Cebu filmmakers revive calls for own FDCP Cinematheque

Hopes for a Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) Cinematheque Center to be built in Cebu were chanted by local filmmakers and cinephiles during the 15th Binisaya International Film Festival, held from August 17 to 24, as they called for a public theater where they could nurture and showcase their storytelling talents on a screen dedicated to film lovers.

- By JANUAR JUNIOR AGUJA

According to FDCP's website, Cinematheque Centers are established as alternatives to commercial movie houses, allowing the agency to showcase diverse offerings that may not generate big box office numbers. These include works by regional filmmakers, as well as classic Filipino films and independent productions from around the world.

"Cinematheques have become a hub for a film community to come together, nurture their local filmmakers, and create an audience following that supports their local area's stories and narratives," the FDCP said.

There are six Cinematheques across the Philippines, with Bacolod City and Iloilo City serving as the Visayas venues. One was even built in Nabunturan, a municipality in Davao de Oro.

In a recorded speech played for the Binisaya audience, FDCP Chairman and CEO Jose Javier Reyes expressed his hope for a Cinematheque Center in Cebu, asking local filmmakers to help the agency build one as he called Cebuano cinema a "cradle of Visayan filmmaking."