By Marinel Cruz, Bayani San Diego Jr.
Inquirer
Last updated 11:57pm (Mla time) 04/22/2007


MANILA, Philippines - It's official.

Brillante "Dante" Mendoza's "Foster Child," a film on the state of
foster care in the Philippines, will have its world premiere at the
prestigious Cannes International Film Festival in France next month.

"Foster Child," written by Joel Jover, will be featured in the
Director's Fortnight section, which showcases the works of talented
up-and-coming filmmakers from around the world.

Mendoza is only the fourth Filipino director to be featured in this
category. Mario O'Hara's "Babae sa Breakwater" was screened in 2004.
Much earlier, in 1982, Mike de Leon's "Batch 81" and "Kisapmata" made
the grade. But Lino Brocka was Cannes' first-ever Pinoy "discovery."
His "Insiang" was shown in 1978 and, in 1989, he was back with "Bona."

This year, a total of 24 films from different countries are being
featured in the special section. The complete list of titles, picked
from over 1,500 entries, will be released on May 3.

In a letter dated April 20, festival coordinator Paul Gravis formally
requested Seiko Films, which produced "Foster Child," to submit two
copies, with English and French subtitles, on or before May 14.

Very Filipino

Seiko producer Robbie Tan told the Inquirer on Saturday: "The people
behind the festival found the film unique, 'very Filipino,' they
said. It is a dream come true. We really had the Cannes fest in mind
while making the film."

Foster care is a system by which substitute parents care for a child
who has been taken away from biological parents until an adoptive
home is found.

The Seiko movie features award-winning actress Cherry Pie Picache as
Thelma, a foster mother from the slums who receives P1,500 monthly
from the government for every child placed in her care.

Other cast members are Dan Alvaro, Alwyn Uytingco, Jiro Manio and
Kier Segundo who plays Thelma's foster child Jonjon.

Picache said that the movie's participation in Cannes is
significant: "It means the Philippines is once again being noticed
and appreciated abroad."

The actress' last project with Mendoza, "Kaleldo," was screened at
the first Rome International Film Festival only last October.

Picache said she intends to join Tan and Mendoza in Cannes.

Martin Macalintal, audiovisual attachç of the French Embassy in
Manila, told the Inquirer that the embassy would take care of
Mendoza's plane fare.

Christine Dayrit, chair of the International Film Festival Committee,
added that the committee was planning to award Tan a P400,000 grant
also for plane tickets, accommodations, as well as for subtitling and
printing expenses.

Tan said that subtitling costs P100,000; and printing, P70,000 per
copy.

Mendoza bagged the Best Picture award in last year's Cinemanila
International Film Festival for his film "Manoro, The Aeta
Teacher." "Kaleldo" (Summer Heat,2006) and "Masahista" (The Masseur,
2005) got rave reviews and were also shown in various international
film festivals.

"When I do films, I make sure that, visually, it tells a story even
without dialogue and scoring," Mendoza asserted.

The director said this was what Jeremy Segay, a French expert on
Asian cinema, liked about "Foster Child."

The hunt

During a trip to Manila last month, Segay. who sits on the Cannes
Selection Committee, first noticed the potential of "Foster Child" as
a Directors' Fortnight entry.

Segay visited Manila to watch several movies and meet with a handful
of filmmakers.

In an exclusive interview with Inquirer Entertainment at the time,
Segay said he had really made it a point to visit the Philippines
this year, instead of making his usual trips to Korea and Japan.

He noted that a lot of "interesting things" were happening in the
Philippines in particular, and in Asian cinema in general.

Segay explained: "When you say Asian, it's only in geographical terms
because Asian cinema is so diverse. It's surprising to see a variety
of genres and styles in one country. Asian cinema is more daring and
fresh, compared to Hollywood and French cinema."

Macalintal, who had acted as Segay's guide, told the Inquirer, "He
watched around 10 films during that five-day visit."

Filmmaker's ID

He stressed that Segay was looking for something that "identified" a
director: "It's the Directors' Fortnight, after all. But what
identifies a director? It's his surroundings. A filmmaker's cultural
history."

Mendoza said Segay watched "Foster" without subtitles. "After the
screening," the filmmaker recalled, he casually mentioned to me that
he was able to follow and understand the story's emotional content,
even though he didn't speak a word of Filipino."

Brocka's "Jaguar" and "Bayan Ko" were screened in the Cannes film
fest's main competition section in 1980 and 1984, respectively. His
1989 film "Orapronobis" was showcased in the festival's Out of
Competition section that same year.

In 2000, Raymond Red became the first Filipino filmmaker to win a
Cannes Palme D'Or for his short film, "Anino (Shadows)."



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