director
s of the Philippines
. Brocka was openly homosexual and many of his films incorporated LGBT
themes into their often dramatic storylines.
Brocka was born in Pilar
, Sorsogon
. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music
and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago!.
In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (Weighed But Found Wanting), which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).
The following year he directed Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm
http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,421014,00.html. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila
looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso. The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography
by Mike de Leon
, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.
In 1976, Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light) won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.
Insiang
(1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival
. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum
area, Tondo
. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.
The film Jaguar
(1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or
at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival
. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.
In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.
In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr.
, eventually becoming one of the progressive organizations representing artists and cultural workers in the country.
The following year, Bayan Ko (This Is My Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos
, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival
, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.
Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer
(1988), which had to be secretly smuggled out of the country to avoid government censorship, Fight for Us
(1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).
For his fight against the Marcos regime, Brocka, in 1986 was appointed by President Corazon Aquino
to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
to draft a new constitution for the country. During his tenure in the commission, he eventually resigned.
In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival
.
On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City
, Metro Manila
. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film
.
His nephew Allan
is an American
film and television director.
Catalino Ortiz Brocka (April 3, 1939–May 21, 1991) is known as one of the greatest film director
s of the Philippines
. Brocka was openly homosexual and many of his films incorporated LGBT
themes into their often dramatic storylines.
Brocka was born in Pilar
, Sorsogon
. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music
and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago!.
In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (Weighed But Found Wanting), which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).
The following year he directed Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm
http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,421014,00.html. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila
looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso. The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography
by Mike de Leon
, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.
In 1976, Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light) won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.
Insiang
(1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival
. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum
area, Tondo
. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.
The film Jaguar
(1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or
at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival
. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.
In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.
In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr.
, eventually becoming one of the progressive organizations representing artists and cultural workers in the country.
The following year, Bayan Ko (This Is My Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos
, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival
, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.
Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer
(1988), which had to be secretly smuggled out of the country to avoid government censorship, Fight for Us
(1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).
For his fight against the Marcos regime, Brocka, in 1986 was appointed by President Corazon Aquino
to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
to draft a new constitution for the country. During his tenure in the commission, he eventually resigned.
In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival
.
On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City
, Metro Manila
. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film
.
His nephew Allan
is an American
film and television director.
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
s of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Brocka was openly homosexual and many of his films incorporated LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
themes into their often dramatic storylines.
Brocka was born in Pilar
Pilar, Sorsogon
Pilar is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sorsogon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 57,898 people in 10,883 households.-Barangays:Pilar is politically subdivided into 49 barangays...
, Sorsogon
Sorsogon
Sorsogon is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region; it is the southernmost province in Luzon and is subdivided into fourteen municipalities and one city. Its capital is Sorsogon City and borders the province of Albay to the north...
. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music (film)
Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical film directed by Robert Wise and starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The film is based on the Broadway musical The Sound of Music, with songs written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and with the musical...
and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago!.
In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (Weighed But Found Wanting), which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).
The following year he directed Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm is a British film critic and historian.Malcolm was educated at Eton College and Oxford University. He worked for several decades as a film critic for The Guardian, having previously been an amateur jockey and the paper's first horse racing correspondent. In 1977, he was a member of...
http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,421014,00.html. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso. The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
by Mike de Leon
Mike de Leon
Miguel Pamintuan de Leon is a noted Filipino film director, cinematographer, scripwriter and film producer. His is also known as Mike de Leon. He was born in Manila on May 24, 1947 to Manuel de Leon and Imelda Pamintuan...
, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.
In 1976, Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light) won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.
Insiang
Insiang
Insiang is a 1976 Filipino drama film from the late director Lino Brocka, adapted from the teleplay of the same name by Mario O'Hara , which tells of a young poverty-ridden woman who seeks revenge for those who have ruined her life. The film stars Hilda Koronel, Mona Lisa, Ruel Vernal and Rez Crotez...
(1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival
1978 Cannes Film Festival
The 31st Cannes Film Festival was held on May 16-30. This festival saw the introduction of a new non-competitive section, 'Un Certain Regard', which replaces 'Les Yeux Fertiles' , 'L'Air du temps' and 'Le Passé composé'.- Jury :*Alan J...
. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum
Slum
A slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
area, Tondo
Tondo, Manila
Tondo is a district of Manila, Philippines. The locale has existed prior to the arrival of the Spanish, referred to as "Tundun" in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription. One of the most densely populated areas of land in the world, Tondo is located in the northwest portion of the city and is primarily...
. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.
The film Jaguar
Jaguar (film)
Jaguar is a 1979 Filipino drama film directed by Lino Brocka. It was entered into the 1980 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Phillip Salvador - Poldo* Amy Austria - Cristy* Menggie Cobarrubias - Sonny* Anita Linda - Mother* Johnny Delgado - Direk...
