Film Development Council of the Philippines

Location, Location, Location: BALER

The city and its surrounding areas have always been the most convenient place for filming. Post-production studios abound, transportation can be found everywhere, and pretty much everything is within reach. Yet filming has not always been all about convenience. Most of the time, the scenery outside the city provides for that natural feel that any “wilderness” location should have. So what about, an untamed beach, a wild current, and an aura of excitement that stimulates our visual senses?

Enter Baler — located 230km from Metro Manila in the province of Aurora. Baler boasts of beautiful geographic formations and opens up to the Pacific, defining its unique features. During the months of February until March, waves swell up to nine-feet and serve as the main tourist attraction for surfers around the globe.

Apart from the wild waves that dominate the beaches, Baler exudes an untamed beauty that attracts beach fanatics who are tired of the usual, more commercialized beaches. Here at Baler, filmmakers can capture that outdoor reality and rawness that they’ve been looking for. And with talented crews and super low rates, what else can you ask for? Check out BALER now!

Direct to the Point

Featured Director: Brillante Mendoza

TRUTH be told, winning the much coveted Best Director award in the 62^nd Cannes Festival last May has Brillante Mendoza stunned. Besting more veteran directors like Quentin Tarantino and Ang Lee, Mendoza has not only triumphed a first for the Philippines, but has also managed to live up to his name, as he becomes one of the most important emerging directors in the world.

Dante, as he’s more commonly called, had only started directing in 2005 and since then has made nine (9) internationally acclaimed features including, KINATAY, SERBIS, FOSTER CHILD, TIRADOR and LOLA, the latter having won recently for Best Film in the 6^th Dubai International Film Festival. Working together since 2006, Dante has collaborated with the FDCP in producing the films MANORO, TIRADOR, SERBIS, and FOSTER CHILD. Despite his achievements, the newbie director has remained modest. “I don’t think I’m really the best director out there, but they just saw something different in my films this year,” he said in an interview with CNN.

The director has audiences and critics divided – some praising his ruthless depiction of realities in the Philippines, and some bashing his lopsided and impoverished view of the country. “I just like to make movies based on real life stories that depict the Philippines,” he says. But if anything, the award-winning director has guaranteed for Pinoys one thing: Filipino films can now enjoy a little more un certain regard from his international audiences.

And from now on, more will be expected of Filipino films to come.