ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

TWENTY-NINE year old, six-feet four, and two-hundred thirty pounds SIGFREID BARROS-SANCHEZ was born to a family of writers and artists in Vito Cruz,
Manila. At 16 years old, he wrote articles and interviewed alternative and underground musicians for 1990s Filipino rock music bible, Rock & Rhythm, while studying Political Science and trying out for a basketball varsity slot at the University of the East-Recto campus. He decided to leave school to learn more about filmmaking after watching short films done by Jon Red (“Trip”) and Roxlee (“Tito’s Wedding”), which a Humanities professor asked them to watch.
In 1999, he became part of the prestigious 11th Ricky Lee Scriptwriting Workshop and shortly after studied directing at the Filipino Feature Filmmaking class of Direk Marilou Diaz-Abaya in Ateneo. The year after, he further honed his craft at the 10th Cinema-As-Art Filmmaking Workshop at the Univeristy of the Philippines Film Center (UPFC) under Direks Tikoy Aguiluz and Raymond Red, among others.

His first job in the movie industry was as a script reader for Viva Films until he was given a chance to write his first script “Alas Dose” (2000). His next assignments include writing “Kilabot at Kembot” (2002), “Bertud ng Putik” (2003), and “Prosti” (2003) and acting for “Dos Ekis” (2001). He also wrote for TV shows like “Erik Matti’s Kagat ng Dilim” (2001) and “Darating Ang Umaga” (2003) and acted for kiddie shows like “Hirayamanawari” and “DetekKids”. In between, he was also taken as script reader for Seiko Films (2003).
His first foray into indie filmmaking was as an actor for Jon Red’s “ASTIGmatism” (2004) whom he met for an aborted project (“Balong Malalim”) back in 2001. He then acted for Khavn dela Cruz’s “Barong Brothers” (2004), Topel Lee’s “Nak Ng!” (2004), Ato Bautista’s “Sa Aking Pagkakagising Mula Sa Kamulatan” (2004), and again for Jon Red in “Boso” (2004).

Before the year 2004 ended, he was finally given a chance to direct his first two films via film grants from Cinemalaya and Cinema One Originals. The result are the black comedy “Lasponggols (Last Take, Last Shot)” and the mockumentary “Ang Anak Ni Brocka (Lino Brocka’s Son)”. Aside from these, he also wrote Topel Lee’s Cinema One entry “Dilim” and acted for other indie film festivals finalists like Mike Daganalan’s “Isnats,” Ron Bryant’s “Baryoke,” and Jon Red’s “Anak Ng Tinapa”.

Sanchez is also an accomplished music video director. He recently won Best Director plum for this year’s Awit Awards for Sugarfree’s “Hari Ng Sablay”. His next video, Hale’s “The Day You Said Goodnight” has been spending four months already in the number one spot of MTV and MYX countdowns. His third video Kyla’s “Till They Take My Heart Away” is also faring well in the charts. He was also assistant director to Bamboo’s “Hallelujah” video.

He considers his stint at the actual film shoots of his filmmaker friends and mentors Erik Matti and Jon Red his best film schools. His indie stint has freed him as an artist and has helped him in making films that will free others as well.

FILMOGRAPHY
Director, “Ang Anak Ni Brocka” (2005)
Director, “Lasponggols” (2005)
Scriptwriter, “Dilim” (2005)
Actor, “Isnats” (2005)
Actor, “Baryoke” (2005)
Actor, “Anak Ng Tinapa” (2005)
Actor, “Boso” (2005)
Actor, “ASTIGmatism” (2004)
Actor, “Nak Ng!” (2004)
Actor, “Sa Aking Pagkakagising Mula Sa Kamulatan” (2004)
Actor. “Barong Brothers” (2004)
Scriptwriter, “Prosti” (2003)
Scriptwriter, “Bertud Ng Putik” (2003)
Script Reader, Seiko Films (2003)
Scriptwriter/ Actor, “Kilabot at Kembot” (2002)
Actor, “Dos Ekis” (2001)
Scriptwriter, “Alas-Dose” (2000)
Script Reader, Viva Films (1999)

