Cinemalaya 2008 Entries | ANG IBANG MGA PAMILYA

Spinster Connie Ocampo (Lui Manansala) deals with the loss of her adopted son, Cesar, a young man with Down’s Syndrome. Faced with sudden emptiness, she occupies herself with the minutiae of the wake. A chance encounter with strangers forces her to evaluate her future. Ang Ibang Mga Pamilya is director/writer Joel Ruiz’s second time to join the short film category. His first entry, Mansyon (The Mansion) won Best Short Film in Cinemalaya 2005.

Playing the tragic character of Connie is Lui Manansala, who brings an uncertainty to the hardened character. Shooting was done in two days, each day lasting 24 hours, using only paper lanterns. Connie’s house is a basement with a lowered ceiling, adding to the claustrophobia of the piece. The rest of the story occurs in a funeral chapel in Pasay City, where the production staff contended with the wailing, gambling relatives of the deceased in the chapels next door.

Lui Manansala is a veteran stage and screen actor, appearing in numerous theater and film productions. He appeared in Yam Laranas’ acclaimed horror flick Sigaw opposite Iza Calzado, in Erik Matti’s Pasiyam, and in Lav Diaz’s award-winning Ebolusyon ng Isang Pamilyang Pilipino, all screened in 2004.

Source: http://www.starmometer.com/2008/07/03/2008-cinemalaya-film-festival-short-film-entries/