Bereft of sound but brimming with feature films accompanied by live musical performances, the much-anticipated annual International Silent Film Festival Manila (ISFFM) is back.
Established in 2007 as the first of its kind in Asia, the ISFFM promises to bring once more to Manila film buffs and music aficionados an extraordinary experience. From the 1890’s to the 1920’s, audiences around the world were enchanted by the magic of watching soundless images on a screen accompanied by live music played by different performing artists.
This year, the Philippine-Italian Association, the Film Development Council of the Philippines, the Embassy of France, the Goethe-Institut Philippinen, the Japan Foundation Manila, the Embassy of the United States of America, the Instituto Cervantes, and the Embassy of Austria, are proud to present the 12th iteration of the International Silent Film Festival in Manila.
Beginning today until Sept. 2 at SM Cinema 2 of SM Megamall, Mandaluyong City, the 2018 ISFFM brings together the best of silent cinema from its eight member-countries, to be accompanied by the best Filipino musicians in the scene.
The Festival reels off at 8:00 p.m. on today with the Philippine-Italian Association, the Italian Embassy and the Italian Chamber of Commerce presenting the most important of those stylish melodramas made-in-Italy, Rapsodia Satanica (Satanic Rhapsody 1915-1917), directed by Nino Oxilia.
The film tells the story of ageing Italian aristocrat Dame Alba d’ Oltrevita who discovers a particular and special solution for her beauty by forging a pact with the devil. The blues band Miles Experience accompanies this film with a live performance.
Tomorrow at 7:00 p.m., the Film Development Council of the Philippines will present a unique offering in The Lost Film Triology composed of Filipiniana, Aswang (1933), and Juan Tamad Goes to the Moon (1898), and an excerpt from Nitrate: To the Ghosts of the 75 Lost Philippine Silent Films (1912-1933). A live musical performance by Khavn & the Kontra-Kino Orchestra will accompany the film.
Culminating the festival at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 2 will be the Embassy of Austria’s Die Kleine Veronika (1929), directed by Robert Land. The film tells the story of Tyrolean mountain girl, Veronika, who travels to Vienna to visit her aunt, only to find out that the city experience she has been dreaming of is not all the fun and glamorous life she had previously imagined. The live score will be played by avant-pop electronica solo Joee & I.
This year’s film festival experience will have a unique addition, an exhibit at the SM Cinema lobby. The exhibit will be presenting a visual installation of this year’s participating films.
For more information on the schedule and inquiries, and for the list of films participating in the festival, check Silent Film Fest Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/InternationalSilentFilmFestivalManila.
