He may have renounced his National Artist status earlier this year, but Kidlat Tahimik is still a gem of Philippine film and independent cinema—and this October, he’s having a month-long free film screening!
Kidlat Tahimik is a pioneer of independent local films and was a cornerstone of Third Cinema—a radical film movement originating in Latin America characterized by critiques of neocolonialism and socio-political structures. He is also known as the “Father of Philippine Independent Cinema” for his radical, do-it-yourself (DIY) approach to filmmaking that rejected Hollywood conventions from the get-go in his debut feature Mababangong Bangungot (Perfumed Nightmare) in 1977.
As he celebrates his birth month this October, Kidlat Tahimik is organizing screenings of his greatest hits. The first film on the roster was Banal-Kahoy (Holy Wood), a short which featured Ifugao wood carvers as they travel to Japan to transform a 250-year-old wood struck by lightning into a piece of art for the Takedera temple. It also tells viewers about pinugo—the distinct system of sustainable land cultivation developed by the Ifugao that helps with forest management and rice cultivation. The film was screened coinciding with Kidlat Tahimik’s birthday, and after the viewing, he did a little performance in remembrance of Lopez Nauyac—an Ifugao elder and mentor to Kidlat who was featured in the film and passed away in 2024.
Two other films screened last weekend: Takedera Mon Amour, a documentary which chronicled the encounters between Kidlat Tahimik and a Japanese monk; and Turumba, a film about a family from a small town who produced and sold paper mache figurines during the annual Turumba Festival in Pakil, Laguna.
Following this are screenings of Our Bomb Mission to Hiroshima, Celebrating The Year 2021, Today, and Perfumed Nightmare on October 24; Some More Rice, Bahag Ko, Mahal Ko, and Who Invented the Yoyo? Who Invented the Moon Buggy? on on October 25; Orbit 50: Letters to My 3 Sons and Why is Yellow At The Middle of the Rainbow? on October 30; and Lakaran ni Kabunyan and Balikbayan #1: Memories of Overdevelopment on October 31.
Catch this limited-time screening for free and celebrate the birth month of Kidlat Tahimik at Balanghai ni Ikeng Cinematheque, Ili-likha Watering Hole in Baguio City, Philippines this October!