Desktop mode is strongly recommended.
This link will open the PDF version.
The book’s landing page has been retitled
“Chronological Listing according to Auteur.”

Each title is linked to the director’s canon page; this means if other titles are included in her or their or his list, they will appear in chronological order. Some titles’ capsule reviews might also be combined with related titles in the list. Scrolling or searching will be the most useful way to reach your target film, but reading through a director’s other recommended works might also prove to be rewarding.

11011Earliest dates listed at the Internet Movie Database were used as information source, unless other reliable information could be accessed (e.g. from the filmmakers directly). Those with incomplete definite dates are being determined, although a number of these might take longer to finalize – if at all. Dates with potential issues or that depart from IMDb’s info are in red font, sometimes followed by clarifications at the end of the entry.

11011To move forward to other periods, click on any of the following instead of scrolling down: Second Golden Age (1974–1986); End of Second Golden Age to end of the past millennium (1987–1999); First decade of the millennium (2000–2009); Second decade of the millennium: first half (2010–2014); and Second decade of the millennium: second half to cutoff year (2015–2020).

[For a larger image, please click on picture.]

BEGINNINGS THROUGH FIRST GOLDEN AGE (1950–1959)
& END OF THE INTERVAL (1960–1973)

1937 [1 title]
111• December 10: Zamboanga: A Fanciful Tale of Moro Sea Gypsies (E de Castro).

1939 [1 title]
111• July 29: Giliw Ko (C Vander Tolosa).

1944 [1 title]
111• February 5: Dawn of Freedom (G de Leon & Abe Y).

1949 [1 title]
111• Month ٭٭: Lupang Pangako [incomplete] (SC de Guzman).

1950 [2 titles]
111• July 25: Kontrabando (G Fernandez).
111• November 7: Genghis Khan (M Conde).

1951 [1 title]
111• November 7: Sisa (G de Leon).

1953 [1 title]
111• July 4: Dyesebel (G de Leon).

1954 [3 titles]
111• June 2: Jack en Jill (MS Torres).
111• July 24: Prinsipe Teñoso (G Fernandez).
111• December 21: Pedro Penduko (G de Leon).

1955 [2 titles]
111• April 30: Higit sa Lahat (G Fernandez).
111• September 27: Sanda Wong (G de Leon).

1956 [2 titles]
111• March 20: Anak Dalita (LV Avellana).
111• June 8: Luksang Tagumpay [incomplete] (G Fernandez).

1957 [5 titles]
111• March 10: Sino ang Maysala? (A Garces).
111• May 24: Hukom Roldan (G Fernandez).
111• August 2: Mga Ligaw na Bulaklak (T Cayado).
111• Month ٭٭: Kembali Saorang (RA Estella); Taufan (TC Santos). Asian Film Archive records maintain only year of release.

1958 [3 titles]
111• May 19: Malvarosa (G Fernandez).
111• August 26: Sarjan Hassan (LV Avellana).
111• October 17: Talipandas (C Conde).

1959 [4 titles]
111• December 12: Terror Is a Man (G de Leon).
111• December 16: Biyaya ng Lupa (M Silos).
111• Month ٭٭: Samseng (RA Estella); Saudagar Minyak Urat (RA Estella). AFA records maintain only year of release.

1961 [2 titles]
111• March 1: Amado Pagsanjan’s Asiong Salonga (P Santiago).
111• January 2: The Moises Padilla Story (G de Leon).

1962 [2 titles]
111• March 30: El Filibusterismo (G de Leon).
111• April 11: Samar (G Montgomery).

1963 [1 title]
111• October 9: Cry of Battle (I Lerner).

1964 [1 title]
111• July 7: Geron Busabos: Ang Batang Quiapo (C Gallardo).

1965 [3 titles]
111• April 25: Ang Daigdig Ko’y Ikaw (E Reyes).
111• August 25: Nick Joaquin’s A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino (LV Avellana). From Florina “Lala” Castillo’s firsthand account “What Portrait of the Artist Is All About,” Inquirer.net, October 21, 2012.
111• Month ٭٭: Pusaka Pontianak (RA Estella). AFA records maintain only year of release.

1966 [1 title]
111• April 20: The Passionate Strangers (E Romero).

1967 [1 title]
111• December 31: Masquerade (DL Zialcita).

1968 [1 title]
111• April ٭٭: Badlis sa Kinabuhi (L Salvador). Theatrical exhibitions were in 1969, but the film was shown to specialized audiences in Cebu City early in 1968; no definite date can be confirmed beyond month of April.

1970 [2 titles]
111• July 1: The Evil Within (LV Avellana).
111• December 25: Tubog sa Ginto (L Brocka).

1971 [4 titles]
111• June 10: Pagdating sa Dulo (I Bernal).
111• September 3: Asedillo (CA Castillo).
111• October 8: Stardoom (L Brocka).
111• October 20: Women in Cages (G de Leon).

Back to top

SECOND GOLDEN AGE (1974–1986)

1974 [4 titles]
111• May 30: Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (L Brocka).
111• June 23: Krimen (Kayo ang Humatol) (J Raquiza).
111• July ٭٭: Savage Sisters (E Romero). First recorded screening was August 28, 1974, in New York City, although film was released in Pinas a month earlier.
111• November 29: La Paloma (J Gosiengfiao).

1975 [2 titles]
111• July 16: Maynila: Sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag (L Brocka).
111• October 17: Lumapit … Lumayo ang Umaga (I Bernal).

1976 [7 titles]
111• February 14: Ligaw na Bulaklak (I Bernal).
111• March 26: Daluyong at Habagat (CA Castillo).
111• August 6: Nunal sa Tubig (I Bernal).
111• November 19: Tatlong Taóng Walang Diyos (M O’Hara).
111• December 25: Ganito Kami Noon … Paano Kayo Ngayon? (E Romero); Insiang (L Brocka).
111• December ٭٭: Itim (M De Leon). Screened in Davao City, ostensibly to qualify for 1976 awards competition.

1977 [4 titles]
111• April 30: Nonoy Marcelo’s Tisoy! (I Bernal).
111• June ٭٭: Mababangong Bangungot (K Tahimik). No Berlinale schedule of screenings available.
111• December 24: Banta ng Kahapon (E Romero); Burlesk Queen (CA Castillo).

1978 [2 titles]
111• November 10: They Call Her … Cleopatra Wong (BA Suarez).
111• December 8: Ikaw Ay Akin (I Bernal).

1979 [3 titles]
111• August 31: Jaguar (L Brocka).
111• September 21: Salawahan (I Bernal).
111• November 23: Aliw (I Bernal).

1980 [8 titles]
111• June 19: Kasal? (L Guillen).
111• August 8: Kakabakaba Ka Ba? (M De Leon).
111• August 14: Celso Ad. Castillo’s Totoy Boogie (CA Castillo).
111• October 17: Underage (J Gosiengfiao).
111• November 12: Bona (L Brocka).
111• November 25: Brutal (M Diaz-Abaya). Although an entry at the then-forthcoming Metro Manila Film Festival, film was premiered beforehand.
111• November 28: Manila by Night (I Bernal). Released in severely censored form as City After Dark; integral version, including original title, was premiered at the Manila Film Center on January 16, 1985.
111• December 25: Ang Panday (F Poe Jr.).

1981 [8 titles]
111• January 29: Playgirl (M Chionglo).
111• February 20: Uhaw na Dagat (CA Castillo).
111• June 25: Pepeng Shotgun (R Suzara).
111• July 17: Pabling (I Bernal).
111• August 7: Salome (L Guillen).
111• August 28: Ang Maestro (F Poe Jr.).
111• December 25: Kisapmata (M De Leon); Pagbabalik ng Panday (F Poe Jr.).

1982 [12 titles]
111• January 27: Oro, Plata, Mata (P Gallaga).
111• January 29: Schoolgirls (MJ de los Reyes).
111• May 17: Batch ’81 (M De Leon).
111• June 4: Pepeng Kaliwete (P Santiago).
111• July 2: Relasyon (I Bernal).
111• July 23: Annie Sabungera (P Santiago).
111• August 13: Diosa (MJ de los Reyes).
111• September 2: T-Bird at Ako (DL Zialcita).
111• September 18: Cain at Abel (L Brocka).
111• December 25: Ang Panday: Ikatlong Yugto (F Poe Jr.); Himala (I Bernal); Moral (M Diaz-Abaya).

1983 [5 titles]
111• February 20: Palabra de Honor (DL Zialcita).
111• July 26: Gabi Kung Sumikat ang Araw (G Portes).
111• September 2: Broken Marriage (I Bernal).
111• September 22: Init sa Magdamag (L Guillen).
111• December 25: Karnal (M Diaz-Abaya).