(1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival
1980 Cannes Film Festival
The 33rd Cannes Film Festival was held on May 9-23. The showing of Andrei Tarkovsky's film Stalker is interrupted by an electricians strike.- Jury :*Kirk Douglas *Ken Adam *Robert Benayoun *Veljko Bulajić...
. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.
In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.
In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Benigno Simeon "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. was a Filipino Senator and a former Governor of Tarlac. Aquino, together with Gerry Roxas and Jovito Salonga, formed the leadership of the opposition to the Marcos regime in the years leading to the imposition of martial law in the Philippines...
, eventually becoming one of the progressive organizations representing artists and cultural workers in the country.
The following year, Bayan Ko (This Is My Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival
1984 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Dirk Bogarde *Franco Cristaldi *Michel Deville *Stanley Donen *Istvan Dosai *Arne Hestenes *Isabelle Huppert *Ennio Morricone...
, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.
Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer
Macho Dancer
Macho Dancer is a 1988 Philippine film, directed Lino Brocka, which explores the harsh realities of a young, poor, rural gay man, who after being dumped by his American boyfriend, is forced to make a living for himself in Manila's seamy red-light district...
(1988), which had to be secretly smuggled out of the country to avoid government censorship, Fight for Us
Fight for Us
Fight for Us is a 1989 Filipino political thriller film directed by Lino Brocka. The film stars Phillip Salvador and Dina Bonnevie.-Plot:...
(1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).
For his fight against the Marcos regime, Brocka, in 1986 was appointed by President Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986
The Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986 was the commission of the tasked to draft the Constitution of the Philippines in 1986.-Legislation:-Members: Resigned-See also:*Congress of the Philippines*Senate of the Philippines...
to draft a new constitution for the country. During his tenure in the commission, he eventually resigned.
In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
.
On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City
Quezon City
Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
, Metro Manila
Metro Manila
Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...
. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film
National Artist of the Philippines
A National Artist of the Philippines is a title given to a Filipino who has been given the highest recognition for having made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts...
.
His nephew Allan
Q. Allan Brocka
Quenton Allan Brocka is an award-winning American television and film director based in West Hollywood, California. He has directed and written a number of feature films while creating an animated television series for the Logo cable network...
is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film and television director.
Catalino Ortiz Brocka (April 3, 1939–May 21, 1991) is known as one of the greatest film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
s of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Brocka was openly homosexual and many of his films incorporated LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
themes into their often dramatic storylines.
Brocka was born in Pilar
Pilar, Sorsogon
Pilar is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sorsogon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 57,898 people in 10,883 households.-Barangays:Pilar is politically subdivided into 49 barangays...
, Sorsogon
Sorsogon
Sorsogon is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region; it is the southernmost province in Luzon and is subdivided into fourteen municipalities and one city. Its capital is Sorsogon City and borders the province of Albay to the north...
. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music (film)
Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical film directed by Robert Wise and starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The film is based on the Broadway musical The Sound of Music, with songs written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and with the musical...
and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago!.
In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (Weighed But Found Wanting), which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).
The following year he directed Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm is a British film critic and historian.Malcolm was educated at Eton College and Oxford University. He worked for several decades as a film critic for The Guardian, having previously been an amateur jockey and the paper's first horse racing correspondent. In 1977, he was a member of...
http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,421014,00.html. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso. The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
by Mike de Leon
Mike de Leon
Miguel Pamintuan de Leon is a noted Filipino film director, cinematographer, scripwriter and film producer. His is also known as Mike de Leon. He was born in Manila on May 24, 1947 to Manuel de Leon and Imelda Pamintuan...
, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.
In 1976, Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light) won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.
Insiang
Insiang
Insiang is a 1976 Filipino drama film from the late director Lino Brocka, adapted from the teleplay of the same name by Mario O'Hara , which tells of a young poverty-ridden woman who seeks revenge for those who have ruined her life. The film stars Hilda Koronel, Mona Lisa, Ruel Vernal and Rez Crotez...
(1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival
1978 Cannes Film Festival
The 31st Cannes Film Festival was held on May 16-30. This festival saw the introduction of a new non-competitive section, 'Un Certain Regard', which replaces 'Les Yeux Fertiles' , 'L'Air du temps' and 'Le Passé composé'.- Jury :*Alan J...
. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum
Slum
A slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
area, Tondo
Tondo, Manila
Tondo is a district of Manila, Philippines. The locale has existed prior to the arrival of the Spanish, referred to as "Tundun" in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription. One of the most densely populated areas of land in the world, Tondo is located in the northwest portion of the city and is primarily...
. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.
