CATEGORIES
CATEGORIES
MAMA
MAMA
by ALEXANDRA BRIZUELA
18:35 minutes | Documentary | PG
FILM SCHEDULE
August 5, 2023 6:15 PM Philippine International Convention Center
August 6, 2023 6:15 PM Philippine International Convention Center
August 6, 2023 12:30 PM Ayala Malls
August 7, 2023 3:30 PM Philippine International Convention Center
August 7, 2023 8:00 PM Ayala Malls
August 8, 2023 3:30 PM Philippine International Convention Center
August 9, 2023 12:30 PM Ayala Malls
August 10, 2023 5:30 PM Ayala Malls
August 11, 2023 12:45 PM Philippine International Convention Center
August 11, 2023 5:30 PM Ayala Malls
August 12, 2023 12:45 PM Philippine International Convention Center
August 12, 2023 12:30 PM Ayala Malls
PRODUCTION
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER/EDITOR – Alexandra Brizuela
CINEMATOGRAPHER – Joel Andrei Ramirez
ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE – Max Guanzon
SOUND – Ian Siman, Rad Pascual
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS – Grace Brizuela, Ephraim Brizuela
CO-PRODUCER – Ace Balbarez
COLORIST – JT Trinidad
LOGLINE
Two mothers courageously navigate life, clinging to hope and resilience amidst the unbearable pain of losing their children to the relentless war on drugs.
SYNOPSIS
It has been eight years since former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the killings of innocent people under the guise of eliminating drug use in the country, yet families of the victims are still seeking justice to this day. Mama follows two mothers, Lydjay and Mary Ann, whose children were killed in the war on drugs. Taking on a solemn, yet hopeful tone, the film examines how they manage to move forward for the children they still have with them, and how they fight for the ones they lost with the support of their faith and their community.
FILMMAKER’S PROFILE
A graduating student from UP Film Institute, ALEXANDRA BRIZUELA realized her love for documentary filmmaking in 2021 when she directed, produced, and edited “Guided by Sin,” a short documentary on Jaime Cardinal Sin’s involvement in the EDSA People Power Revolution. In October 2023, she was selected by her professors to represent the Philippines in the Japan Foundation and Tokyo International Film Festival Lounge Asian Film Students Exchange Program. Mama, her undergraduate thesis film, made the 2024 Yugo BAFTA Student Awards longlist in June.
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
I was never acutely aware of my privilege more so than when the pandemic hit. While I was fortunate enough to be comfortable, countless others were struggling and literally fighting for their lives. That awakened feeling has turned into some sort of guilt of having privilege in this exaggerated class divide.
We all saw this out-of-touch apathy with a lot of the privileged, but it made me ask myself if I’m also guilty of that same ignorance. In this unequal world, how could you not feel guilt for having more and not doing anything about it? I realized that what really just separates all of us is luck.
Some are just lucky enough to have a life on the right side of the tracks, and it feels like there’s not much we can do in this reality of exploitative class systems. It may seem that we feel helpless and we have no choice in that sense, but I’d like to believe that we at least have a choice to treat each other with empathy, not apathy. To be compassionate and not ignorant. To use whatever privilege we have not for our own benefit, but to help uplift others.
FILM STILLS
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I WAS WALKING ON THE STREETS OF CHINATOWN