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At this point, the Philippine film industry averaged about 350 films per year, making the Philippines second to Japan in terms of number of film productions per year in Asia. 1960s Filmmaking through monopolized studio system saw its end during the 60s as the era gave way to new and independent film production outfits.
- The Revolution and The Cinematografo
- Cinematografo Rizal
- José Nepomuceno
- Noli Me Tangere
- Zamboanga
- World War II
- Four Studios Emerge After WW2
- War Films
- Susana C. de Guzman
- Golden Age of Philippine Cinema
Films were first shown in the Philippine Islands in 1897 during the revolt against Spain, when two Swiss businessmen sponsored the opening of the Cinematografo in Manila. From this, the word “cine” became slang for the movies. The Cinematografo showed documentaries brought in from the U.S. and Europe, and closed after just a few months because the ...
Named for national hero Dr. José Rizal, (1861–1896), who helped spur the Philippine Revolution, the Cinematografo Rizal opened in Manila in 1903. It was the first movie theater owned by a Filipino. Cinematografo Filipino opened sometime later in Tondo, helping to establish movies as an important element in Philippine culture. Films started to chang...
The father of Philippine cinema, José Nepomuceno (1893–1959), was a successful photographer before switching to movies. He opened a production company called Malayan Movies in 1917, followed two years later by his releasing the first Filipino-produced film, Dalagang Bukid (akaCountry Maiden), starring Atang de la Rama.
Released in 1930, Nepomuceno's masterpiece was Noli Me Tangere (akaThe Social Cancer), based on José Rizal's Spanish-language novel of the same name. Rizal's story is credited with spurring a sense of nationalism among Filipinos of the day. The American film Syncopation was the first “talkie” shown in the Philippines. The first locally produced fil...
Philippine studios emerged in the period 1934 to 1941, producing several pictures simultaneously in the manner of Hollywood studios. The first internationally known Philippine film was Zamboanga, starring Fernando Poe, Sr. and Rosa del Rosario. Most stars during this time were mestizos, i.e., Filipinos with mixed foreign blood or Caucasian features...
With World War II raging, the 1940s brought an awareness of violence and conflict to Philippine films. The Japanese occupation brought an end to filmmaking until the occupiers revived the industry for propaganda purposes. They brought Japanese films to the Islands, but the locals didn't take to them. The paucity of locally-produced films drove Fili...
The war ended in 1945, and the Philippines became a free republic in 1946. With the domestic film business essentially dormant due to the war, Hollywood studios initially dominated the market. However, four major Philippine film companies emerged after the war. LVN Pictures specialized in comedy and Sampaguita Pictures in melodrama, while Premiere ...
Post-war Philippine films featured raw emotion, patriotism and heroism. War films released in 1946 included Garrison 13, Dugo at Bayan (akaThe Country's Blood), Walang Kamatayan (akaDeathless) and Guerilyera, but the most acclaimed film from that year was Orasang Ginto(LVN), directed by Manuel Conde. War films celebrated resistance movements and al...
By the late '40s, Philippine cinema had expanded beyond war themes to include comedies, melodramas, and romance films like 1948's Sarung Banggi, directed by one of the earliest (and few) Filipina directors, Susana C. De Guzman. This is one of her first films for LVN and it stars golden age icons Rogelio de la Rosa as Nanding and Mila del Sol as Mar...
In the 1950s, the big four studios produced about 350 films per year. These played in just two Manila locations, the Dalisay Theater and Life Theater, while Hollywood fare was shown everywhere else. The big four controlled the industry, each employing its own stars, directors and staff. The first full-color Philippine film was Prinsipe Amante (1951...
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Jan 26, 2022 · It takes a look back at the highs and lows of the industry through interviews and dialogues with key players in our local film history, along with archival film footage and other visuals.
The formative years of Philippine cinema, starting from the 1930s, were a time of discovering the film genre as a new medium of art. Scripts and characterisations in films came from popular theatre and familiar local literature.
The country's film industry celebrated its 100th anniversary with much fervour as well as gratitude to the filmmakers and artists whose insurmountable contribution led the Philippine Cinema to greater heights. We list down each decade's most iconic film, its technical achievements, and how each encapsulated the social and political climate of ...
on Early Cinema in the Philippines (2003), are thus far the definitive and most comprehensive history of early cinema in the Philippines. “Early Cinema” here pertains to that unique juncture in history from the moment of film’s first inception as an apparatus (or the moment of film’s first importation
Oct 22, 2019 · The first film produced by LVN was Giliw Ko in 1939. It was a huge success. It was also LVN who produced the movie Ibong Adarna in 1941. It was the first Filipino film to color sequences...