The film Jaguar
Jaguar (film)
Jaguar is a 1979 Filipino drama film directed by Lino Brocka. It was entered into the 1980 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Phillip Salvador - Poldo* Amy Austria - Cristy* Menggie Cobarrubias - Sonny* Anita Linda - Mother* Johnny Delgado - Direk...
(1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival
1980 Cannes Film Festival
The 33rd Cannes Film Festival was held on May 9-23. The showing of Andrei Tarkovsky's film Stalker is interrupted by an electricians strike.- Jury :*Kirk Douglas *Ken Adam *Robert Benayoun *Veljko Bulajić...
. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.
In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.
In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Benigno Simeon "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. was a Filipino Senator and a former Governor of Tarlac. Aquino, together with Gerry Roxas and Jovito Salonga, formed the leadership of the opposition to the Marcos regime in the years leading to the imposition of martial law in the Philippines...
, eventually becoming one of the progressive organizations representing artists and cultural workers in the country.
The following year, Bayan Ko (This Is My Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival
1984 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Dirk Bogarde *Franco Cristaldi *Michel Deville *Stanley Donen *Istvan Dosai *Arne Hestenes *Isabelle Huppert *Ennio Morricone...
, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.
Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer
Macho Dancer
Macho Dancer is a 1988 Philippine film, directed Lino Brocka, which explores the harsh realities of a young, poor, rural gay man, who after being dumped by his American boyfriend, is forced to make a living for himself in Manila's seamy red-light district...
(1988), which had to be secretly smuggled out of the country to avoid government censorship, Fight for Us
Fight for Us
Fight for Us is a 1989 Filipino political thriller film directed by Lino Brocka. The film stars Phillip Salvador and Dina Bonnevie.-Plot:...
(1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).
For his fight against the Marcos regime, Brocka, in 1986 was appointed by President Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986
The Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986 was the commission of the tasked to draft the Constitution of the Philippines in 1986.-Legislation:-Members: Resigned-See also:*Congress of the Philippines*Senate of the Philippines...
to draft a new constitution for the country. During his tenure in the commission, he eventually resigned.
In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
.
On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City
Quezon City
Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
, Metro Manila
Metro Manila
Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...
. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film
National Artist of the Philippines
A National Artist of the Philippines is a title given to a Filipino who has been given the highest recognition for having made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts...
.
His nephew Allan
Q. Allan Brocka
Quenton Allan Brocka is an award-winning American television and film director based in West Hollywood, California. He has directed and written a number of feature films while creating an animated television series for the Logo cable network...
is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film and television director.
Catalino Ortiz Brocka (April 3, 1939–May 21, 1991) is known as one of the greatest film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
s of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Brocka was openly homosexual and many of his films incorporated LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
themes into their often dramatic storylines.
Brocka was born in Pilar
Pilar, Sorsogon
Pilar is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sorsogon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 57,898 people in 10,883 households.-Barangays:Pilar is politically subdivided into 49 barangays...
, Sorsogon
Sorsogon
Sorsogon is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region; it is the southernmost province in Luzon and is subdivided into fourteen municipalities and one city. Its capital is Sorsogon City and borders the province of Albay to the north...
. He directed his first film, Wanted: Perfect Mother, based on The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music (film)
Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music is a 1965 American musical film directed by Robert Wise and starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The film is based on the Broadway musical The Sound of Music, with songs written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and with the musical...
and a local comic serial, in 1970. It won an award for best screenplay at the 1970 Manila Film Festival. Later that year he also won the Citizen’s Council for Mass Media's best-director award for the film Santiago!.
In 1974 Brocka directed Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (Weighed But Found Wanting), which told the story of a teenager growing up in a small town amid its petty and gross injustices. It was a box-office hit, and earned Brocka another best-director award, this time from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS).
The following year he directed Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light), which is considered by many critics to be the greatest Philippine film ever made - including British film critic and historian Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm is a British film critic and historian.Malcolm was educated at Eton College and Oxford University. He worked for several decades as a film critic for The Guardian, having previously been an amateur jockey and the paper's first horse racing correspondent. In 1977, he was a member of...
http://film.guardian.co.uk/Century_Of_Films/Story/0,,421014,00.html. The film tells the allegorical tale of a young provincial named Julio Madiaga who goes to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
looking for his lost love, Ligaya Paraiso. The episodic plot has him careering from one adventure to another until he finally finds Ligaya. Much of the film's greatness can be traced to the excellent cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
by Mike de Leon
Mike de Leon
Miguel Pamintuan de Leon is a noted Filipino film director, cinematographer, scripwriter and film producer. His is also known as Mike de Leon. He was born in Manila on May 24, 1947 to Manuel de Leon and Imelda Pamintuan...
, who would become a great Filipino filmmaker himself.
In 1976, Maynila: Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag (The Claws of Light) won the FAMAS awards for best picture, best director, best actor, and best supporting actor.