MUSIC VIDEOS
Director, The Brockas’ “Action!” (2005)
Director, The Brockas’ “Olats” (2005)
Director, Kyla’s “Til They Take My Heart Away” (2005)
Assistant Director, Bamboo’s “Hallelujah”
Director, Hale’s “The Day You Said Goodnight” (2005)
Director, Sugarfree’s “Hari Ng Sablay” (2004, Awit Awards Best Music Video)
Actor, Gloc 9’s “Christmas Rapper” (2004)

TV WORKS
Actor, “DetekKids” (2003)
Actor, “Hirayamanawari” (2003)
Scriptwriter, “Darating Ang Umaga” (2003)
Scriptwriter, “Erik Matti’s Kagat Ng Dilm” (2001)

ADVERTISING
Director, "Iya Sa Akean/ Dito Sa Aklan" (2004)
Assistant Director, "DAR-Obet" (2003)
Copywriter, Reality Entertainment (2003)
Copywriter, “Tsismis” Epilepsy TV Ad (2002, Bronze Ad Congress)
Copywriter, “Kim” Epilepsy TV Ad (2002, Bronze Ad Congress)
Copywriter, “Nagagamot Ang Epilepsy” Epilepsy TV Ad (2002)
Copywriter, “Kisay” Epilepsy Radio Ad (2002)

MY FILMS

MGA KATARANTADUHAN KO
a.k.a. SIGFREID BARROS-SANCHEZ’S FILMS

“ANG ANAK NI BROCKA”

Cast: Nonie Buencamino, Roence Santos, Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino, Soliman Cruz, Raul Morit, Rapunzel Hernandez, Bombi Plata, Ickay Eusebio, Adrian Ramirez, Ronald Tupas, Miguel Pancho, Gina Alajar, Phillip Salvador, Bembol Roco, Jaclyn Jose, Jeffrey Quizon, Angie Ferro, Joonee Gamboa, Nanding Josef, Soxie Topacio, Menggie Cobarrubias, Archie Adamos, Aurora Yumul, Geoff Eigenmann, Kris Lanot-Lacaba, Sarah Medina, Paolo O’Hara.

Crew: Mara Benitez, director of photography; Sig Sanchez, Rica Eusebio, Caloy Santos, Jr., production designers; Manie Magbanua, Jr., Emerson Torres, Wenz Clavaeria, editors; Allan Hilado, Nestor Fuentes, sound designers; Racquel Zaballero Sanchez, line producer; Rica Eusebio, production manager; Caloy Santos, Jr., assistant director; Bong Rosario, Juliet Perez, Caloy Santos, Jr., music.

SYNOPSIS
Was it possible that while filming one of his obras, “Bayan Ko, Kapit Sa Patalim,” twenty years ago that the late, great, internationally-renowned Filipino auteur Lino Brocka sired a son? What if that boy suddenly surfaces and starts going around looking for his identity? Would you believe he is the son of Lino Brocka? Is there really a son of Lino Brocka?
This is what a group of TV journalists from an investigative show of a sub-par TV station will actually prove after accidentally stumbling upon the scoop about a twenty-year old kid who says he is the son of Brocka. Armed with their video cameras that become part of the story by following the group, the journalists go around to search for clues. They go to San Jose, Nueva Ecija where Direk Lino grew up, to UP where he went to school, to Rajah Sulayman Theater where he honed his directing skills, to film sets where he spent his life, to gay bars which he frequent, to the streets where he marched, and the squatters area where he shot most of his films. However, each time they arrive at these spots, the son of Brocka, “Onil,” is always three steps ahead of them leaving them with people telling their close encounters with the boy.
“Ang Anak Ni Brocka” is a mockumentary that delves deeper into the life of the National Artist for Film. It features not only Lino Brocka as a respected person but also exposes his flaws that he is not a superhero or a saint as what others would like to paint him. The film also opens a can of worms regarding his mysterious death by car accident in 1991.
The film also features interviews with Direk Lino’s family members, friends, associates, actors and actresses he groomed, including surprise cameos of his so-called “sons and daughters” like Gina Alajar, Phillip Salvador, Bembol Roco, Jackyn Jose, Menggie Cobarrubias, Soxie Topacio, Chanda Romero, Allan Paule, Timothy Diwa, Francis Magalona, Joonee Gamboa, and others.
“Ang Anak Ni Brocka” was shown last July 30-31 at the SM Megamall as part of the Cinema One Originals Digital Film Festival.