1984 [16 titles]
111• January 19: Kung Mahawi Man ang Ulap (L Guillen).
111• February 2: Bagets (MJ de los Reyes).
111• March 7: Sinner or Saint (M Chionglo).
111• May 17: Bayan Ko: Kapit sa Patalim (L Brocka). Cannes Film Festival premiere; Philippine exhibition became possible starting November 6, 1985, after Supreme Court overruled censors ban.
111• June 7: Working Girls (I Bernal).
111• June 28: Kaya Kong Abutin ang Langit (MJ de los Reyes).
111• July 11: Bukas Luluhod ang mga Tala (EH Borlaza); Sister Stella L. (M De Leon).
111• September 24: ’Merika (G Portes).
111• October 12: Anak ni Waray vs. Anak ni Biday (MJ de los Reyes).
111• October 19: Condemned (M O’Hara).
111• December 25: Alapaap (T Esteban); Ang Panday IV (F Poe Jr.); Bukas … May Pangarap (G Portes); Bulaklak sa City Jail (M O’Hara).
111• Month ٭٭: Private Show (CS Roño). Screened beforehand in Samar; exact date can no longer be determined.

1985 [9 titles]
111• January 22: Virgin Forest (P Gallaga).
111• February 14: Bituing Walang Ningning (EH Borlaza).
111• June 6: Hinugot sa Langit (I Bernal).
111• June 14: Miguelito: Batang Rebelde (L Brocka).
111• June 18: Scorpio Nights (P Gallaga).
111• June 27: Beloved (L Salvador); Boatman (T Aguiluz).
111• October ٭٭: Silip (E Perez). Screening date unavailable at Chicago International Film Festival brochure, although Private Show (dir CS Roño, 1985) definitely shows up.
111• December 25: Paradise Inn (CA Castillo).

1986 [5 titles]
111• January 11: Bagong Hari (M O’Hara).
111• February 21: Sensual (M Diaz-Abaya).
111• April 26: Takaw Tukso (W Pascual).
111• September 18: Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita (M Chionglo).
111• September 23: Bilanggo sa Dilim (M De Leon). Schedule confirmed from the Independent Film & Video Festival catalogue.

Back to top

END OF SECOND GOLDEN AGE
TO END OF THE PAST MILLENNIUM (1987–1999)

1987 [5 titles]
111• May 29: Stolen Moments (EH Borlaza).
111• June 4: Hubad na Pangarap (AQ dela Cruz).
111• September 2: Saan Nagtatago ang Pag-ibig? (E Garcia).
111• September 23: Paano Kung Wala Ka Na (M Chionglo).
111• December 25: The Untold Story of Melanie Marquez (A Marquez).

1988 [6 titles]
111• January 28: Tubusin Mo ng Dugo (P Marcos).
111• September 14: Tiyanak (P Gallaga & L Reyes).
111• September 29: Sa Puso Ko Hahalik ang Mundo (A Marquez).
111• October 27: Red Roses for a Call Girl (BA Suarez).
111• November 16: Babaing Hampaslupa (M Chionglo).
111• December 25: Itanong Mo sa Buwan (CS Roño).

1989 [4 titles]
111• May 12: Orapronobis (L Brocka). Cannes Film Festival screening; successive presidential regimes upheld the ban imposed by the Corazon Aquino government until the film could be premiered November 29, 2008.
111• August 17: Bilangin ang Bituin sa Langit (E Perez).
111• September 13: Babangon Ako’t Dudurugin Kita (L Brocka).
111• December 25: Greatest Performance [unfinished] (N Aunor). Projected Metro Manila Film Festival premiere date only; film was rejected from participating.

1990 [4 titles]
111• February 17: Ikasa Mo … Ipuputok Ko (A Salvador).
111• May 17: Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (L Brocka).
111• August 23: Hahamakin Lahat (L Brocka).
111• October 18: Bakit Kay Tagal ng Sandali? (CS Roño).

1991 [3 titles]
111• June 15: Hihintayin Kita sa Langit (C Siguion-Reyna).
111• December 4: Dinampot Ka Lang sa Putik (MJ de los Reyes).
111• December 25: Ang Totoong Buhay ni Pacita M. (E Perez).

1992 [8 titles]
111• April 30: Totoy Guwapo: Alyas Kanto Boy (T Natividad).
111• May 21: Aswang (P Gallaga & L Reyes).
111• June 4: Ikaw Pa Lang ang Minahal (C Siguion-Reyna).
111• June ٭٭: Developing Stories: Lucia (M Chionglo). No specific Earth Events broadcast date can be found.
111• July 17: Totoy Buang: Mad Killer ng Maynila (JE Navoa).
111• July 28: Alyas Stella Magtanggol (CS Roño).
111• August 21: Sumayaw Ka Salome (L Guillen).
111• December 10: Amang Capulong: Anak ng Tondo, Part II (T Natividad).

1993 [5 titles]
111• February 8: Beloy Montemayor Jr.: Tirador ng Cebu (JP Cabreira).
111• June 24: Dahil Mahal Kita: The Dolzura Cortez Story (L Guillen).
111• July 15: Tatak ng Kriminal (E Vinarao).
111• July 29: Masahol Pa sa Hayop (A Salvador).
111• December 25: May Minamahal (JJ Reyes).

1994 [2 titles]
111• September 9: Sibak: Midnight Dancers (M Chionglo).
111• November 23: Ka Hector (T Natividad).

1995 [3 titles]
111• March 1: Kahit Butas ng Karayom … Papasukin Ko (F Poe Jr. & W Milan).
111• October 25: Gayuma: Sana’y Mahalin Mo Rin Ako (T Esteban).
111• December 15: Mabangis na Lungsod (A Chui C-S & Yuen B).

1996 [2 titles]
111• January 25: May Nagmamahal sa Iyo (M Diaz-Abaya).
111• March 13: Segurista (T Aguiluz).

1997 [4 titles]
111• April 9: Milagros (M Diaz-Abaya).
111• June 24: Amanos: Patas ang Laban (F Posadas).
111• July 16: Eseng ng Tondo (F Poe Jr. & A Salvador).
111• September 7: Ang Lalake sa Buhay ni Selya (C Siguion-Reyna).

1998 [6 titles]
111• March 4: Kahit Pader Gigibain Ko (J del Rosario).
111• April 22: Wangbu (T Natividad).
111• May 27: Curacha: Ang Babaeng Walang Pahinga (CS Roño).
111• September 9: Bata Bata Paano Ka Ginawa (CS Roño).
111• September 12: Tatlo … Magkasalo (C Siguion-Reyna).
111• September 28: Notoryus (T Natividad).

1999 [7 titles]
111• February 16: Bayaning 3rd World (M De Leon).
111• March 10: Burlesk King (M Chionglo).
111• May 12: ’Di Puwedeng Hindi Puwede! (F Posadas).
111• June 2: Pila-Balde (J Jeturian).
111• June 23: Tigasin (I Jarlego Jr.).
111• December 15: Sindak! (M O’Hara).
111• December ٭٭: Still Lives (J Red). First screening date can no longer be determined.

Back to top

FIRST DECADE OF THE MILLENNIUM (2000–2009)

2000 [6 titles]
111• January 26: Ang Dalubhasa (F Poe Jr.).
111• February 23: Minsan, Minahal Kita (OM Lamasan).
111• March 15: Tunay na Tunay: Gets Mo? Gets Ko! (J Bernal).
111• September 9: Pangarap ng Puso (M O’Hara).
111• October 25: Biyaheng Langit (T Aguiluz).
111• October 30: The Guys from Paradise (Miike T).

2001 [6 titles]
111• January 24: Booba (J Bernal).
111• February 21: Tuhog (J Jeturian).
111• May 9: Minsan May Isang Puso (JJ Reyes).
111• August 8: Radyo (Y Laranas).
111• September 26: La Vida Rosa (CS Roño).
111• December 25: Hubog (J Lamangan).

2002 [2 titles]
111• February 6: Hesus, Rebolusyunaryo (L Diaz).
111• November 6: Kailangan Kita (RB Quintos).

2003 [5 titles]
111• January 29: Magnifico (MJ de los Reyes).
111• May 28: Ang Tanging Ina (WV Deramas).
111• September 24: Kung Ako Na Lang Sana (JJ Reyes).
111• December 3: Babae sa Breakwater (M O’Hara).
111• December 25: Crying Ladies (M Meily).

2004 [5 titles]
111• January 1: Bridal Shower (J Jeturian).
111• February 11: Milan (OM Lamasan).
111• April 14: Masikip sa Dibdib: The Boobita Rose Story (J Bernal).
111• November 24: Minsan Pa (J Jeturian).
111• December 25: Sigaw (Y Laranas).

2005 [5 titles]
111• January ٭٭: Ang Pamilyang Kumakain ng Lupa (Khavn). International Film Festival Rotterdam schedule unavailable for confirmation.
111• July 13: Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros (A Solito); Pinoy/Blonde (P Gallaga); Sarong Banggi (E Dela Cruz).
111• September 11: Sa Ilalim ng Cogon (RM Ilarde).

2006 [4 titles]
111• April 9: Huling Balyan ng Buhi o ang Sinalirap nga Asoy Nila (SA Sanchez).
111• September 8: Kubrador (J Jeturian).
111• September 9: Twilight Dancers (M Chionglo).
111• December 25: Ligalig (C Montano).

2007 [5 titles]
111• May 25: Foster Child (B Mendoza).
111• September 7: Tirador (B Mendoza).
111• November 14: One More Chance (C Garcia-Sampana).
111• November 30: Altar (RM Ilarde); Tambolista (A Alix Jr.).

