Cinema's Arrival in the Philippines
Pertierra, a Spaniard, attempted to launch his first movie show in Manila in December 1896. However, the show kept being postponed until January. In 1897, the movies: 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 in Manila via 60mm Gaumont Chrono-photograph projector.
Lumiere Cinematograph
A Spanish soldier named Antonio Ramos imported a Lumiere Cinematograph from Paris. Two persons, namely Liebman and Peritz, were able to present the first movies on the Lumiere Cinematograph in Manila by August 1897.
Earliest Movie Shot
In 1898, Antonio Ramos used the Lumiere Cinematograph to film Panorama de Manila (Manila landscape),
Fiesta de Quiapo (Quiapo Fiesta), Puwente de España
(Bridge of Spain), and Esceñas Callejeras (Street scenes).
First Movie Houses
Cine Walgrah, located at 60 Calle Santa Rosa in Intramuros, was opened by a British man named Walgrah. Another movie house, named Gran Cinematografo Parisien located at 80 Calle Crespo, Quiapo, was opened in 1902 by a Spanish entrepreneur, Samuel
Rebarber. Jose Jimenez, a stage backdrop
painter, set up the first Filipino-owned movie theater, the Cinematograpo
Rizal which was located at Azcarraga Street.
Rose of the Philippines
The first Philippine story film was entitled Rose of the Philippines . It was produced by Carl Laemmele's
Independent Moving Picture Company and was known as "a dramatic story from the days of the Empire".
When sound was present
In 1910, the first picture with sound reached
Manila, using the Chronophone. By 1930, the talking pictures were
already one year old in the country with the showing of Syncopation,
the first American sound film.
Film Marketing
New York and Hollywood film companies established their agencies in Manila by 1912. In 1915, the best films of Europe and U.S. were
being enjoyed by Filipino audiences, both in Manila and the Provinces.
Zamboanga
The first
Filipino movie to achieve international recognition was Zamboanga, starred in by Fernando Poe and Rosa del Rosario, in the year 1937. Hollywood director
Frank Capra praised Zamboanga as the most exciting and beautiful picture of
native life he had ever seen.
Golden Age of Philippine Cinema
The 5th
and 6th decades were the Golden Age of Philippine cinema with films engraving marks in the overseas scene. Among the films which achieved awards at the Cambodian, Asia and Berlin Film
Festivals were: Kandelerong Pilak,
Ifugao, and Anak Dalita.
Film Producers Association
In 1911, the first association
of motion picture producers and distributors was organized by
American, Spanish, Filipino producers and theater managers to fight the imposition of censorship and to lobby against taxes.
Censorship and Taxes
In 1912, the Government
established the Board of Censors for cinematographic films. It was succeeded by the Board of Censorship for
Moving Pictures in 1929. This is now the Movie and Television Review and
Classification Board (MTRCB).
Film Academy
A Presidential Decree was issued creating the
Film Academy of the Philippines. Under its umbrella are the different
organizations of the industry's working forces:
- MOWELFUND - Movie Welfare Fund
- KAPP - Katipunan ng mga Artista ng Pelikulang Pilipino
- KDPP -Kapisanan ng mga Director ng Pelikulang Pilipino
- DGPI - Directors Guild of the Philippines, Inc.
- SGP - Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines
- FEGMP - Film Editors Guild for Motion Pictures
- PDGP -Production Designers Guild of the Philippines
- STAMP - Sound Technicians Association for Motion Pictures
- ADPM - Assistant Directors and Production Managers
- FSC - Filipino Society of Cinematographers
- UFIMDAP- United Film Music Directors Association of the Philippines
- OSFILM - Organization of Specialized Filmmakers
- AFW - Actor's Workshop Foundation
- PMPPA - Philippine Motion Picture Producers Association
- MPDAP - Movie Producers & Distributors Association of the Philippines
Film
as an Effective Medium
It was Jose Nepomuceno
who came on the scene and realized the challenge and promise of cinema from
a different perspective. He saw cinema, not only as a profitable
entertainment fare, but as a unique medium with which to document the
unfolding development of the Philippines.
Government's Recognition of Cinema's Relevance
The Philippine
Commission recognized early the potential of cinema as a tool of
communication and information, so that in 1909, the Bureau of Science bought
a complete filmmaking unit and laboratory from Pathe, and sent its chief
photographer, the American, Charles Martin, to France to train for a year.
Effect of Global Economic Trends on Cinema
Big movie studios in
Hollywood, such as 20th Century Fox, MGM, Paramount, Columbia, Universal;
and in the Philippines- the famous Big-Four- Premiere Production, Sampaguita
Pictures, LVN Studio, Lebran Production, are all virtually closed down due
to the proliferation of individual and collective modes of film production.
Article Reference:
Arsenio "Boots" Bautista. “History of Philippine
Cinema”. http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?i=115&igm=1
Photo Sources (in
chronological order):