“LASPONGGOLS”

Cast: Jeffrey Quizon, Dwight Gaston, Danny Javier, Boboy Garovillo, Jim Paredes, Joel Torre, Ronnie Lazaro, Roence Santos, Soliman Cruz, Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino, Raul Morit, Pete Lacaba, Marra PL. Lanot, Bombi Plata, Sasi Casas, Rapunzel Hernandez, Monet dela Cruz, Ickay Eusebio, Hector Macaso, Jon Red, Topel Lee, Rox Lee, Khavn dela Cruz, Randy Punsal, Kris Lanot Lacaba, Anne Magadia, EJ Salcedo, Ogi Sugatan.

Crew: Odyssey Flores, director of photography; Donald Russ Camon, production designer; Richard Barnett, Hector Macaso, editors; Allan Hilado, Nestor Fuentes, sound designers; Seymour Barros Sanchez, line producer; Anne Christine Ponce, production manager; Rica Eusebio, Hector Macaso, assistant directors; Waldee Oasan, Khavn dela Cruz, Babes Alejo, Jess Santiago, music.

SYNOPSIS
Lasponggols. Last take. Last shot. Last angle of an entire filmmaking process.
In Sigfreid Barros-Sanchez’s first film “Lasponggols,” two crewmen from a film production company (Jeffrey Quizon as the utility boy “Dido” and Dwight Gaston as the clapper “Raffy”) accidentally end up in a far-flung barrio with the production’s film equipments after a bunch of hoodlums attacked them. To obtain the assistance and hospitality of the villagers and barrio officials, the hapless duo pretend to be known yet unrecognizable Filipino filmmakers Erik Matti and Jon Red out to make a film in their barrio. As a result, the entire village becomes a microcosm of the film industry with almost everyone wanting to be a star and will do anything to become one at all cost or at least earn a few pesos from the duo’s fake movie.
The film is a black comedy of the Philippine movie industry and features the photography of one of Asia’s top young cinematographers Odyssey Flores who gave the picture a “gasera” (local lamp)-lighting night effect reminiscent of Danny Boyle’s “The Beach”. Further, “Lasponggols” also features the return to acting of Boboy Garovillo, Danny Javier, and Jim Paredes (collectively known as the Apo Hiking Society) who strut their comedic wares with independent film veterans Soliman Cruz, Raul Morit, Roence Santos, Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino, Bombi Plata, Sasi Casas, and newcomers Rapunzel Hernandez and Monet dela Cruz. The movie also features special guest appearances from Ronnie Lazaro, Joel Torre, Jon Red, Rox Lee, Khavn dela Cruz, Topel Lee, and literary figures Pete Lacaba, Kris Lanot-Lacaba, and Ms. Marra PL. Lanot.
“Lasponggols” was part of the 1st Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival which was shown last July 12-17, 2005 at the Cultural Centerof the Philippines.

"ANG ANAK NI BROCKA" REVIEW BY BILLY BALBASTRO

"ANG ANAK NI BROCKA" REVIEW
"Lino Brocka, nakakalimutan na ng movie industry?"
Billy Balbastro, ABANTE