2008 [9 titles]
111• February 13: Ang Lihim ni Antonio (J Altarejos).
111• May 18: Serbis (B Mendoza).
111• May 28: Caregiver (CS Roño).
111• July 11: Boses (E Ongkeko-Marfil); Brutus, ang Paglalakbay (T Illenberger); Jay (FX Pasion).
111• July 19: Imoral (A Alix Jr.).
111• November 12: Walang Kawala (J Lamangan).
111• December 3: Yanggaw (R Somes).

2009 [8 titles]
111• May 6: Ded Na si Lolo (S Topacio).
111• May 18: Independencia (R Martin).
111• July 17: Ang Nerseri (V Acedillo Jr.).
111• July 21: Bayaw (M Parungao).
111• September 2: Kimmy Dora: Kambal sa Kiyeme (J Bernal).
111• September 11: Lola (B Mendoza).
111• October 19: Biyaheng Lupa (A Lao).
111• November 13: Wanted: Border (R Gibraltar).

Back to top

SECOND DECADE OF THE MILLENNIUM:
FIRST HALF (2010–2014)

2010 [5 titles]
111• April 3: Babe, I Love You (M Cruz-Alviar).
111• May 12: Here Comes the Bride (C Martinez).
111• July 14: Amigo (J Sayles); Halaw (SR Dayoc).
111• November 13: Ang Damgo ni Eleuteria (RS Zuasola).

2011 [8 titles]
111• July 16: Amok (L Fajardo); Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (MN Rivera); Isda (A Alix Jr.).
111• July 23: Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington (J Castro).
111• August 21: The Escort (M Parungao).
111• September 28: No Other Woman (RS Bayani).
111• November 9: Di Ingon ’Nato (B Relucio & I Zaldarriaga).
111• November 11: Six Degrees of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay (A Jadaone).

2012 [12 titles]
111• January 29: Florentina Hubaldo, CTE (L Diaz).
111• February 11: Pusong Wazak: Isa Na Namang Kwento ng Pag-ibig sa Pagitan ng Kriminal at Puta (Khavn).
111• April 7: Moron 5 and the Crying Lady (WV Deramas).
111• June 6: Ang Nawawala (M Jamora).
111• July 21: Boy Pick-Up: The Movie (D Zapata); Posas (L Fajardo).
111• November 12: Jungle Love (SA Sanchez).
111• November 29: Ang Paglalakbay ng mga Bituin sa Gabing Madilim (A Mardoquio); Mariposa: Sa Hawla ng Gabi (R Somes).
111• November 30: Aberya (C Linaban).
111• December 1: Pascalina (P Miras).
111• December 25: The Strangers (L Fajardo).

2013 [16 titles]
111• April 6: Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan (L Diaz).
111• May 24: On the Job (E Matti).
111• July 27: Ekstra (J Jeturian); Porno (A Alix Jr.).
111• July 27: Transit (H Espia). Filmmakers report that IMDb listing of 2013 Israel release is erroneous.
111• August 3: Ang Pirata (J Red); Burgos (J Lamangan).
111• August 16: How to Disappear Completely (R Martin).
111• September 5: Lauriana (M Chionglo).
111• September 11: Otso (E Perez); Sonata (P Gallaga & L Reyes); Tinik (R Suzara).
111• September 18: Ang Huling Cha-Cha ni Anita (Anita’s Last Cha-Cha) (SA Bernardo).
111• November 11: Ang mga Tigmo sa Akong Pagpauli (Riddles of My Homecoming) (A Mardoquio).
111• November 13: Iskalawags (K Deligero).
111• December 25: Boy Golden: Shoot to Kill (CS Roño).

2014 [6 titles]
111• January 15: Bride for Rent (M Cruz-Alviar).
111• February 8: Unfriend (J Altarejos).
111• August 2: Dagitab (G Abrahan).
111• September 24: Dementia (PM Intalan).
111• November 10: Lorna (SA Bernardo); That Thing Called Tadhana (A Jadaone).

Back to top

SECOND DECADE OF THE MILLENNIUM:
SECOND HALF TO CUTOFF YEAR (2015–2020)

2015 [10 titles]
111• January 26: Desaparadiso: Corrido at Buhay na Pinagdaanan nang Tatlong Principeng Magcacapatid na Anac nang Haring Fernando at nang Reina Valeriana sa Cahariang Berbania (Khavn).
111• March 18: Bambanti (ZM Dulay); Imbisibol (L Fajardo).
111• April 24: Water Lemon (L Lorca).
111• June 29: Da Dog Show (R Jover).
111• September 1: Tandem (K Palisoc).
111• September 9: Heneral Luna (J Tarog).
111• November 9: Hamog (R Jover).
111• December 25: #WalangForever (D Villegas); Nilalang (P Lopez).

2016 [16 titles]
111• February 1: Vampariah (2016, M Abaya).
111• May 18: Ma’ Rosa (B Mendoza).
111• June 22: Ang Napakaigsing Buhay ng Alipato (Khavn).
111• July 2: Iadya Mo Kami (M Chionglo).
111• July 13: Pauwi Na (P Villaluna).
111• July 26: How to Be Yours (D Villegas).
111• August 6: Rene Villanueva’s Hiblang Abo (R Jover).
111• September 19: Indigo Child (E Ongkeko-Marfil). Filmmaker identified special screening at University of the Philippines Film Center.
111• September 24: Superpsychocebu (C Linaban). Filmmaker confirmed screening schedule as closing film of Binisaya Film Festival.
111• September 25: Area (L Ignacio).
111• October 14: Baboy Halas: Wailings in the Forest (B Fiola).
111• October 15: Ang Manananggal sa Unit 23B (P Cruz).
111• October 27: Die Beautiful (JR Lana).
111• October 28: Birdshot (M Red).
111• November 15: Lily (K Deligero).
111• December 25: Vince & Kath & James (T Boborol).

2017 [11 titles]
111• February 15: I’m Drunk, I Love You. (J Habac).
111• March 9: Tu Pug Imatuy (A Barbarona).
111• July 12: High Tide (T Illenberger).
111• August 5: Respeto (T Monteras II).
111• August 9: Double Barrel (Sige! Iputok Mo.) (T Natividad).
111• September 9: Madilim ang Gabi (A Alix Jr.).
111• October 13: Riding in Tandem (T Natividad).
111• October 17: Bomba (R Jover).
111• October 20: Balangiga: Howling Wilderness (Khavn); Medusae (P Miras); Neomanila (M Red).

2018 [7 titles]
111• February 7: Meet Me in St. Gallen (I Villamor).
111• March 9: Abomination (Y Laranas).
111• August 15: Signal Rock (CS Roño); The Day After Valentine’s (JP Laxamana).
111• September 12: Sol Searching (R Perez Jr.).
111• October 12: A Short History of a Few Bad Things (K Deligero).
111• October 22: Hintayan ng Langit (D Villegas).

2019 [9 titles]
111• January 24: Jino to Mari (J Altarejos).
111• March 13: Ulan (I Villamor).
111• September 13: Lola Igna (EW Roy Jr.); LSS (J Castro).
111• October 9: Nuuk (V Velasco).
111• October 13: UnTrue (SA Bernardo).
111• November 8: Metamorphosis (J Tiglao); Sila-Sila (G Abrahan).
111• November 9: Latay (Battered Husband) (R Jover). Date determined from the Kalkota International Film Festival brochure.

2020 [6 titles]
111• January 22: Nightshift (Y Laranas).
111• February 5: On Vodka, Beers, and Regrets (I Villamor).
111• September 29: The Golden Holiday (Kim B-h).
111• October 31: Fan Girl (A Jadaone).
111• December 2: Midnight in a Perfect World (D Dayao).
111• December 25: The Boy Foretold by the Stars (D Dulu).

Back to top

٠ Á!

Desktop mode is strongly recommended.
This link will open the PDF version.
The book’s landing page has been retitled
“Chronological Listing according to Auteur.”

As in the book version, articles in any language are included as part of the title to minimize confusion. Each entry is linked to the director’s canon page; this means if other titles are included in her or his list, they will appear in chronological order. Some titles’ capsule reviews might also be combined with related titles in the list. Scrolling or searching will be the most useful way to reach your target film, but reading through a director’s other recommended works might also prove to be rewarding.

Click on any of the following to navigate more quickly through this list: B; C; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; R; S; T; U; V; W; Y; Z.

