All of us have our own “Sariling Dwende”.
This was a message given by the renowned Father of Independent Film, Kidlat Tahimik, in his acceptance of the 2009 Gawad Plaridel Award held in UP- Diliman on July 10.
“Sariling Dwende”, a term coined by Tahimik during his time as an independent film maker in the late 1970s, is something inherent inside of us that make us unique from other individuals, he said.
Relating it to Independent Films, Tahimik said that his films express his own “sariling dwende” by using unorthodox style in film making like in his famous works in Mababangong Bangungot (Perfumed Nightmare) and Turumba.
“Independent films are films that express ‘yung sarili mong dwende’ because that is who you are, that is your identity like nobody else’s. It is your unique view of the world,” he said in a press statement.
This vision is something that is inherent in the Filipino culture and should be looked into when developing these types of films, he said.
Tahimik’s love for independent film making comes from his desire to make a movie in his own unique way. He said that his “Sariling Dwende” urged him to create original films than that of the mainstream cinema.
Tahimik also stresses the importance of promoting our own culture in developing out “Sariling Dwende”, saying that Filipino culture should be embraced more than other cultures.
“I’m not against American Idol or anything, but our own culture is better,” he remarked.
Tahimik often gets his inspiration from the ethnic Cordillerans, stressing that this group is one of the “Indi-Genius” (Indigenous Geniuses) tribes of the country.
Since his return to Baguio in the late 1970s, he has been fascinated by the Cordillerans’ unique culture and way of life. He uses this fascination to bring out his artistic vision to the world.
This love for the Philippine culture was the reason why Tahimik changed his name from Eric De Guia, hoping that people would remove biases from his Spanish-European name. As to why he chose Kidlat Tahimik, his answer was simple---- it is the pure embodiment of energy.
“Kidlat is pure energy. Iyon ang spiritual aspiration ko (Lightning is pure energy. That is my spiritual aspiration),” he said.
Tahimik’s outstanding contributions to the Philippine independent cinema had earned him the right to be the recipient of the 2009 Gawad Plaridel Award.
The Gawad Plaridel Award is the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication’s culminating event, honoring media practitioners whose exemplary achievements and public service in the field of print, television, film, radio and the new media had rocked the foundations of the media industry.
Established in 2004, the Gawad Plaridel Award has given praise to pillars of the media Industry. Among them were Eugenia Apostol (Journalism, 2004), Vilma Santos-Recto (Film, 2005), Fideliat “Tiya Dely” Magpayo (Radio, 2006), Cecilia “Che Che” Lazaro (Television, 2007) and Pachico Seares (Community Journalism, 2008).
This was a message given by the renowned Father of Independent Film, Kidlat Tahimik, in his acceptance of the 2009 Gawad Plaridel Award held in UP- Diliman on July 10.
“Sariling Dwende”, a term coined by Tahimik during his time as an independent film maker in the late 1970s, is something inherent inside of us that make us unique from other individuals, he said.
Relating it to Independent Films, Tahimik said that his films express his own “sariling dwende” by using unorthodox style in film making like in his famous works in Mababangong Bangungot (Perfumed Nightmare) and Turumba.
“Independent films are films that express ‘yung sarili mong dwende’ because that is who you are, that is your identity like nobody else’s. It is your unique view of the world,” he said in a press statement.
This vision is something that is inherent in the Filipino culture and should be looked into when developing these types of films, he said.
Tahimik’s love for independent film making comes from his desire to make a movie in his own unique way. He said that his “Sariling Dwende” urged him to create original films than that of the mainstream cinema.
Tahimik also stresses the importance of promoting our own culture in developing out “Sariling Dwende”, saying that Filipino culture should be embraced more than other cultures.
“I’m not against American Idol or anything, but our own culture is better,” he remarked.
Tahimik often gets his inspiration from the ethnic Cordillerans, stressing that this group is one of the “Indi-Genius” (Indigenous Geniuses) tribes of the country.
Since his return to Baguio in the late 1970s, he has been fascinated by the Cordillerans’ unique culture and way of life. He uses this fascination to bring out his artistic vision to the world.
This love for the Philippine culture was the reason why Tahimik changed his name from Eric De Guia, hoping that people would remove biases from his Spanish-European name. As to why he chose Kidlat Tahimik, his answer was simple---- it is the pure embodiment of energy.
“Kidlat is pure energy. Iyon ang spiritual aspiration ko (Lightning is pure energy. That is my spiritual aspiration),” he said.
Tahimik’s outstanding contributions to the Philippine independent cinema had earned him the right to be the recipient of the 2009 Gawad Plaridel Award.
The Gawad Plaridel Award is the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication’s culminating event, honoring media practitioners whose exemplary achievements and public service in the field of print, television, film, radio and the new media had rocked the foundations of the media industry.
Established in 2004, the Gawad Plaridel Award has given praise to pillars of the media Industry. Among them were Eugenia Apostol (Journalism, 2004), Vilma Santos-Recto (Film, 2005), Fideliat “Tiya Dely” Magpayo (Radio, 2006), Cecilia “Che Che” Lazaro (Television, 2007) and Pachico Seares (Community Journalism, 2008).
1 comment:
Oh? father pa la siya ng indie films. I've never heard of him kasi...
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