THE Year of the Indies, indeed. As Masahista comes home from its Locarno triumph and Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros raises funds for its late August stint in Montreal and Mga Pusang Gala is making good at the tills, actor-scriptwriter-director Sigfried Barros- Sanchez, after Lasponggols, comes up once more with Ang Anak ni Brocka. The title alone makes you sit up and take notice. You think you know what to expect at first, but later realize you don't even know what the filmmaker and his film are up to. Yes, it's about time that a film like this -- a pseudo-documentary on Lino Brocka -- must be made. At this time when his clones are inhabiting showbiz and the industry and its people are forgetting him. Sad, noh? Sigfried's "mockumentary" is most welcome and frankly, in spite of its length (more than two hours about a son who never surfaces at all), the film is enjoyable viewing for us. Innovative filmmaking! And now here I wish to thank Sigfried for personally bringing me down memory lane for my Brocka experience which lasted from very early 1960's to his death in May 1991. How long ago was that! The memories are vast and many: from the time I was freshman and PRO of Wilfrido Ma. Gerrero's UP Dramatic Club during the early days at UP of Boots Anson Roa, Jose Ma. Velez and Amelia Perez who became Miss Caltex much later to the time Zenaida Latorre, Boy de Guia, Ched Gonzales did PR jobs for his films, Tinimbang ka Ngunit Kulang, Tatlo, Dalawa, Isa, Lunes, Martes, Miyerkules… Maynila sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag, Insiang. From the time, he quit UP and joined the Mormons in Hawaii, to the time he worked in Subic and later with filmmaker Eddie Romero (who became a National Artist for Cinema later than him) to the years he made some dozen films with Lea, with Aling Toreng and Mrs. Emilia Blas. Yes, Lea honed Lino -- from Wanted: Perfect Mother with Boots, Dante and Liza Lorena through Santiago, Cadena de Amor and the last Chrysanthemums filmed almost entirely in Japan. All these we missed in Sigfried's piece, which is just a search of the boy, a search in us, in the first place. * * * I have to salute Sigfried's narrative skills to make his core of a story entertaining. Especially to me who knew Brocka in his student days, even before showbiz and PETA claimed him. Ang Anak ni Brocka which was shown in the Cinema One festival late last month made an ingenious use of the struggle for ratings and network war. As its synopsis in capsule says: "It is about a group of investigative journalists from a sub-par TV station who accidentally scores a scoop that a 21-year-old boy is looking around for his identity… he claims to be the son of the late director Lino Brocka, a known gay filmmaker." We appreciate cameo appearances of the stars Brocka made -- Christopher de Leon, Bembol Roco and Phillip Salvador plus Gina Alajar and Joonee Gamboa. The brilliant use of the search for a father and the search of identity along with the current showbiz issues of the day -- ratings, boldies, network war -- makes Ang Anak ni Brocka an engrossing experience. Even though it carries repetitive visuals and faces, information and opinion. I suspect that someone told Sigfried not to "search and interview Boy C. de Guia" who was Lino's best friend and manager for a time. I miss too even a line of information that he was a Constitutional Convention delegate during Cory's time who signed with his blood like a few others. But beyond his films -- if really those investigative journalists of sub-par TV network do their homework -- Lino's legacy to the Filipino nation as well as artists is his amendment of the freedom of speech and of the press in our Constitution. He moved to add "_expression" to the whole provision and we know that "freedom of _expression" goes beyond the press and speech to include painting, sculpture, cinema and even stage plays and shows. In the film's search for Brocka's son and our identity, Sigfried tries to make a search of Brocka's identity too. It would have been better -- and more enjoyable to us who know him well -- to have touched on this. Some people we miss in the movie: If Benn and Bibsy are there with Marra, why not Haydee (Yorac) and Winnie Collas (Monsod) who know Lino too? At UP. Also, Sig's movie missed out on Lino and his case on Kapit Sa Patalim which is now a leading case on the powers and duties of the MTRCB -- to review and classify, not to censor or cut off scenes -- even up to now. When Lino and producer Tony Gonzales of the movie which went to Cannes and selected by the British Film Institute best film in 1985, I remember that Atty. Rene Saguisag and Atty. Haydee Yorac were among his counsels. And he won! I know that my column is winding and long like Sig's Ang Anak ni Brocka. Pero cute naman, di ba? As a columnist, I just want to say after this discourse: Good work and congratulations, Sig! Sana mapanood ito ng lahat. Kelan kaya ipalalabas iyan sa commercial theaters. Abangan.