A

٠ Aberya (C Linaban, 2012).
٠ Abomination (Y Laranas, 2018).
٠ A Fanciful Tale of Moro Sea Gypsies—see Zamboanga: A Fanciful Tale of Moro Sea Gypsies (E de Castro, 1937).
٠ Alapaap (T Esteban, 1984).
٠ Aliw (I Bernal, 1979).
٠ Altar (RM Ilarde, 2007).
٠ Alyas Stella Magtanggol (CS Roño, 1992).
٠ Amado Pagsanjan’s Asiong Salonga (P Santiago, 1961).
٠ Amang Capulong: Anak ng Tondo, Part II (T Natividad, 1992).
٠ Amanos: Patas ang Laban (F Posadas, 1997).
٠ Amigo (J Sayles, 2010).
٠ Amok (L Fajardo, 2011).
٠ Anak Dalita (LV Avellana, 1956).
٠ Anak ni Waray vs. Anak ni Biday (MJ de los Reyes, 1984).
٠ Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (MN Rivera, 2011).
٠ Ang Daigdig Ko’y Ikaw (E Reyes, 1965).
٠ Ang Dalubhasa (F Poe Jr., 2000).
٠ Ang Damgo ni Eleuteria (RS Zuasola, 2010).
٠ Ang Huling Cha-Cha ni Anita (Anita’s Last Cha-Cha) (SA Bernardo, 2013).
٠ Ang Lalake sa Buhay ni Selya (C Siguion-Reyna, 1997).
٠ Ang Lihim ni Antonio (J Altarejos, 2008).
٠ Ang Maestro (F Poe Jr., 1981).
٠ Ang mga Tigmo sa Akong Pagpauli (Riddles of My Homecoming) (A Mardoquio, 2013).
٠ Ang Manananggal sa Unit 23B (P Cruz, 2016).
٠ Ang Napakaigsing Buhay ng Alipato (Khavn, 2016).
٠ Ang Nawawala (M Jamora, 2012).
٠ Ang Nerseri (V Acedillo Jr., 2009).
٠ Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros (A Solito, 2005).
٠ Ang Paglalakbay ng mga Bituin sa Gabing Madilim (A Mardoquio, 2012).
٠ Ang Pamilyang Kumakain ng Lupa (Khavn, 2005).
٠ Ang Panday (F Poe Jr., 1980).
٠ Ang Panday IV (F Poe Jr., 1984).
٠ Ang Panday: Ikatlong Yugto (F Poe Jr., 1982).
٠ Ang Pirata (J Red, 2013).
٠ Ang Tanging Ina (WV Deramas, 2003).
٠ Ang Totoong Buhay ni Pacita M. (E Perez, 1991).
٠ Annie Sabungera (P Santiago, 1982).
٠ A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino—see Nick Joaquin’s A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino (LV Avellana, 1965).
٠ Area (L Ignacio, 2016).
٠ Asedillo (CA Castillo, 1971).
٠ A Short History of a Few Bad Things (K Deligero, 2018).
٠ Asiong Salonga—see Amado Pagsanjan’s Asiong Salonga (P Santiago, 1961).
٠ Aswang (P Gallaga & L Reyes, 1992).

Back to top

B

٠ Babae sa Breakwater (M O’Hara, 2003).
٠ Babaing Hampaslupa (M Chionglo, 1988).
٠ Babangon Ako’t Dudurugin Kita (L Brocka, 1989).
٠ Babe, I Love You (M Cruz-Alviar, 2014).
٠ Baboy Halas: Wailings in the Forest (B Fiola, 2016).
٠ Badlis sa Kinabuhi (L Salvador, 1968).
٠ Bagets (MJ de los Reyes, 1984).
٠ Bagong Hari (M O’Hara, 1986).
٠ Bakit Kay Tagal ng Sandali? (CS Roño, 1990).
٠ Balangiga: Howling Wilderness (Khavn, 2017).
٠ Bambanti (ZM Dulay, 2015).
٠ Banta ng Kahapon (E Romero, 1977).
٠ Bata Bata Paano Ka Ginawa (CS Roño, 1998).
٠ Batch ’81 (M De Leon, 1982).
٠ Bayan Ko: Kapit sa Patalim (L Brocka, 1984).
٠ Bayaning 3rd World (M De Leon, 1999).
٠ Bayaw (M Parungao, 2009).
٠ Beloved (L Salvador, 1985).
٠ Beloy Montemayor Jr.: Tirador ng Cebu (JP Cabreira, 1993).
٠ Bilanggo sa Dilim (M De Leon, 1986).
٠ Bilangin ang Bituin sa Langit (E Perez, 1989).
٠ Birdshot (M Red, 2016).
٠ Bituing Walang Ningning (EH Borlaza, 1985).
٠ Biyaheng Langit (T Aguiluz, 2000).
٠ Biyaheng Lupa (A Lao, 2009).
٠ Biyaya ng Lupa (M Silos, 1959).
٠ Boatman (T Aguiluz, 1985).
٠ Bomba (R Jover, 2017).
٠ Bona (L Brocka, 1980).
٠ Booba (J Bernal, 2001).
٠ Boses (E Ongkeko-Marfil, 2008).
٠ Boy Golden: Shoot to Kill (CS Roño, 2013).
٠ Boy Pick-Up: The Movie (D Zapata, 2012).
٠ Bridal Shower (J Jeturian, 2004).
٠ Bride for Rent (M Cruz-Alviar, 2014).
٠ Broken Marriage (I Bernal, 1983).
٠ Brutal (M Diaz-Abaya, 1980).
٠ Brutus, ang Paglalakbay (T Illenberger, 2008).
٠ Bukas … May Pangarap (G Portes, 1984).
٠ Bukas Luluhod ang mga Tala (EH Borlaza, 1984).
٠ Bulaklak sa City Jail (M O’Hara, 1984).
٠ Burgos (J Lamangan, 2013).
٠ Burlesk King (M Chionglo, 1999).
٠ Burlesk Queen (CA Castillo, 1977).

Back to top

C

٠ Cain at Abel (L Brocka, 1982).
٠ Caregiver (CS Roño, 2008).
٠ Celso Ad. Castillo’s Totoy Boogie (CA Castillo, 1980).
٠ City After Dark—see Manila by Night (I Bernal, 1980).
٠ Cleopatra Wong—see They Call Her … Cleopatra Wong (BA Suarez, 1978).
٠ Condemned (M O’Hara, 1984).
٠ Cry of Battle (I Lerner, 1963).
٠ Crying Ladies (M Meily, 2003).
٠ Curacha: Ang Babaeng Walang Pahinga (CS Roño, 1998).

Back to top

D

٠ Da Dog Show (R Jover, 2015).
٠ Dagitab (G Abrahan, 2014).
٠ Dahil Mahal Kita: The Dolzura Cortez Story (L Guillen, 1993).
٠ Daluyong at Habagat (CA Castillo, 1976).
٠ Dawn of Freedom (G de Leon & Abe Y, 1944).
٠ Ded Na si Lolo (S Topacio, 2009).
٠ Dementia (PM Intalan, 2014).
٠ Desaparadiso: Corrido at Buhay na Pinagdaanan nang Tatlong Principeng Magcacapatid na Anac nang Haring Fernando at nang Reina Valeriana sa Cahariang Berbania (Khavn, 2015).
٠ Developing Stories: Lucia (M Chionglo, 1992).
٠ Di Ingon ’Nato (B Relucio & I Zaldarriaga, 2011).
٠ Die Beautiful (JR Lana, 2016).
٠ Dinampot Ka Lang sa Putik (MJ de los Reyes, 1991).
٠ Diosa (MJ de los Reyes, 1982).
٠ ’Di Puwedeng Hindi Puwede! (F Posadas, 1999).
٠ Double Barrel (Sige! Iputok Mo.) (T Natividad, 2017).
٠ Dyesebel (G de Leon, 1953).

Back to top

E

٠ Ekstra (J Jeturian, 2013).
٠ El Filibusterismo (G de Leon, 1962).
٠ Eseng ng Tondo (F Poe Jr. & A Salvador, 1997).

Back to top

F

٠ Fan Girl (A Jadaone, 2020).
٠ Florentina Hubaldo, CTE (L Diaz, 2012).
٠ Foster Child (B Mendoza, 2007).

Back to top

G

٠ Gabi Kung Sumikat ang Araw (G Portes, 1983).
٠ Ganito Kami Noon … Paano Kayo Ngayon? (E Romero, 1976).
٠ Gayuma: Sana’y Mahalin Mo Rin Ako (T Esteban, 1995).
٠ Geisha of Death—see Nilalang (P Lopez, 2015).
٠ Genghis Khan (M Conde, 1950).
٠ Geron Busabos: Ang Batang Quiapo (C Gallardo, 1964).
٠ Giliw Ko (C Vander Tolosa, 1939).
٠ Greatest Performance [unfinished] (N Aunor, 1989).
٠ Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (L Brocka, 1990).

Back to top

H

٠ Hahamakin Lahat (L Brocka, 1990).
٠ Halaw (SR Dayoc, 2010).
٠ Hamog (R Jover, 2015).
٠ Heneral Luna (J Tarog, 2015).
٠ Here Comes the Bride (C Martinez, 2010).
٠ Hesus Rebolusyunaryo (L Diaz, 2002).
٠ Hiblang Abo—see Rene Villanueva’s Hiblang Abo (R Jover, 2016).
٠ High Tide (T Illenberger, 2017).
٠ Higit sa Lahat (G Fernandez, 1955).
٠ Hihintayin Kita sa Langit (C Siguion-Reyna, 1991).
٠ Himala (I Bernal, 1982).
٠ Hintayan ng Langit (D Villegas, 2018).
٠ Hinugot sa Langit (I Bernal, 1985).
٠ How to Be Yours (D Villegas, 2016).
٠ How to Disappear Completely (R Martin, 2013).
٠ Hubad na Pangarap (AQ dela Cruz, 1987).
٠ Hubog (J Lamangan, 2001).
٠ Hukom Roldan (G Fernandez, 1957).
٠ Huling Balyan ng Buhi o ang Sinalirap nga Asoy Nila (SA Sanchez, 2006).

