For 2 tickets each to the Senior Year screenings:1) jessicaramiecute2) charmart3) beeyanks4) clearcookies5) kidbulate*The tickets are good for any of the Glorietta 4 and Trinoma screenings.For the Paez shoes:1) camissingle2) themileycolferFor the Nice & Cool watch:1) heyyoleoAs proof, here is the randomizer result: Khuyeen was the 3rd one drawn, but since the ask page was not activated during the draw, the prize was moved to the next person. All eight winners should expect a  private message from one of the Pelikula Tumblr reviewers within the hour for instructions on how to claim your prizes.

For 2 tickets each to the Senior Year screenings:
1) jessicaramiecute
2) charmart
3) beeyanks
4) clearcookies
5) kidbulate
*The tickets are good for any of the Glorietta 4 and Trinoma screenings.

For the Paez shoes:
1) camissingle
2) themileycolfer

For the Nice & Cool watch:
1) heyyoleo

As proof, here is the randomizer result:

Khuyeen was the 3rd one drawn, but since the ask page was not activated during the draw, the prize was moved to the next person.

All eight winners should expect a  private message from one of the Pelikula Tumblr reviewers within the hour for instructions on how to claim your prizes.

31
Just follow the mechanics, and get a chance to win 1 of the following: 5 pairs of Senior Year tickets (during its Ayala Malls run), 2 pairs of Paez shoes, and 1 Nice & Cool watch.

Just follow the mechanics, and get a chance to win 1 of the following: 5 pairs of Senior Year tickets (during its Ayala Malls run), 2 pairs of Paez shoes, and 1 Nice & Cool watch.

2144
Pelikula Q&A: Jerrold Tarogby Jansen Musico There’s something about high school that makes it so important. Think of it as the awkward cocoon stage where maggots in the form of carefree young tweens evolve into bipolar butterflies suffering from a bad case of pre-life crisis. Whether you like it or not, it changes you. It gives you a role to play. There’s a wide selection to choose from not limited to John Hughes’ depiction of jocks, nerds, freaks, girls-next-door and Ferris Bueller wannabes. At the rate we’re going, we’re even seeing the emergence of teen hipsters and Gleeks. Oh my. Jerrold Tarog was a high school metal head—a fact that seemed so farfetched when he met me with his boyish smile and a bulky backpack in tow.  He came off more as geek than a rocker. “I was a geek,” he said rather proudly, “Even if hung out with the cool crowd or with my band, pagdating sa bahay nerd pa rin naman ako.” If he isn’t making movies, Jerrold’s usually cooped inside his room playing Warcraft, reading books, or reveling in the symphonies of Stravinsky and Bach. He might be a director, but he is, first and foremost, a music lover and a musician. There’s not much difference, really.  As Stanley Kubrick once stated, “A film is—or should be—more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings.” He’s a mad composer, crafting pieces from the top of his head since college. His baptism of fire started in 2002 when he was asked to score Bong Revilla’s Ang Agimat. From there, he’s moved on to do work for a slew of indie films, collaborating with the likes of Brillante Mendoza. Soon enough he was making his own films starting with the short Carpool, followed by his forays into Cinema One Originals (Confessional), Cinemalaya (Mangatyanan), and the MMFF (the Punerarya segment in last year’s installment of Shake, Rattle, and Roll). This month he’s coming out with Senior Year, the full-length sequel to Faculty last year’s biting ANC AmBisyon and Cinemalaya short about the Philippine education system. Jerrold’s going back to high school, not as a metal head but as a storyteller. Pelikula: Let’s start with Faculty, since it’s a prequel to Senior Year. You said in your previous interviews that you wanted to focus on education because you think it’s the “starting point for change in society.” But what was it that made you zoom in on that specific scenario between the two teachers?Jerrold: Practical considerations. ANC’s budget was so small I only had enough money for equipment, food, and transportation. So that immediately narrowed down the number of characters I could create. And then the actors would have to be people I’d worked with who’d probably agree to do it without pay. Thankfully, Che and Bea both liked the script and said yes right away. Finally, with no money for anything grandiose, I decided to just make it a war of words. Pelikula: The dialogue was so natural.Jerrold: I just wrote the dialogue thinking how Che and Bea would say the lines. That’s usually how I do it if I want things to sound natural. If it’s not that, then it’s usually semi-improvisation. Also, the basics: avoid TV-sounding dialogue and tedious exposition. Pay attention to rhythm. Never use the phrases “Hay nako”, “Alam mo”, “Siya nga pala” among other lovely cinema classics… Structurally, the rising tension was highly calculated. Both teachers had aces up their sleeves so the whole script was a matter of who’s showing which hand at what point in the story. You could see it in the way they move—who’s sitting down, standing up, charging, backing up, etc. Che Ramos reprises her role as a teacher, this time in high school, for Senior Year. Pelikula: You started Faculty with: “One day… in one of the more expensive colleges in Metro Manila.” We’re a bit curious; did you have any particular college or university in mind?Jerrold: Secret. Those who know me well enough might have a good idea… Seriously though, it’s not exactly about one particular college. It’s more about an entire culture of mediocrity and apathy propagated by class. The “This isn’t fun anymore. I wanna go na.” line in the Ondoy argument…that’s a true story. Read the rest of the Q&A in PhilStar Supreme Senior Year is Now Showing in theaters nationwide. Support quality local films. Watch it. Special ticket prices are given to students and teachers.

