Liza Dino-Seguerra: “Four resignations is no joke”

“Four resignations is no joke,” Liza Dino-Seguerra, chair of the Film Development Council of the Philippines, said in an interview on Unang Hirit, Monday.

Documentarian Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala first tendered her resignation on June 12, with scriptwriter Ricky Lee, and academician Rolando Tolentino following suit two weeks later. On July 7, filmmaker Ed Lejano also tendered his resignation.

“It’s really sad kasi ibig sabihin, meron kaming kailangan ayusin when it comes to addressing, making decisions. We have to look into how we follow through with the vision of the Metro Manila Film Festival and if it was really followed.”

According to Dino-Seguerra, the MMFF abides by two criteria of equal importance: “artistic excellence and commercial viability is [sic] of equal level…at the end of the day, we have to stay true to the vision.”

She adds, “I think we have to choose films which deserve to be part of the film festival following that criteria, whether mainstream, whether indie. That’s what's important.”

When asked about the kind of support the MMFF lends indie filmmakers, always struggling with such things as budget and marketing, Dino-Seguerra admitted, “that’s the challenge all the time. I think that’s the responsibility of MMFF: To help. To help deserving indie films in marketing, getting them to the audience, and giving them a fair chance during the film festival itself. Maybe we can find ways to assist them.”

One of their solutions is the upcoming Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino, where no foreign films will screen for one week.

“It’s creating more platforms for our Filipino films to thrive and have a platform, na walang kalaban na foreign films. From August 16-22, sa lahat ng sinehan ng Pilipinas, mapapanuod ang 12 pelikula na really represents what Filipino films should be. We’re happy that we have them in the lineup. I’d say this is your alternative mainstream films. They have that commercial appeal but they’re quite different from the normal.”—LA/KVD, GMA News