Back to top

I

٠ Iadya Mo Kami (M Chionglo, 2016).
٠ Ikasa Mo … Ipuputok Ko (A Salvador, 1990).
٠ Ikaw Ay Akin (I Bernal, 1978).
٠ Ikaw Pa Lang ang Minahal (C Siguion-Reyna, 1992).
٠ Imbisibol (L Fajardo, 2015).
٠ I’m Drunk, I Love You. (J Habac, 2017).
٠ Imoral (A Alix Jr., 2008).
٠ Independencia (R Martin, 2009).
٠ Indigo Child (E Ongkeko-Marfil, 2016).
٠ Init sa Magdamag (L Guillen, 1983).
٠ Insiang (L Brocka, 1976).
٠ Isda (A Alix Jr., 2011).
٠ Iskalawags (K Deligero, 2013).
٠ Itanong Mo sa Buwan (CS Roño, 1988).
٠ Itim (M De Leon, 1976).

Back to top

J

٠ Jack en Jill (MS Torres, 1954).
٠ Jaguar (L Brocka, 1979).
٠ Jay (FX Pasion, 2008).
٠ Jino to Mari (J Altarejos, 2019).
٠ Jungle Love (SA Sanchez, 2012).

Back to top

K

٠ Ka Hector (T Natividad, 1994).
٠ Kahit Butas ng Karayom … Papasukin Ko (F Poe Jr. & W Milan, 1995).
٠ Kahit Pader Gigibain Ko (J del Rosario, 1998).
٠ Kailangan Kita (RB Quintos, 2002).
٠ Kakabakaba Ka Ba? (M De Leon, 1980).
٠ Karnal (M Diaz-Abaya, 1983).
٠ Kasal? (L Guillen, 1980).
٠ Kaya Kong Abutin ang Langit (MJ de los Reyes, 1984).
٠ Kembali Saorang (RA Estella, 1957).
٠ Kimmy Dora: Kambal sa Kiyeme (J Bernal, 2009).
٠ Kisapmata (M De Leon, 1981).
٠ Kontrabando (G Fernandez, 1950).
٠ Krimen: Kayo ang Humatol! (J Raquiza, 1974).
٠ Kubrador (J Jeturian, 2006).
٠ Kung Ako Na Lang Sana (JJ Reyes, 2003).
٠ Kung Mahawi Man ang Ulap (L Guillen, 1984).

Back to top

L

٠ La Paloma (J Gosiengfiao, 1974).
٠ La Vida Rosa (CS Roño, 2001).
٠ Latay (Battered Husband) (R Jover, 2019).
٠ Lauriana (M Chionglo, 2013).
٠ Ligalig (C Montano, 2006).
٠ Ligaw na Bulaklak (I Bernal, 1976).
٠ Lily (K Deligero, 2016).
٠ Lola (B Mendoza, 2009).
٠ Lola Igna (EW Roy Jr., 2019).
٠ Lorna (SA Bernardo, 2014).
٠ LSS (J Castro, 2019).
٠ Luksang Tagumpay [incomplete] (G Fernandez, 1956).
٠ Lumapit … Lumayo ang Umaga (I Bernal, 1975).
٠ Lupang Pangako [incomplete] (SC de Guzman, 1949).

Back to top

M

٠ Ma’ Rosa (B Mendoza, 2016).
٠ Mababangong Bangungot (K Tahimik, 1977).
٠ Mabangis na Lungsod (A Chui C-S & Yuen B, 1995).
٠ Madilim ang Gabi (A Alix Jr., 2017).
٠ Magnifico (MJ de los Reyes, 2003).
٠ Malvarosa (G Fernandez, 1958).
٠ Manila by Night (I Bernal, 1980).
٠ Mariposa: Sa Hawla ng Gabi (R Somes, 2012).
٠ Masahol Pa sa Hayop (A Salvador, 1993).
٠ Masikip sa Dibdib: The Boobita Rose Story (J Bernal, 2004).
٠ Masquerade (DL Zialcita, 1967).
٠ May Minamahal (JJ Reyes, 1993).
٠ May Nagmamahal sa Iyo (M Diaz-Abaya, 1996).
٠ Maynila: Sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag (L Brocka, 1975).
٠ Medusae (P Miras, 2017).
٠ Meet Me in St. Gallen (I Villamor, 2018).
٠ ’Merika (G Portes, 1984).
٠ Metamorphosis (J Tiglao, 2019).
٠ Mga Ligaw na Bulaklak (T Cayado, 1957).
٠ Midnight Dancers—see Sibak: Midnight Dancers (M Chionglo, 1994).
٠ Midnight in a Perfect World (D Dayao, 2020).
٠ Miguelito: Batang Rebelde (L Brocka, 1985).
٠ Milagros (M Diaz-Abaya, 1997).
٠ Milan (OM Lamasan, 2004).
٠ Minsan May Isang Puso (JJ Reyes, 2001).
٠ Minsan Pa (J Jeturian, 2004).
٠ Minsan, Minahal Kita (OM Lamasan, 2000).
٠ Moral (M Diaz-Abaya, 1982).
٠ Moron 5 and the Crying Lady (WV Deramas, 2012).

Back to top

N

٠ Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita (M Chionglo, 1986).
٠ Neomanila (M Red, 2017).
٠ Nick Joaquin’s A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino (LV Avellana, 1965).
٠ Nightshift (Y Laranas, 2020).
٠ Nilalang (P Lopez, 2015).
٠ No Other Woman (RS Bayani, 2011).
٠ Nonoy Marcelo’s Tisoy! (I Bernal, 1977).
٠ Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan (L Diaz, 2013).
٠ Notoryus (T Natividad, 1998).
٠ Nunal sa Tubig (I Bernal, 1976).
٠ Nuuk (V Velasco, 2019).

Back to top

O

٠ On the Job (E Matti, 2013).
٠ On Vodka, Beers, and Regrets (I Villamor, 2020).
٠ One More Chance (C Garcia-Sampana, 2007).
٠ Orapronobis (L Brocka, 1989).
٠ Oro, Plata, Mata (P Gallaga, 1982).
٠ OTJ—see On the Job (E Matti, 2013).
٠ Otso (E Perez, 2013).

Back to top

P

٠ Paano Kung Wala Ka Na (M Chionglo, 1987).
٠ Pabling (I Bernal, 1981).
٠ Pagbabalik ng Panday (F Poe Jr., 1981).
٠ Pagdating sa Dulo (I Bernal, 1971).
٠ Palabra de Honor (DL Zialcita, 1983).
٠ Pangarap ng Puso (M O’Hara, 2000).
٠ Paradise Inn (CA Castillo, 1985).
٠ Pascalina (P Miras, 2012).
٠ Pauwi Na (P Villaluna, 2016).
٠ Pedro Penduko (G de Leon, 1954).
٠ Pepeng Kaliwete (P Santiago, 1982).
٠ Pepeng Shotgun (R Suzara, 1981).
٠ Pila-Balde (J Jeturian, 1999).
٠ Pinoy/Blonde (P Gallaga, 2005).
٠ Playgirl (M Chionglo, 1981).
٠ Porno (A Alix Jr., 2013).
٠ Posas (L Fajardo, 2012).
٠ Prinsipe Teñoso (G Fernandez, 1954).
٠ Private Show (CS Roño, 1984).
٠ Pusaka Pontianak (RA Estella, 1965).
٠ Pusong Wazak: Isa Na Namang Kwento ng Pag-ibig sa Pagitan ng Kriminal at Puta (Khavn, 2014).

Back to top

R

٠ Radyo (Y Laranas, 2001).
٠ Red Roses for a Call Girl (BA Suarez, 1988).
٠ Relasyon (I Bernal, 1982).
٠ Rene Villanueva’s Hiblang Abo (R Jover, 2016).
٠ Respeto (T Monteras II, 2017).
٠ Riddles of My Homecoming—see Ang mga Tigmo sa Akong Pagpauli (Riddles of My Homecoming) (A Mardoquio, 2013).
٠ Riding in Tandem (T Natividad, 2017).

Back to top

S

٠ Sa Puso Ko Hahalik ang Mundo (A Marquez, 1988).
٠ Saan Nagtatago ang Pag-ibig? (E Garcia, 1987).
٠ Salawahan (I Bernal, 1979).
٠ Sa Ilalim ng Cogon (RM Ilarde, 2005).
٠ Salome (L Guillen, 1981).
٠ Samar (G Montgomery, 1962).
٠ Samseng (RA Estella, 1959).
٠ Sana’y Mahalin Mo Rin Ako—see Gayuma: Sana’y Mahalin Mo Rin Ako (T Esteban, 1995).
٠ Sanda Wong (G de Leon, 1955).
٠ Sarjan Hassan (LV Avellana, 1958).
٠ Sarong Banggi (E Dela Cruz, 2005).
٠ Saudagar Minyak Urat (RA Estella, 1959).
٠ Savage Sisters (E Romero, 1974).
٠ Schoolgirls (MJ de los Reyes, 1982).
٠ Scorpio Nights (P Gallaga, 1985).
٠ Segurista (T Aguiluz, 1996).
٠ Sensual (M Diaz-Abaya, 1986).
٠ Serbis (B Mendoza, 2008).
٠ Sibak: Midnight Dancers (M Chionglo, 1994).
٠ Sigaw (Y Laranas, 2004).
٠ Signal Rock (CS Roño, 2018).
٠ Sila-Sila (G Abrahan, 2019).
٠ Silip (E Perez, 1985).
٠ Sindak! (M O’Hara, 1999).
٠ Sinner or Saint (M Chionglo, 1984).
٠ Sino ang Maysala? (A Garces, 1957).
٠ Sisa (G de Leon, 1951).
٠ Sister Stella L. (M De Leon, 1984).
٠ Six Degrees of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay (A Jadaone, 2011).
٠ Sol Searching (R Perez Jr., 2018).
٠ Sonata (P Gallaga & L Reyes, 2013).
٠ Stardoom (L Brocka, 1971).
٠ Still Lives (J Red, 1999).
٠ Stolen Moments (EH Borlaza, 1987).
٠ Sumayaw Ka Salome (L Guillen, 1992).
٠ Superpsychocebu (C Linaban, 2016).

