Acclaimed artist, filmmaker, and musician Khavn Dela Cruz will have three of his films shown at the UPFI Film Center with live music accompaniment from different artists, from July to September 2025.
The series will begin with Balangiga: Howling Wilderness (2017) on July 29, 5:30 p.m. Balangiga is Dela Cruz’s award-winning depiction of General Jacob Smith’s order to “kill everyone over the age of ten” and make Samar “a howling wilderness” during the U.S. occupation of the Philippines in 1901. The live music will be performed by the filmmaker (piano) and Coke Bolipata, acclaimed violinist and administrator of the artist hub CASA San Miguel in Zambales. A Filipino rock icon is slated to provide vocals for the performance.
Next in the series is the experimental National Anarchist: Lino Brocka (2023), which was screened at the 2023 Rotterdam Film Festival. The avant-garde “fancam” is made of splices of scenes from Brocka’s films, culled from various sources, including VHS tapes and YouTube videos, creating a multi-colored dreamscape of the National Artist’s obsessions, monuments, and political fixations. The film will be screened on August 29 at 5:30 p.m. and will be accompanied by a performance by a brass band.
Third is Desaparadiso (2015), which will be shown in time for the anniversary of martial law in September. Desaparadiso, which was also screened at the Rotterdam Film Festival, is a video/film hybrid about a family during the martial law years. A bamboo and gong orchestra of the UP Center for Ethnomusicology will provide live musical accompaniment. The film will be screened on September 22, 5:30 p.m.
Last is Squatterpunk (2007) to be screened this October 2025. More details for the screening will be announced soon.
Dela Cruz will also have a retrospective of over 20 films — he is one of the most prolific Filipino film directors working today — in October. He will also hold another film concert in conjunction with the retrospective, with 100 electric guitars and instruments to be announced soon.
Tickets are priced at P200 with a discounted price of P150 for students.
