Jade Castro: Love On A Budget
by Philbert Ortiz Dy
Jade Francis Castro is a bit of a pragmatist. It’s pretty apparent from the tone of first film, Endo, that his feet are solidly planted on the ground, all too aware of the realities that surround us. And from talking to him, there is a sense that’s he’s very practical about his artistry.
But what artistry it is. Endo was easily one of the best films of last year. It told a love story set in the world of contractual labor, where people are trained to accept that everything is temporary. It’s a heartbreaking little tale that says so much with so little. It’s the antithesis of the modern Filipino romantic film, which has degenerated into absurd stories about absurd people falling in love in absurd ways, all in service of promoting the latest flavor-of-the-month love team. Endo attempts to stick to what’s real, and the honesty is refreshing.
But Endo is more than a love story. The genius of this film is that it manages to say something about our society in the most subtle of ways. The idea for Endo began four years ago, on the streets that Jade passed on his way home, where a group of contractual workers walked a picket line, demanding fairness from their corporate master. Around this time as well, Jade got talking to some of his peers, who were working, in own words, “five months-five months.” He began to relate this to his own experience working without permanent status at ABS-CBN.
These elements eventually came together as the spark of an idea. There wasn’t any solid story yet, but Jade knew that the experience was something to be shared. These observations told a much richer story about the state of the nation, of the worldview that everything is temporary. It began as a character study of contractual workers, but as it was pitched to Cinemalaya, it became a love story.
“I originally pitched it as ‘love on a budget,’” Jade says. With just that rough concept in mind, they pitched it to the Cinemalaya foundation, and it got accepted. The crew at UFO pictures began a long process of research, interviewing contractual workers. The bulk of Endo’s story came out of those interviews, adding a layer of intense truthfulness to everything that unfolds in the film.
Jade wanted the film to stick to the truth as much as it could, since he sees the film as a loving tribute to the young contractual workers of today. His goal was just accurately depict the situation without being patronizing or condescending. “I don’t believe that movies change things,” he says. Critics of Endo have bashed the film for not being political enough, saying that the film should have just said everything outwardly. But Jade sees it another way. “It all starts with a genuine observation, with describing the problem.” People don’t like being preached to, and they are smart enough to come to their own conclusions. Jade trusts his audience to start reflecting on their own, without the film having to yell rhetoric in their ears. It’s a refreshing sentiment; people often underestimate the power of realism over social realism.
But for all this talk of political sentiment, at heart, Endo is still a love story. It is primarily a love story; a well crafted one at that. It is the kind of independent film that one can really get behind and fall in love with. And on February 13, it offers up a great alternative for people who are tired of the usual studio offerings.
by Philbert Ortiz Dy
Jade Francis Castro is a bit of a pragmatist. It’s pretty apparent from the tone of first film, Endo, that his feet are solidly planted on the ground, all too aware of the realities that surround us. And from talking to him, there is a sense that’s he’s very practical about his artistry.
But what artistry it is. Endo was easily one of the best films of last year. It told a love story set in the world of contractual labor, where people are trained to accept that everything is temporary. It’s a heartbreaking little tale that says so much with so little. It’s the antithesis of the modern Filipino romantic film, which has degenerated into absurd stories about absurd people falling in love in absurd ways, all in service of promoting the latest flavor-of-the-month love team. Endo attempts to stick to what’s real, and the honesty is refreshing.
But Endo is more than a love story. The genius of this film is that it manages to say something about our society in the most subtle of ways. The idea for Endo began four years ago, on the streets that Jade passed on his way home, where a group of contractual workers walked a picket line, demanding fairness from their corporate master. Around this time as well, Jade got talking to some of his peers, who were working, in own words, “five months-five months.” He began to relate this to his own experience working without permanent status at ABS-CBN.
These elements eventually came together as the spark of an idea. There wasn’t any solid story yet, but Jade knew that the experience was something to be shared. These observations told a much richer story about the state of the nation, of the worldview that everything is temporary. It began as a character study of contractual workers, but as it was pitched to Cinemalaya, it became a love story.
“I originally pitched it as ‘love on a budget,’” Jade says. With just that rough concept in mind, they pitched it to the Cinemalaya foundation, and it got accepted. The crew at UFO pictures began a long process of research, interviewing contractual workers. The bulk of Endo’s story came out of those interviews, adding a layer of intense truthfulness to everything that unfolds in the film.
Jade wanted the film to stick to the truth as much as it could, since he sees the film as a loving tribute to the young contractual workers of today. His goal was just accurately depict the situation without being patronizing or condescending. “I don’t believe that movies change things,” he says. Critics of Endo have bashed the film for not being political enough, saying that the film should have just said everything outwardly. But Jade sees it another way. “It all starts with a genuine observation, with describing the problem.” People don’t like being preached to, and they are smart enough to come to their own conclusions. Jade trusts his audience to start reflecting on their own, without the film having to yell rhetoric in their ears. It’s a refreshing sentiment; people often underestimate the power of realism over social realism.
But for all this talk of political sentiment, at heart, Endo is still a love story. It is primarily a love story; a well crafted one at that. It is the kind of independent film that one can really get behind and fall in love with. And on February 13, it offers up a great alternative for people who are tired of the usual studio offerings.
http://endothemovie.multiply.com/reviews/item/4