Back to top

T

٠ Takaw Tukso (W Pascual, 1986).
٠ Talipandas (C Conde, 1958).
٠ Tambolista (A Alix Jr., 2007).
٠ Tandem (K Palisoc, 2015).
٠ Tatak ng Kriminal (E Vinarao, 1993).
٠ Tatlo … Magkasalo (C Siguion-Reyna, 1998).
٠ Tatlong Taóng Walang Diyos (M O’Hara, 1976).
٠ Taufan (TC Santos, 1957).
٠ T-Bird at Ako (DL Zialcita, 1982).
٠ Terror Is a Man (G de Leon, 1959).
٠ That Thing Called Tadhana (A Jadaone, 2014).
٠ The Boobita Rose Story—see Masikip sa Dibdib: The Boobita Rose Story (J Bernal, 2004).
٠ The Boy Foretold by the Stars (D Dulu, 2020).
٠ The Day After Valentine’s (JP Laxamana, 2018).
٠ The Dolzura Cortez Story—see Dahil Mahal Kita: The Dolzura Cortez Story (L Guillen, 1993).
٠ The Escort (M Parungao, 2011).
٠ The Evil Within (LV Avellana, 1970).
٠ The Golden Holiday (Kim B-h, 2020).
٠ The Guys from Paradise (Miike T, 2000).
٠ The Moises Padilla Story (G de Leon, 1961).
٠ The Passionate Strangers (E Romero, 1966).
٠ The Strangers (L Fajardo, 2012).
٠ The Untold Story of Melanie Marquez (A Marquez, 1987).
٠ They Call Her … Cleopatra Wong (BA Suarez, 1978).
٠ Tigasin (I Jarlego Jr., 1999).
٠ Tinik (R Suzara, 2013).
٠ Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (L Brocka, 1974).
٠ Tirador (B Mendoza, 2007).
٠ Tisoy!—see Nonoy Marcelo’s Tisoy! (I Bernal, 1977).
٠ Tiyanak (P Gallaga & L Reyes, 1988).
٠ Totoy Boogie—see Celso Ad. Castillo’s Totoy Boogie (CA Castillo, 1980).
٠ Totoy Buang: Mad Killer ng Maynila (JE Navoa, 1992).
٠ Totoy Guwapo: Alyas Kanto Boy (T Natividad, 1992).
٠ Tough Beauty and the Sloppy Slop—see Mabangis na Lungsod (A Chui C-S & Yuen B, 1995).
٠ Transit (H Espia, 2013).
٠ Tu Pug Imatuy (A Barbarona, 2017).
٠ Tubog sa Ginto (L Brocka, 1970).
٠ Tubusin Mo ng Dugo (P Marcos, 1988).
٠ Tuhog (J Jeturian, 2001).
٠ Tunay na Tunay: Gets Mo? Gets Ko! (J Bernal, 2000).
٠ Twilight Dancers (M Chionglo, 2006).

Back to top

U

٠ Uhaw na Dagat (CA Castillo, 1981).
٠ Ulan (I Villamor, 2019).
٠ Underage (J Gosiengfiao, 1980).
٠ Unfriend (J Altarejos, 2014).
٠ UnTrue (SA Bernardo, 2019).

Back to top

V

٠ Vampariah (2016, M Abaya).
٠ Vince & Kath & James (T Boborol, 2016).
٠ Virgin Forest (P Gallaga, 1985).

Back to top

W

٠ Wailings in the Forest—see Baboy Halas: Wailings in the Forest (B Fiola, 2016).
٠ #WalangForever (D Villegas, 2015).
٠ Walang Kawala (J Lamangan, 2008).
٠ Wangbu (T Natividad, 1998).
٠ Wanted: Border (R Gibraltar, 2009).
٠ Water Lemon (L Lorca, 2015).
٠ Women in Cages (G de Leon, 1971).
٠ Working Girls (I Bernal, 1984).

Back to top

Y

٠ Yanggaw (R Somes, 2008).

Back to top

Z

٠ Zamboanga: A Fanciful Tale of Moro Sea Gypsies (E de Castro, 1937).
٠ Zombadings: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington (J Castro, 2011).

Back to top

٠ Á!

CREDITS

Back to top

COPYRIGHT INFO

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publishers, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, contact the publishers via either website (amauteurish.com/contact) or email (iq100@inha.ac.kr).

The author acknowledges the support of the Inha University Faculty Writing Grant, Summit Media, and Amauteurish Publishing, toward the completion of this volume.

Although AI software became available several years after the project started, the author refused to avail of assistance from large language models for either research or writing.

Back to top

Á!

[Click here (recommended) for desktop mode.]

I’m Drunk, I Love You.

Year of Release: 2017
Director: JP Habac
Screenwriters: JP Habac & Giancarlo Abrahan
(From a story by Giancarlo Abrahan, Shayne Guevara, JP Habac)
Producers: TBA Studios, Tuko Film Productions, Buchi Boy Films

Cast: Maja Salvador, Paulo Avelino, Dominic Roco, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, Jim Paredes, Irma Adlawan, Thou Reyes, Paul Montecillo, Lei Ponce, Kai Honasan, Iego Tan, Juan Miguel Severo, Carlo Lava, Harrold Go, Benjo Robles, Fernando Ortigas, E.A. Rocha, Sharina Magbojos, Celina Penaflorida, Mercedes Cabral, Bianca Patungan

Social-work major Carson practices for her graduation, but her film-major crush Dio picks her up and her gay best friend Jason Ty to watch him perform at an indie-music bar. Afterward Dio invites the two to take a road trip to La Union province, several hours’ drive away from Manila. He treats them to hotel rooms at a beach resort, promising to get them back in time for graduation. The prospect of ending their university-student lives intensifies Carson’s infatuation for Dio, with Jason constantly reining her in so as not to make a fool of herself. Then they discover that Dio brought them along because he wanted to hook up again with Pathy, a girlfriend he had before his college years, and he needed his confidants to tell him whether or not he was on the wrong track.

Although it had a modest viewership during its original release, I’m Drunk, I Love You. (commonly abbreviated IDILY) tended to have an enduring social-network presence, mainly because of its laid-back storytelling as well as a decently successful soundtrack. The songs are acoustic emo pop-indie numbers that comment on the story, referencing cultural icons including romcom star John Lloyd Cruz. Like most music-intensive presentations, the film runs longer than what its narrative would require, but then it proffers nothing out of the ordinary and even pales in comparison to some mainstream romcom samples. Its payoff banks on its independent setup—meaning it allows itself to get away with meandering and haphazard turns in storytelling, reflective of its characters’ anxieties about their transition from financial dependents to income earners who’re suddenly unsure of what directions their lives can and should take. The safe recourse of genre entries is also observed here, in having performers who look sufficiently attractive, so as to warrant stationary closeup shots when these become necessary. On the other hand, the actors also unfailingly provide an edginess to their readings, a factor that would nominally disqualify them from mainstream lead roles, where insistently (and sometimes scarily) realistic options like polyamory, women’s sexual prerogative, and absence of closure or direction can be productively negotiated. Their reward is secured by the occasional endurance of offbeat projects like IDILY, as well as the commitment of native film talents who both abjure the spoiled ipseity of global-filmfest evaluators and the conservative moralism of mainstream adjudicators. It’s a difficult faultline to traverse, but any close observation of any extensive film canon will reveal that most of the culture’s best talents actually flourish in this territory.

Back to top
Return to Canon Decampment contents
Go to alphabetized filmmakers list

Á!

[Click here (recommended) for desktop mode.]