Insiang
Insiang
Insiang is a 1976 Filipino drama film from the late director Lino Brocka, adapted from the teleplay of the same name by Mario O'Hara , which tells of a young poverty-ridden woman who seeks revenge for those who have ruined her life. The film stars Hilda Koronel, Mona Lisa, Ruel Vernal and Rez Crotez...
(1978) was the first Philippine film ever shown at the Cannes Film Festival
1978 Cannes Film Festival
The 31st Cannes Film Festival was held on May 16-30. This festival saw the introduction of a new non-competitive section, 'Un Certain Regard', which replaces 'Les Yeux Fertiles' , 'L'Air du temps' and 'Le Passé composé'.- Jury :*Alan J...
. It is considered to be one of Brocka's best films — some say his masterpiece. The film centers on a young woman named Insiang who lives in the infamous Manila slum
Slum
A slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
area, Tondo
Tondo, Manila
Tondo is a district of Manila, Philippines. The locale has existed prior to the arrival of the Spanish, referred to as "Tundun" in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription. One of the most densely populated areas of land in the world, Tondo is located in the northwest portion of the city and is primarily...
. It is a Shakespearean tragedy that deals with Insiang's rape by her mother's lover, and her subsequent revenge.
The film Jaguar
Jaguar (film)
Jaguar is a 1979 Filipino drama film directed by Lino Brocka. It was entered into the 1980 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Phillip Salvador - Poldo* Amy Austria - Cristy* Menggie Cobarrubias - Sonny* Anita Linda - Mother* Johnny Delgado - Direk...
(1979) was nominated for the Palme d'Or
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival
1980 Cannes Film Festival
The 33rd Cannes Film Festival was held on May 9-23. The showing of Andrei Tarkovsky's film Stalker is interrupted by an electricians strike.- Jury :*Kirk Douglas *Ken Adam *Robert Benayoun *Veljko Bulajić...
. It won best picture and best director at the 1980 FAMAS Awards. It also won five Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture and best direction.
In 1981, Brocka was back at Cannes' Director's Fortnight with his third entry, Bona, a film about obsession.
In 1983 Brocka created the organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), which he led for two years. His stand was that artists were first and foremost citizens and, as such, must address the issues confronting the country. His group became active in anti-government rallies after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Benigno Aquino, Jr.
Benigno Simeon "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. was a Filipino Senator and a former Governor of Tarlac. Aquino, together with Gerry Roxas and Jovito Salonga, formed the leadership of the opposition to the Marcos regime in the years leading to the imposition of martial law in the Philippines...
, eventually becoming one of the progressive organizations representing artists and cultural workers in the country.
The following year, Bayan Ko (This Is My Country) was deemed subversive by the government of Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
, and underwent a legal battle to be shown in its uncut form. At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival
1984 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Dirk Bogarde *Franco Cristaldi *Michel Deville *Stanley Donen *Istvan Dosai *Arne Hestenes *Isabelle Huppert *Ennio Morricone...
, however, it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. It garnered four honors at the 1986 Gawad Urian Awards, including best picture.
Brocka directed over forty films. Some of his other notable works are Macho Dancer
Macho Dancer
Macho Dancer is a 1988 Philippine film, directed Lino Brocka, which explores the harsh realities of a young, poor, rural gay man, who after being dumped by his American boyfriend, is forced to make a living for himself in Manila's seamy red-light district...
(1988), which had to be secretly smuggled out of the country to avoid government censorship, Fight for Us
Fight for Us
Fight for Us is a 1989 Filipino political thriller film directed by Lino Brocka. The film stars Phillip Salvador and Dina Bonnevie.-Plot:...
(1989), and Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990).
For his fight against the Marcos regime, Brocka, in 1986 was appointed by President Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
to the 1986 Constitutional Commission
Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986
The Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986 was the commission of the tasked to draft the Constitution of the Philippines in 1986.-Legislation:-Members: Resigned-See also:*Congress of the Philippines*Senate of the Philippines...
to draft a new constitution for the country. During his tenure in the commission, he eventually resigned.
In 1987 a documentary entitled Signed: Lino Brocka was directed by Christian Blackwood. It won the 1988 Peace Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
.
On May 21, 1991 Brocka met an untimely death in a car accident in Quezon City
Quezon City
Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
, Metro Manila
Metro Manila
Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...
. In 1997 he was given the posthumous distinction of National Artist for Film
National Artist of the Philippines
A National Artist of the Philippines is a title given to a Filipino who has been given the highest recognition for having made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts...
.
His nephew Allan
Q. Allan Brocka
Quenton Allan Brocka is an award-winning American television and film director based in West Hollywood, California. He has directed and written a number of feature films while creating an animated television series for the Logo cable network...
is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film and television director.