"LASPONGGOLS" REVIEW BY MARRA PL. LANOT

"LASPONGGOLS" REVIEW BY MARRA PL. LANOT
Eat My Words NBy Marra PL Lanot
Lasponggols, a Review

Filipino moviemakers complain that the Philippine movie industry is dying. They blame exorbitant taxes, high cost of production, government negligence, and censorship.
Other than the above excuses, however, they refuse to admit that most recent local movies are of bad quality, show emaciated or no imagination, and underestimate the taste and intelligence of the audience. It's often action without action or story, comedy without laughs or story, love story without passion or story, and drama without conflict or story.

Producers and directors may gripe forever. They apparently do not realize that moviegoers, who have grown up together with foreign and local cinema, now try to avoid trash. Entertainment seekers have seen enough of bomba films, but they're looking for a story. They've watched a lot of escapist romances, and they're looking for a story.

Mainstream producers and directors might not be aware that a new breed of Filipino filmmakers has emerged. Thanks to Cinemalaya, the Philippine Independent Film Festival, organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines.

One very interesting entry was Lasponggols , written and directed by the young Sigfreid Barros Sanchez. He has written scripts for television, for advertising, and for the mainstream movie industry, and megged a music television video. Lasponggols is his directorial debut for a full-length feature film. (Incidentally, it's also this writer's first film appearance as a bit player in said film.)

Lasponggols is about a clapper (Epy Quizon) and a utility boy (Dwight Gaston) who dream of becoming filmmakers. When they toy with the camera, they accidentally see through the lens a drug-dealing incident. The two, bringing with them a unit van containing cameras, film stocks, lights, and other equipment, run for their lives when the gun-toting criminals chase them and kill their companions.

Quizon and Gaston hide in a far-flung barrio and pretend they are movie directors. The whole barrio people flock to the two "directors," audition for roles, and offer their services. Materialism and deceit spread, and the sleepy place jumps alive. It's a harsh look at Filipino culture and mentality, in general, and at the move industry, in particular. Shades of Himala , where fame and fortune invite corruption.

Low production budget manifests itself in poor lighting and inconsistent quality of sound. Also, some scenes are extended, which makes the film quite long.

Technical flaws aside, however, Lasponggols is stamped by good acting, especially by Epy Quizon and Dwight Gaston. Countless throwaway lines spike the film, but the message is not lost on the audience -- which is the lack of respect and compensation for the "little people" in the movie industry. Only truth and understanding can save humanity.

Sanchez rivets on his idea, his vision, and doesn't let go, does not forget his focus. Although the film may be described as a film of ideas, some cinematic touches are memorable. For instance, the videoke scene in a barrio, the close-up shots of some characters, which are so expressive even in silence, the night takes which augur ominous occurrences, and the scenes of people from all walks of life.

Gripping is the feel of the film. For the first time in the history of Philippine cinema, a whole feature film is devoted to the real experiences, heartaches, and aspirations of almost-invisible workers of the movie industry. It's not just an ordinary advocacy thing from an outsider looking in. The soul of Lasponggols comes from the very life of its filmmakers.

It's a brave work in that it boldly digs into the root problems of filmmaking without bowing to sacred cows. In fact, allusions are irreverently made to the VIPs of the industry. Despite the critical glimpse, however, the moviegoer in the end shares with the director his idea of salvation. That is, individual and social change is possible in this world.

If only everyone were like director Sigfreid Barros Sanchez, who has the heart of a child, the enthusiasm and energy of an activist, and the compassion of a human being, this world may be a better place. As scriptwriter Ricky Lee said, Lasponggols is the true spirit of an indeed film.
Indie? Indie for indigent, 'indi matapos-tapos, and, yes, independent, free and liberating. High five for the whole cast and crew of Lasponggols ! (For comments, write to marrapatricia@yahoo.com)

A CHILD OF THE MOVIES PAYS TRIBUTE TO BROCKA

FROM THE MANILA TIMES
Wednesday, August 24, 2005

‘Anak ni Brocka’
A child of the movies pays tribute to Brocka
By Dennis Ladaw

ARGUABLY, Lino Brocka was and still is the most prolific Filipino filmmaker in the country. Nearly 15 years after his death, nobody else has achieved the same kind of prominence he still enjoys.