Nilalang

English Title: Entity
Alternate Title: Geisha of Death
Additional Language: Japanese
Year of Release: 2015
Director: Pedring Lopez
Screenwriters: Pedring Lopez & Dennis Empalmado
(From a story by Pedring Lopez)
Producers: Welovepost, Parallax Studios, Haunted Tower Pictures

Cast: Cesar Montano, Maria Ozawa, Meg Imperial, Cholo Barretto, Kiko Matos, Dido de la Paz, Ruby Ruiz, Richard Manabat, Yam Concepcion, Arthur Acuña, Bing Villegas, Aubrey Miles, Lui Manansala, Alchris Galura, Benson Dalina, Tony Belmonte, Sacho Yoshi, Noel Blanco, Yoshitomo Inoue, Ranny Comia, Alexandre Charlet, Anna Deorca, Raymond Talavera, Will Devaughn, Christine Te Nano, Jack Lee Ochoa, Jerome Calica, Richard Carvajal, Jaime del Rosario, Stanley Carvajal, Jenny Tee, Aya, Iron Maven, Jooley Shen, Junchun Macaraeg, Nico Paulo Muñoz, Jastine Wesley Buan, Rommel Allen Marasigan, Lito Angelo Reyes Bagtas, Brynne James Menguito, Jaspher Casin, Macki Pineda, Reiniesse Ellen Navarro, Edeline Andres, Salvie Cabalquinto, Mayumi Shimada, Elysha Juarez

During the seventeenth century, in the Tokugawa Shogunate of Aki, members of a samurai clan slay a demon named Zahagur, in order to protect a volume of Ishi written in the blood of ronin. Zahagur is able to escape, however, and commits atrocities through the ages, until in 2013, National Bureau of Investigation agents led by Tony corner Nakazumi, a criminal possessed by Zahagur, who had committed the worst case of serial killing in Japan and was in the process of disfiguring his latest victim in Manila. The agents succeed in killing Nakazumi, but in the present time (2015), some killings reminiscent of Nakazumi’s crimes are reported. With his partner Jane, Tony uses his ability to speak Japanese to investigate. Mr. Kazudo warns them that Zahagur has the ability to move from one possessed body to another, and that he has targeted the descendants of the samurai clain who defeated him. He informs Tony that his own daughters are endangered and that the older one, Miyuki, who runs a nightclub, has to retrieve the incomplete volume of Ishi so that it could be completed by the pages in his hands and be used to overpower Zahagur for good.

Nilalang is a sample of the past reclaiming the present: it’s an “independent” feature the way it used to be understood in the 1960s, when star-owned outfits led the charge in dismantling the ramparts of the once-impregnable studio system. Critic-historians, even left-identified ones, contrasted the indies’ products unfavorably vis-à-vis the supposedly more rational Fordist arrangement, resulting in the propagation of, among things, an entrenched conservative outlook regarding available early cinema. The more practical consequence was the negligence with which indie entries of the period were handled, so the best we can do is rely on the remonstrances expressed by observers—to the effect that, with few exceptions, the 1960s films were rampaging profit-oriented affairs, more concerned with pandering to the audience’s baser instincts and stopping at nothing, including pornography, to realize these goals. The few then-contemporary releases I remember watching, left pleasurable memories in their wake, although I was still far from being able to evaluate narrative material with any confidence. Nilalang succeeds in hybridizing sources drawn primarily from Japanese pulp culture, inclusive of historical institutions such as ancient shogunates (rendered as anime) and the yakuza syndicate, and features a performer who first made an impact in adult videos. Director Pedring Lopez demonstrates a connoisseurship of multiple influences, and remains unapologetic about commingling them in order to attain unpredictable viscerality. Along the way, one can devise a metatextual reading of patriarchal abjection if one is inclined in that direction, although the influx of references would more likely result in stimulatory overload and necessitate some rest and reflection.

Back to top
Return to Canon Decampment contents
Go to alphabetized filmmakers list

Á!

[Click here (recommended) for desktop mode.]

Ang Manananggal sa Unit 23B

English Translation: The Vampire in Unit 23B
English Title: The Woman in Unit 23B
Year of Release: 2016
Director: Prime Cruz
Screenwriters: Jenilee Chuaunsu & Prime Cruz
Producers: QCinema International Film Festival, The IdeaFirst Co., Indioboy Productions

Cast: Ryza Cenon, Martin del Rosario, Vangie Labalan, Cholo Barretto, Japo Parcero, Marcus Morales, Gabby Padilla, Dino Pastrano, Aldrico Padilla, Eric Kim, Jeffrey Hayd, Pjay Tayem, Harvie Tayem, John Pedraya, Victor Sanchez, Anjos Rome, Joel Lacap, Jerry Tolentino, Noel Blanco, Jason Conanan, Rosalie Pulitado, Glea Burban, Alain Morata, Nico Gomez, Maqui Farr, Nestor Abrogena Jr., Prime Cruz, Galileo Te, Jenilee Chuaunsu, Chad Angelic Cabigon, Adi Lopez, Angelo Estanol, Robert Ruiz, Erik Reynoso, Rhon Dival, Adrian del Mundo, Red Musni, Halman Lambrento, Nick de Leon, Marol Adelan Eugenio, Hope Eduarte, Ichi Sotto, Peter Matrinez

Newly moved to her new apartment, Jewel makes the acquaintance of Nico. She lives alone while he stays with his hotheaded grandmother. He finds Jewel strange for her appetite for meat, including the duck embryo in balut. Some killings occur in their neighborhood but are attributed to the police prosecution of drug users. Jewel hangs out in dance clubs where a man attempts to pick her up and flirt with her while driving her home. She finds Nico at an outdoor cafeteria and manages to draw him out regarding his ex-girlfriend, then confesses that she never had a relationship because of her evil nature, which Nico finds hard to believe. Later that evening, she experiences pain in her belly and rubs ointment, then returns to the club all dolled up. She finds the man who tried to seduce her and takes him to an isolated place. She dominates him during intercourse and bites through his guts as they climax. Another night, Nico gets drunk in a bar and beaten up by his ex-GF’s companions: Jewel rescues him but stops herself after she tastes the blood from his wounds. Jewel gets along with Nico’s grandmother, but when the latter dies, both of them find themselves increasingly isolated and cornered for different reasons.

Made during the first year of the first fascist presidency since the elder Ferdinand Marcos’s ouster, Ang Manananggal sa Unit 23B directly references the extrajudicial killings that landed Rodrigo Duterte in the custody of the International Criminal Court at The Hague. None of the actual EJK victims were as badly mangled as the vampire’s victims in AMU23B, but their wholesale demonization by the regime and its apologists could have left them in similar conditions and the public would have hesitated to look more closely then, at least initially. The film’s premise also turned on the victims deserving their comeuppance as sexist bourgeois deplorables, and later as hapless victims sacrificed for the sake of feeding the title character. But at roughly midway, a community event allows the characters to disclose themselves, sometimes inadvertently: an outdoor costume party, where the manananggal dresses up as a B-movie winged vampire and ironically assumes the guise of what she carefully hides from everyone. After a declaration of their passion for each other, her beau espies her undertaking her modus operandi as well as its murderous consequence, and has to contend with his own conflicted response. AMU23B wisely desists from further pressing its national-scale irony, where the rural spaces that engendered the fictional manananggal also contrived the horrific war on drugs (inspired actually by right-wing US presidencies). The lovers who lose everything in the film still have each other; the country that acquired a few developmental paces at the expense of some of its most vulnerable citizens will be lucky to regain its soul..

Back to top
Return to Canon Decampment contents
Go to alphabetized filmmakers list

Á!

[Click here (recommended) for desktop mode.]

Water Lemon

Year of Release: 2015
Director: Lemuel Lorca
Screenwriter: Lilit Reyes
Producers: Blue Skies Productions, Quezon City Film Development Commission, Tuko Film Productions

Cast: Junjun Quintana, Tessie Tomas, Alessandra de Rossi, Meryll Soriano, Lou Veloso, Lui Manansala, Menggie Cobarrubias, Daniel Marsh, Mariella Castillo, Yuwin Cruz, Gold Aquino, Jerald Zarsuela, Tristan Jason Herrin, Dorcas Nilooban, Roann Casimiro, Kathlyn Cabaldo, Maria Theresa Pasamba, Mary Grace Virtusios, Lilit Reyes, Reizel Ann S. Guanlea, Joseph G. Rogado, Kathlyn C. Atienza, Beatrice Lombard

In Mauban municipality in Quezon Province, Filemon obsesses over the earth’s ocean surface, measuring the sea level everyday and entering his findings on a chart. He explains his concerns to anyone who cares to listen, which people in his community generally allow him to, in recognition of his autistic condition. He also talks swiftly in English, following the advice of his widowed mother Pina, who’s concerned about the future her son will have after she dies. Because of his inability to focus on assigned work, Filemon loses his job as a filing clerk in a government office. Because of her position as an education supervisor, she asks an old friend to provide a position for Filemon that can make use of his fondness for order and design. Filemon has also taken to hanging out at the internet café, where he makes the online acquaintance of someone he calls “Ms. Seychelles,” since she hails from the country. When his cousin, who runs the café, is actually visited by the American she befriended online and winds up arranging to marry him so she can migrate to England, her father invites Filemon to an all-night drinking session.