Pelikula Q&A: Jerrold Tarog
by Jansen Musico

There’s something about high school that makes it so important. Think of it as the awkward cocoon stage where maggots in the form of carefree young tweens evolve into bipolar butterflies suffering from a bad case of pre-life crisis. Whether you like it or not, it changes you. It gives you a role to play. There’s a wide selection to choose from not limited to John Hughes’ depiction of jocks, nerds, freaks, girls-next-door and Ferris Bueller wannabes. At the rate we’re going, we’re even seeing the emergence of teen hipsters and Gleeks. Oh my.

Jerrold Tarog was a high school metal head—a fact that seemed so farfetched when he met me with his boyish smile and a bulky backpack in tow.  He came off more as geek than a rocker. “I was a geek,” he said rather proudly, “Even if hung out with the cool crowd or with my band, pagdating sa bahay nerd pa rin naman ako.”

If he isn’t making movies, Jerrold’s usually cooped inside his room playing Warcraft, reading books, or reveling in the symphonies of Stravinsky and Bach. He might be a director, but he is, first and foremost, a music lover and a musician. There’s not much difference, really.  As Stanley Kubrick once stated, “A film is—or should be—more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings.”

He’s a mad composer, crafting pieces from the top of his head since college. His baptism of fire started in 2002 when he was asked to score Bong Revilla’s Ang Agimat. From there, he’s moved on to do work for a slew of indie films, collaborating with the likes of Brillante Mendoza. Soon enough he was making his own films starting with the short Carpool, followed by his forays into Cinema One Originals (Confessional), Cinemalaya (Mangatyanan), and the MMFF (the Punerarya segment in last year’s installment of Shake, Rattle, and Roll).

This month he’s coming out with Senior Year, the full-length sequel to Faculty last year’s biting ANC AmBisyon and Cinemalaya short about the Philippine education system. Jerrold’s going back to high school, not as a metal head but as a storyteller.

Pelikula: Let’s start with Faculty, since it’s a prequel to Senior Year. You said in your previous interviews that you wanted to focus on education because you think it’s the “starting point for change in society.” But what was it that made you zoom in on that specific scenario between the two teachers?
Jerrold: Practical considerations. ANC’s budget was so small I only had enough money for equipment, food, and transportation. So that immediately narrowed down the number of characters I could create. And then the actors would have to be people I’d worked with who’d probably agree to do it without pay. Thankfully, Che and Bea both liked the script and said yes right away. Finally, with no money for anything grandiose, I decided to just make it a war of words.

Pelikula: The dialogue was so natural.
Jerrold: I just wrote the dialogue thinking how Che and Bea would say the lines. That’s usually how I do it if I want things to sound natural. If it’s not that, then it’s usually semi-improvisation. Also, the basics: avoid TV-sounding dialogue and tedious exposition. Pay attention to rhythm. Never use the phrases “Hay nako”, “Alam mo”, “Siya nga pala” among other lovely cinema classics… Structurally, the rising tension was highly calculated. Both teachers had aces up their sleeves so the whole script was a matter of who’s showing which hand at what point in the story. You could see it in the way they move—who’s sitting down, standing up, charging, backing up, etc.

Che Ramos reprises her role as a teacher, this time in high school, for Senior Year.

Pelikula: You started Faculty with: “One day… in one of the more expensive colleges in Metro Manila.” We’re a bit curious; did you have any particular college or university in mind?
Jerrold: Secret. Those who know me well enough might have a good idea… Seriously though, it’s not exactly about one particular college. It’s more about an entire culture of mediocrity and apathy propagated by class. The “This isn’t fun anymore. I wanna go na.” line in the Ondoy argument…that’s a true story.

Read the rest of the Q&A in PhilStar Supreme

Senior Year is Now Showing in theaters nationwide. Support quality local films. Watch it. Special ticket prices are given to students and teachers.