Thus, it’s surprising that none of his peers have gone out to pay tribute to the man and his accomplishments. It had to take an indie filmmaker to pay a worthy tribute to the man who put Philippine cinema on the world map.

Writer/director Sigfried Barros Sanchez is barely 30. He was only 16 when Brocka was killed in a car accident in 1991. He was born a year after Brocka made his breakthrough film, Tinimbang ka Nguni’t Kulang. Yet Sanchez is the man who went out to make Anak ni Brocka.

Anak ni Brocka is part documentary and part fiction. In the film, Sanchez creates a scenario where a 20-year-old young man has been telling everyone that his father was Brocka. It’s an unlikely story but an intriguing one. The great director was openly gay and the idea of his having fathered a child has his closest friends rolling over the floor.

In the film, a fictional TV investigative news staff pick up on this “rumor” and in searching for this “younger Brocka,” they inadvertently get to investigate the life and times of the late director. Shades of The Blair Witch Project abound as Sanchez’s crew obtain sound bytes from the Filipino man in the street. Their reactions are hilarious while the comments from actors who worked with Brocka are more insightful.

Sanchez said he wrote Anak ni Brocka in 1998 when he attended Ricky Lee’s famous scriptwriting workshop. He recalls, “During one of the breaks, I started teasing Ricky Lee. I said, ‘You have so many possessions in your home. Who are you going leave all that to when you pass on?’ Ricky answered, ‘Don’t give me that. It’s not a problem for me. Lino Brocka never had a child, so why should I have one?’”

Sanchez refused to get Lee off the hook. He continued, ‘But Brocka has a son. I know he has a son and I’m going to find him!”

Lee didn’t find the joke funny, and neither did Sanchez’s classmates. They egged him on. Lee said, “So you say he has a son. Then go look for the boy and bring him to us!”

Sanchez admits he wasn’t familiar with the works of Brocka at that point. He was compelled to rent and borrow VHS copies of the director’s works, if only to familiarize himself with the man. Watching his films converted Sanchez, and Brocka quickly became one of his favorite directors. He wrote Anak ni Brocka and made it his class project. After finishing the workshop, he pitched the script to some of Brocka’s contemporaries, including Joel Lamangan. “None of them showed any interest in the script. They found it too weird,” he said.

Life & Times asked Sanchez if this indifference was perhaps brought about by the fact that Brocka was a vocal critic of the Marcos administration—Marcos coddled many of the leading players in the movie industry. “It’s a possibility,” he said.

Cinema One, the Filipino movie cable channel of ABS-CBN liked Sanchez’s idea and offered to finance the project. He hired a cast composed primarily of stage actors to play the motley TV crew and several name stars who had worked with Brocka. Some of them like Chanda Romero appear in the interviews while others like Bembol Roco and Gina Alajar play brief roles. Sanchez also gets some interesting quotes from Brocka’s old friends, including UP classmates Behn Cervantes and Bobby Malay and fellow artists like Jun Lanot.

Anak ni Brocka is not flawless. The fictional drama that happens to the news crew tends to bog down the film and takes the focus out of the story’s main subject. Also, the cameo appearance of Bembol Roco as a corrupt government official is awkward since Sanchez repeatedly inserts clips of Roco in Maynila: Sa Kuko ng Liwanag. Also, noted actors like Gina Alajar and Angie Ferro are on hand as working class people being interviewed by the TV reporters. Yet their scenes seem phony when compared with the brilliant footage of the real slum people discussing Brocka.
Nevertheless, Anak ni Brocka is a fitting tribute to a great artist. It’s also a priceless document that preserves a brief but shining moment in Philippine cinema. Sanchez would do Brocka proud.
Anak ni Brocka will be screened at the Cultural Center of the Philippines in September.