Asst. Prof. Julie Prescott’s debut film, “Isa ka Pungpong nga Rosas,” premiered with three public screenings at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) Cinematheque, Iloilo City campus on June 15, 2024.
The short film is an adaptation of retired UPV professor Alice Tan-Gonzales’ Palanca Award-winning short story with the same title.
Starring Taw Muhammad and Yan Cortum, Isa ka Pungpong nga Rosas is advertised as “a short film about women by a woman,” with its premier coinciding with the celebration of Pride Month this June.
Prescott said that the story will “speak to different people in different ways [because] that’s what happens with the story — it takes a life of its own.”
She said the storytelling of Tan-Gonzales’ Isa Ka Pungpong nga Rosas resonates with her as a “literature person,” making it the perfect material for her directorial debut. She also mentioned that it was the first short story of Tan-Gonzales that she read.
The film shows the layers of definition of love and relationships through the eyes of the two leads.
The Isa Ka Pungpong nga Rosas’ screenplay was written by Prof. Kevin Piamonte and lensed by Mr. Ruperto Quitag and Mr. Gian Niño Genoveza.
The film was funded by ACCL Productions, an independent Filipino-American production company that aims to help budding independent filmmakers hone their craft, and supported by the Division of Humanities, including its homegrown filmmakers.
It is co-presented by ERK Film Production, DMC, and Prime Media Hub.
Only one public screening was intended for Prescott’s debut film, but the scheduled lone screening immediately reached maximum audience capacity, prompting two additional screenings. Prescott said she hopes that there will be future screenings of the film. (With sources from HumDiv)
