VIDEO | Cinemalaya entry ‘Nuwebe’ is inspired by true story of incest and child pregnancy
As managing producer for GMA News and Public Affairs, Joseph Israel Laban has produced some of the network’s most acclaimed documentaries, including “Wildlife For Sale”, about the black market for endangered animal species, and “Kalbaryo Sa Kalayaan”, which tackled the plight of “distressed” overseas Filipino workers in Riyadh and Jeddah.
So it comes as no surprise that Laban’s second feature film, “Nuwebe”, is inspired on one of his documentaries that featured one of the youngest mothers in Philippine history.
“Yes, ‘Nuwebe’ was inspired by a documentary I directed, produced and wrote for GMA News TV’s documentary show ‘Front Row’ entitled ‘Ang Pinakabata’. That same documentary was screened at last year’s Cinemalaya Documentary Section. It was also a Finalist at the UNICEF Child Rights Awards and the New York Festivals Profiles Category,” Direk Joseph told InterAksyon in a recent interview.
The director insists, however, that “Nuwebe”, an entry to the New Breed section of the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival, is not a direct adaptation but “more of a starting point”. The film follows the story of Krista who at the tender age of 9 got pregnant from the sexual abuse perpetrated by her own father.
Despite the fact that incest is a sensitive subject and is not easy to watch when depicted on the big screen, the young filmmaker insists that Krista’s scenes were handled with care.
“The rape was not explicitly shot. People should watch the film to see what we did to the sensitive scenes. We were very careful to take care of the welfare of our actors who are also children. In each and every scene of our child actress Barbara Miguel, be it sensitive or not, her mother was always present on the set,” he explained.
Shot in nine days in Marinduque, Laban said that like most, if not all, of the Cinemalaya entries, their production went over the P500,000 grant. “We were able to supplement the grant with support for our co-producers and sponsors. But honestly most of the amount came from our own pockets,” he admitted.
Even with their budgetary constraints, Direk Joseph was still able to land dependable veterans like Anita Linda, Archie Adamos and Manny Castañeda as well as big stars Jake Cuenca and Nadine Samonte who incidentally also came from GMA’s rival networks ABS-CBN and TV5 respectively.
“From the start, it was not a conscious choice to cast actors from a specific network. We decided to cast a really wide net in looking for actors to play the key roles in our film. Truth is, some of the actors we considered didn’t want to play mother or father roles or to star in a film with a sensitive theme. Fortunately, Jake and Nadine loved the script and got on board.”
And the filmmaker was more than impressed with Jake and Nadine’s performances. “Jake is the type of actor that really commits to a role. He delivers a performance like we’ve never seen him before. He essays the wide spectrum of emotions of his character admirably,” Direk Joseph said of the actor’s role as the incestuous father in the film.
“Nadine, on the other, is revelation. She fiercely inhabits the character of a loving mother torn between her love for her husband and her children. I have loved her since I saw her play a villain in a TV iteration of ‘Darna’. In ‘Nuwebe’ she shows her incredible aptitude to interpret complicated characters. During the shoot she was very focused. She was willing to cross lines that her wholesome TV persona wouldn’t allow.”
The director reserves his biggest praise for the focal point of his film, child actress Barbara Miguel.
“Barbara was a clear standout from the number of auditions we held for the film. She is a brilliant actress. Most young actors can shed a tear or cue or throw a line perfectly, but with Barbara she is not just playing a role, she is the character. When the camera rolls, she seems to inhabit the character of Krista in the film,” Laban declared.
Laban was asked about his experience as a second-time director and the difference between “Nuwebe” and his first film, “Cuchera”, which was also based on a true story about Filipino drug mules, drug couriers and their recruiters.
“My new film has a number of similarities and differences to ‘Cuchera’. ‘Nuwebe’ is similar in the sense that ‘Nuwebe’ also tackles a pertinent and sensitive social issue. But is also different in the way the story and visual narrative was handled. ‘Cuchera’ was more in your face; ‘Nuwebe’ is more subtle and carefully calibrated,” he replied.
