
Four Sisters and A Pandemic
How do you shoot a prequel of an iconic movie? Or better yet, how do you shoot a prequel of an iconic movie during a pandemic? Five months ago, I got a message from Star Cinema if I would be interested to shoot a movie for them in early October. Sixteen shooting days and 1 […]

Of The Female Gaze, Vacuum Cleaners and FAN GIRL
“If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough” -Robert Capa, documentary photographer “Kamusta schedule mo these days?” When I got this message from Neil Daza I knew something interesting was brewing. I had already worked as his camera operator for a few projects with Chito Roño, including one with a very memorable leg […]

Documenting Despair : A Pandemic Lockdown Journal
It is a 50mm lens so I’m constantly checking my manual focus since I am always moving and shifting composition. My watch says it’s 8:30 am and I’m beginning to feel the sun’s heat on my nape. The morning sun is also blinding the lens while I am framing this frail man in front of […]
Latest Posts

Oda Sa Wala : Finding Humanity in the Macabre
There is never a dull moment when you’re shooting a Dwein Baltazar film, on set or behind the camera. We share the same attitude in making films – experiment, improvise, and learn something new along the way. Oda Sa Wala is my third collaboration with Dwein; the first one was Mamay Umeng (2012) which was […]

Shooting from the Heart : Creating the World of ULAN
I. Si Maya, Ang Ulan at ang mga Tikbalang Back in 2011, Irene Villamor sent me a script which she first wrote in 2008 about a young girl who loves watching the rain and talks to tikbalangs getting married. It was a charming concept for a movie, something I would like to see on the […]

Muses from the Masters : Realism and Alone/Together
As a young cinematographer I had learned early on that I need to hear words and ideas from my director, process and translate them to an image/s which I would use as my visual anchor while making the film. That image becomes my guiding light so I won’t get lost in the midst of chaos in making […]