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The Senior Year Experience by Jansen Musico Senior Year (2011) D: Jerrold Tarog S: Che Ramos, LJ Moreno, Ina Feleo, Daniel Medrana, Celina Peñaflorida Senior Year is a sequel to Faculty, Jerrold Tarog’s short film centered on Joan (Che Ramos) and Ria (Bea Garcia), two teachers with two strong opposing views on education. The impactful short was well-recieved by both critics and audiences for its sharp dialogue and eye-opening take on the Philippine educational system. Viewers of Faculty would probably still remember its biting finale, which, this time, serves as the launching pad to this new full-length offering that takes us back to our last days in high school. Now a teacher at St. Frederick’s High School, Joan finds herself shepherding a batch of graduating kids to be the future movers and shakers of society. One in particular is Henry (Aaron Balana), the batch shoo-in for valedictorian who’s finding a hard time mentoring his supposed stalker, the calm and quiet Sofia (Rossanne de Boda). She’s often staring into space admiring the beauty of Solenn (Nikita Conwi), the batch’s saucy queen bee who’s bestfriends with high school power couple Briggs (Daniel Lumain) and Bridget (Mary Lojo). Another couple, though not official, are the the anti-it pair of Chito (Eric Marquez) and Mitch (Celina Peñaflorida). These two serve as the all-knowing eyes of the school, often dispensing advice to the trio: the ever-protective Bunda (Francez Bunda), the secretly-admired Steph (Sheila Bulanhagui), and the out and proud Carlo (Daniel Medrana). Now don’t think that this is another Dead Poets Society, The Breakfast Club, or even Aureus Solito’s Pisay. It’s not. Tarog’s version of high school is fresh, yet familiar enough for everyone to feel like they’re walking down the halls of their own alma maters, whether you’re still in or out of it. High school alumni would probably get a blast from the past as soon as the lives of the characters start playing out. It’s a disorienting onslaught of uniforms, teachers, names, libraries, classrooms, cafeterias, and gymnasiums. It’s as if we’re exchange students getting our first taste of the campus, but all of this fades away once all the introductions are done. Soon enough we start laughing and gasping as the all-too-familiar high school feelings start creeping in. The film makes use of stereotypes; why shouldn’t it?  High school, for a fact, is full of labels and people who wear them proudly. There are jocks, bullies, popular kids, and those who fall way out of the radar. Despite the restrictions of adhering to stereotypes, the seniors still burst out from being one-dimensional paper dolls into human beings. This can be attributed to the well thought out story. Each character in the film does not only put on stereotypes, they play real students who go through real problems high school kids face, such as finding the right college, discovering their sexual preferences, falling in and out of love, and the like. For this reason, it was the perfect decision by Tarog to assemble a cast composed of real students and indie heavyweights. Che Ramos, so far, can do no wrong. Though her character is less serious this time around, she still fully embodies the enthusiastic educator she played in the short prequel. As for her students, all of them do well, but three, in particular, shine. The first one’s Nikita Conwi, whose take on your typical airhead Solenn was spot on. She’s that perfect Candy girl you just love to hate, but admire at the same time. The second solid performer is Daniel Medrana, who notably played Raymond in Pepe Diokno’s Engkwentro. In Senior Year, he does 180 to play the flamboyant, effeminate Carlo, and he just nails it. He’s able to adapt dramatically by switching from serious to hilarious. Whether he’s being tormented or exchanging quips with Bunda, he delivers. Rounding up the best teens is Celina Peñaflorida, who fully embraces the two sides of her character: apathetically cool and insecure. Technically, the film is good. This does not come as a surprise since the people at the helm have always been consistent with their work. Mackie Galvez was able to carry over the visual feel of Faculty. By also adding raw footage of the students at school, he and Jerrold preserved a semblance of reality. Johnoy Danao’s songs were also a nice touch, gently cradling the movie at just the right points. What separates this film from previous high school flicks is its unique glimpse of the future. The narrative seesaws from the batch’s senior year to alumni reunion, showing the progress of the characters’ lives. The parallelisms of past and present are all too revealing, not only of the changes in each of the students, but also of real life. The gaping differences effectively weigh expectations and ideals against realities. They give commentary on change and how change is carried out. To give the ending out now would be an injustice to those who have not had the chance to see this film. But just know this, if you thought Faculty’s zinger was optimistic, Senior Year’s last line will give you a lot to contemplate. — Senior Year will be in cinemas in March 2011. Do yourself a favor and save enough money to see it. Support quality independent Filipino films. Don’t just say you will, do it. There has been too much buzz on independent cinema but not enough moviegoers to match it. If audiences are really sick of the same generic offerings of the big studios, support this film and other quality indie films to start a change in our local cinema.

