The first time Jade Castro had a movie premiere at the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), he had no idea what he was doing.
The filmmaker started out as a script continuity for the horror comedy Bahay ni Lola, which made its way to the festival in 2001. “Looking back, parang na-di-disrespect ko ‘yung profession,” Castro told Rolling Stone Philippines jokingly. “You can’t be a script con and hindi mo alam ‘yung ginagawa mo! But back then, I had a lot of fun, and parang hindi ko akalain na big deal pala na it was an MMFF movie.”
Since then, Castro has steadily carved his own path as a filmmaker. He’s gone on to direct major romantic and comedic hits such as Endo, Remington and the Curse of the Zombadings, and LSS. Beyond that, he’s served as a producer on major releases such as Petersen Vargas’ Some Nights I Feel Like Walking. Now, Castro is finally making his comeback to MMFF with ReKonek, a Christmas comedy drama featuring a stacked cast, including Gerald Anderson, Andrea Brillantes, Gloria Diaz, and Charlie Dizon. “I feel like my film career started with MMFF,” said Castro. “So this return… malaki siya. This time, director na ako.”
More Than A Christmas Film
ReKonek, the only holiday-themed movie of the festival lineup this December, centers around eight different stories of people navigating a global Internet outage just days before Christmas. Initially, however, Castro wasn’t completely on board to direct ReKonek.
The filmmaker had been invited to work on the project by Erik Matti, whose company Reality MM Studios produced the film. But Castro had been working on different projects. “It was really just a half-foot-in kind of thing,” he recalled. “Sobrang non-committal ako when it started. I’ll be honest sa ‘yo, ang wish ko noon, sana hindi makapasok sa MMFF. But then, nakapasok siya. Nag-commit na lang ako.”
However, after fleshing out the script and working with his cast, Castro has found himself fully on board with the message behind the movie. To him, ReKonek has become much more than a Christmas movie. “I think I’m making a film about goodness,” said Castro, “so bagay, set siya sa Christmas, when we feel like giving and want to nurture our relationships. If anything ties these characters together, it’s that spirit.”
A Movie About Goodness
The filmmaker also noted that he’s always been more interested in the positive than the negative. “I like sharing a kind of optimism in my films,” he said, “especially [with] the Duterte regime and the pandemic. I know some people think it’s corny, but I grew up in Gen X, a cynical generation. But I think nagsawa ako sa pessimism. In order to have a revolution, people have to see that a good future is possible.”
Castro, who’d been arrested without a warrant in 2024, argued that the experience had taught him that optimism was important now more than ever in the world of filmmaking. “Even after nakulong ako… the medium of cinema needs to be able to show you that you can dream,” he said, “that you [can] see there can be happiness.”
When asked if there was a reason why ReKonek was specifically an MMFF movie, Castro emphasized that it was a natural fit for the festival’s audience. “I feel like doon siya makakahanap ng audience na who will appreciate how feel-good it can be,” said Castro. “I think it all goes back to finding the right audience for your movie. ‘Yung sinabi ni Lino Brocka, na we should be making films for the Filipino audience. I think with or without me, [ReKonek] would have been an MMFF film. But the reason I’m on board is because I believe that tama siya as an MMFF film.”