Philippine cinema has attained sufficient stature as the equivalent of national literature that it can accommodate an intensely personal issue—autism spectrum disorder, in this instance—and not worry about addressing wider topical questions. The fallacy in this formulation is that any well-developed argument will inevitably be able to draw in contemporary concerns as a matter of course, although these must be read carefully and creatively, as befits any intelligent work of fiction. Water Lemon situates itself in the filmmaker’s own hometown, a decision that endows it with a fundamental level of credibility, although to Lemuel Lorca’s credit, what he exploited was his familiarity with the place’s scenic locations, specifically those that reveal their wonder from certain vantage points during particular hours of the day. A clue to the film’s unusual appeal lies in the setting’s name (Quezon being the southernmost Tagalog-speaking province, renamed after the nationalist President who hailed from the place): uban refers to hair strands that turn white usually from old age, so the Mauban municipality exhibits a well-kempt vibe despite being situated northernmost geographically and therefore not as distant from Manila as most of the other destinations in the province. The characters in WL speak of professional and financial success as premised on relocating to the metropolitan center, with one of the younger go-getters determined to travel even farther, outside of the country, as a marriage migrant. When the primary character’s mother is admired for her abilities and achievements, the same hope of Manila-centered fulfillment is expressed for her; her self-awareness is complimented without any tinge of self-pity—in fact, as she confides to a colleague, she worries about what will happen to Filemon, her autistic son, after she passes on. No cure exists for his condition, as anyone familiar with the medical literature knows. At the presentation’s close, with the predicament of mother and afflicted offspring, as well as other characters carrying on with the processes of living, dying, and leaving, what emerges is a recognizable representation of a nation in flux, determined to move forward but also anxious about leaving anyone behind.

Back to top
Return to Canon Decampment contents
Go to alphabetized filmmakers list

Á!

[Click here (recommended) for desktop mode.]

Metamorphosis

Year of Release: 2019
Director: J.E. Tiglao [as Jose Enrique Tiglao]
Screenwriters: J.E. Tiglao & Boo Dabu
(With Ricky Lee as script consultant)
Producers: Cinema One Originals & Rebelde Films

Cast: Gold Aceron, Iana Bernardez, Dylan Ray Talon, Ricky Davao, Yayo Aguila, Germaine de Leon, Bodjie Pascua, Lui Manansala, Sarah Pagcaliwagan, Raqs Regalado, Mae Ann Tiglao, Daryl Zacarias, Jasper Martinez, Christian Sta. Maria, Robert Villar, Arj Acierda, Daniah Alysandra Jamon, Divine Grace Magaru, Len Jamby Malinab, Johna Pasamonte, Karla Luisa Espas, Paola Gumpad, Annie Meting, Trina Sobrepena, Alex Vistro, Patrick Mesiac, Jaelen Greece Merin, Jeffiyl Medina, Erika Jianzid Malinab, Mark Gabrielle Costales, Carl Mesias, Marian Albay, Christian Perez, Harry Reymundo Niño

Adam keeps getting teased by his male classmates for not being as masculine as they are. He calls their leader “supot” (meaning uncircumcised) and manages to beat him up during confrontations. Duriung class, their teacher welcomes Angel, who’s pretty but looks old for her age. Adam keeps hanging out with Angel, who reveals that she’s actually 24 years old; but when they swim in a river, Adam panics and runs home. His parents find him bleeding through his shorts and his father, a church pastor, contacts a doctor in their congregation, who says that Adam will need to be tested to determine his exact genital condition. Angel assures him that she can accept whatever he is and confesses that she performs sex work to be able to live alone. In the course of making out, she discovers Adam’s intersex nature and tells him later that she doesn’t judge him. Adam’s father, however, is convinced that the child he raised should be a daughter and makes plans to raise money and move to a different community. A young doctor stays over at Adam’s residence because of the rain and Adam finds himself getting attracted to the guy.

The presentation of any precarious human condition will always be the greatest strength of the narrative arts, and Metamorphosis has earned satisfactory notices from the admittedly narrow circle of observers concerned with the condition of intersexuality. The compliments are fully earned, with the film avoiding any dogmatic issue-raising and promoting the easily overlooked principle of allowing the intersex subject to determine their own preference in their own good time. (Those who still believe in intervention should be encouraged to read Herculine Barbin: Being the Recently Discovered Memoirs of a Nineteenth-Century French Hermaphrodite, tracked down and published in 1980 by Michel Foucault, where the implementation of a law that required that citizens be classified as either one of only two genders resulted in scandal, heartbreak, desolation, and early death.) J.E. Tiglao also devised several means of evading the verbal supplication of understanding their social Otherness, except possibly for the argument of sisterhood articulated by a female sexual outlaw. Adam’s highlight scenes are bathed in a late-afternoon glow that evokes the Japanese concept of mono no aware, or the inevitability of melancholy in realizing beauty. The project also benefits from the execution of Gold Aceron, an extraordinary new talent who, in spite of his real-life cis-het orientation, manages to perform androgynously without any self-consciousness and succeeds in pulling off the several potentially awkward scenes involving the growing awareness of difference and isolation, the unpredictability of sexual desire, and the revelation of taboo body parts; the highest compliment one can pay for such a performative achievement is the mistaken impression of at least one foreign viewer that he must be intersex himself. Deserving to have a wider impact than it had, Metamorphosis is poised to greet a future where its presence will be more than welcome.

Back to top
Return to Canon Decampment contents
Go to alphabetized filmmakers list

Á!

[Click here (recommended) for desktop mode.]

Ligalig

English Translation: Anxiety
Year of Release: 2006
Director: Cesar Montano
Screenwriters: Cesar Montano & Willy Laconsay
(From a story by Cesar Montano)
Producer: CM Films

Cast: Cesar Montano, Sunshine Cruz, Johnny Delgado, Celia Rodriguez, John Regala, Katya Santos, Bayani Agbayani, Alvin Anson, Rommel Montano, Gwen Garci, Kalila Aguilos, Rebecca Lusterio, Manny Calayan, Jun Robles Lana, Jeri Lopez, Ashley Ott, Pia Cristobal, Christian Angelo Montano, Andrew Milallos

A serial killer, whom we learn later is named Damian, stalks couples in motel rooms and kills them after they have sex. The police put tabs on his whereabouts and assign an officer to track and arrest him. Junior, the son of a police officer, wishes to get serious with his girlfriend Trixie, so he assents when she says he has to meet her strict mother. She takes along her friend Toti but while she sleeps in the car, Toti feels up Junior’s leg as he drives. Trixie’s mother disapproves of her relationship, saying she has no future with a mere driver. Meanwhile Damian has followed them to Trixie’s rural hometown and makes plans to annihilate anyone he finds in Trixie’s household.

The host of complaints that greeted Ligalig, centered on its resemblance to Alexandre Aja’s Haute tension (High Tension, 2003), a sample of the New French Extremity, are redolent of the outcries that account for some of Danny L. Zialcita’s career decisions. It’s not the first time that a local product outdid the (admittedly inferior) foreign source from which it derived its story ideas, but the local critical short-mindedness tends to dwell on announcing the resemblance, declaring it an anomaly just for that reason, and abandoning the more difficult challenge of evaluation. Cesar Montano may have also been persistent in his pursuit of prestige and political posts, but then that should make his decision to select offbeat substance commendable, a return to his roots in detrital material, with the extensive use of then-new solid-state technology and non-linear postproduction—technical details that account for how the film manages to look and sound not so much different as updated. The final revelation, familiar to know-it-all viewers of the source film, nevertheless manages to work out within the terms of Ligalig, if only because of its more careful attention to causation and motivation.

Back to top
Return to Canon Decampment contents
Go to alphabetized filmmakers list

Á!

I planned a number of mini-articles to accompany the findings, starting with a preliminary quantitative analysis, but the exhausting nature of the completed project as well as a plan for an anthology of metacritical materials convinced me that relieving myself of this burden would match the kindness it would bestow on readers masochistic enough to read the entire text.

11011I also conducted myself as close as possible to a “no title left behind” principle, which intersected perfectly with a world where the open-access practice (in acknowledging the primacy of the public domain) became a value strong enough to contend with capitalist profiteering. Once more, the members of my team of unpaid consultants were assiduous and patient enough to urge me to consider titles I had dismissed or that I still had to watch.

11011Since the project began in the early 2010s, I approached the conclusion of every year with greater anxiety than the typically careless award-givers among my elderly colleagues. Unlike news reports and fan celebrations, book publications exist in a realm where they have the potential to outlast even judgments made about them. But when the second decade of the millennium rolled in, I agreed with several colleagues to announce 2020 as the project’s cutoff year, and was pleasantly surprised at the manifold advantages that temporal distance provided. Any individual who believes that the gaps from 2021 to whatever happens to be the year that you read this, urgently needs to be filled in as perfectly updated a manner, is welcome to take up the challenge.

11011This leads to the final gesture I wish the project to make. Critics and academics in the field of film discourse have been making hay and getting away with mediocrity for far too long, which means that no amount of textual deconstruction or reconstruction will prevent them from persisting in their practice. The book is not for them, fortunately; it is for me (which should go without saying) as well as for all concerned appreciators of Philippine cinema. It is also for world-cinema enthusiasts who might share the same excitement in evaluating other historically and geographically circumscribed realms of practice, and for scholars curious about reading strategies and/or areas for further studies.

11011I recently discussed in an online forum how I went over then-existing critical writing on Philippine cinema, which was how I knew what strengths I could bring and what weaknesses of mine I could work on. The rest won’t matter, and I hope that any future critical practitioner who thinks of attempting a similar project can exert as much effort (and have as much fun) to make what I finished not matter, which is how I’m already regarding it at this point. At this stage, my post-canon life can finally begin.

Á!