The Senior Year Experience
by Jansen Musico

Senior Year (2011)
D: Jerrold Tarog
S: Che Ramos, LJ Moreno, Ina Feleo, Daniel Medrana, Celina Peñaflorida

Senior Year is a sequel to Faculty, Jerrold Tarog’s short film centered on Joan (Che Ramos) and Ria (Bea Garcia), two teachers with two strong opposing views on education. The impactful short was well-recieved by both critics and audiences for its sharp dialogue and eye-opening take on the Philippine educational system. Viewers of Faculty would probably still remember its biting finale, which, this time, serves as the launching pad to this new full-length offering that takes us back to our last days in high school.

Now a teacher at St. Frederick’s High School, Joan finds herself shepherding a batch of graduating kids to be the future movers and shakers of society. One in particular is Henry (Aaron Balana), the batch shoo-in for valedictorian who’s finding a hard time mentoring his supposed stalker, the calm and quiet Sofia (Rossanne de Boda). She’s often staring into space admiring the beauty of Solenn (Nikita Conwi), the batch’s saucy queen bee who’s bestfriends with high school power couple Briggs (Daniel Lumain) and Bridget (Mary Lojo). Another couple, though not official, are the the anti-it pair of Chito (Eric Marquez) and Mitch (Celina Peñaflorida). These two serve as the all-knowing eyes of the school, often dispensing advice to the trio: the ever-protective Bunda (Francez Bunda), the secretly-admired Steph (Sheila Bulanhagui), and the out and proud Carlo (Daniel Medrana).

Now don’t think that this is another Dead Poets Society, The Breakfast Club, or even Aureus Solito’s Pisay. It’s not. Tarog’s version of high school is fresh, yet familiar enough for everyone to feel like they’re walking down the halls of their own alma maters, whether you’re still in or out of it. High school alumni would probably get a blast from the past as soon as the lives of the characters start playing out. It’s a disorienting onslaught of uniforms, teachers, names, libraries, classrooms, cafeterias, and gymnasiums. It’s as if we’re exchange students getting our first taste of the campus, but all of this fades away once all the introductions are done. Soon enough we start laughing and gasping as the all-too-familiar high school feelings start creeping in.

The film makes use of stereotypes; why shouldn’t it?  High school, for a fact, is full of labels and people who wear them proudly. There are jocks, bullies, popular kids, and those who fall way out of the radar. Despite the restrictions of adhering to stereotypes, the seniors still burst out from being one-dimensional paper dolls into human beings. This can be attributed to the well thought out story. Each character in the film does not only put on stereotypes, they play real students who go through real problems high school kids face, such as finding the right college, discovering their sexual preferences, falling in and out of love, and the like. For this reason, it was the perfect decision by Tarog to assemble a cast composed of real students and indie heavyweights.

Che Ramos, so far, can do no wrong. Though her character is less serious this time around, she still fully embodies the enthusiastic educator she played in the short prequel. As for her students, all of them do well, but three, in particular, shine. The first one’s Nikita Conwi, whose take on your typical airhead Solenn was spot on. She’s that perfect Candy girl you just love to hate, but admire at the same time. The second solid performer is Daniel Medrana, who notably played Raymond in Pepe Diokno’s Engkwentro. In Senior Year, he does 180 to play the flamboyant, effeminate Carlo, and he just nails it. He’s able to adapt dramatically by switching from serious to hilarious. Whether he’s being tormented or exchanging quips with Bunda, he delivers. Rounding up the best teens is Celina Peñaflorida, who fully embraces the two sides of her character: apathetically cool and insecure.

Technically, the film is good. This does not come as a surprise since the people at the helm have always been consistent with their work. Mackie Galvez was able to carry over the visual feel of Faculty. By also adding raw footage of the students at school, he and Jerrold preserved a semblance of reality. Johnoy Danao’s songs were also a nice touch, gently cradling the movie at just the right points.

What separates this film from previous high school flicks is its unique glimpse of the future. The narrative seesaws from the batch’s senior year to alumni reunion, showing the progress of the characters’ lives. The parallelisms of past and present are all too revealing, not only of the changes in each of the students, but also of real life. The gaping differences effectively weigh expectations and ideals against realities. They give commentary on change and how change is carried out. To give the ending out now would be an injustice to those who have not had the chance to see this film. But just know this, if you thought Faculty’s zinger was optimistic, Senior Year’s last line will give you a lot to contemplate.

—
Senior Year will be in cinemas in March 2011. Do yourself a favor and save enough money to see it. Support quality independent Filipino films. Don’t just say you will, do it. There has been too much buzz on independent cinema but not enough moviegoers to match it. If audiences are really sick of the same generic offerings of the big studios, support this film and other quality indie films to start a change in our local cinema.

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