One thing that I think can happen during my lifetime is for a Filipino film to finally get an Oscar nomination. With the wealth of directing talent we now have here locally, and the widespread support that is given to indie films, with the right story and perfect timing, we might just get it.
Although many of you watched Heneral Luna, and it's our entry to this year's Oscars for Best Foreign Language Film, one big problem is that the nominees which the National Board of Review voted for are already festival circuit favorites and have been doing the rounds since May this year.
Their winner, Son of Saul from Hungary, was in contention for the Palme D'Or and worse, it's a movie about the Holocaust! E ang dami kayang Jews sa Academy, shoo-in talaga siya to win for the award.
And interestingly, although I've seen many Holocaust movies during my lifetime, the treatment here, the story, and the scenes are original and just like my teacher in fashion design told me - all of us have a story to tell - like in this case, it's about the Holocaust - but each story would be different because we all come from different backgrounds and perspectives - and that would be the one that would differentiate our similar stories from all the rest.
Son of Saul though has been the top pick in many of the critics list for Best Foreign Film this year so Heneral Luna has a lot of PR and catching up to do just to make it to the shortlist and then the top five.
Another way to be noticed is to get an endorsement from an A-lister. It happened before with Elizabeth Taylor when she told everyone, "Oh watch this small movie Sling Blade" and voila, Billy Bob Thornton won an Oscar. Yun lang, that A-lister has to be very influential and he or she should really like your movie!
Frankly, our best chance can come from the Independent Spirit Awards which is given the day before the Oscars.
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