Indie Ko Pa Napapanood Eh!

Is indie cinema’s limited reach a matter of distribution or devotion?

Right off the bat, I have to be honest with you: I’m coming clean. If you ask me how many indie movie screenings I have been to, you know deliberately, on my own volition, I could just raise one hand and let you count the answer. It’s not that I’m not interested; I do think I’ve got the “indie spirit” in me. It’s just that me and indie cinema, we’ve got a pretty funny relationship. You see it’s all by chance, serendipitous; it’s tadhana. The movies I plan on seeing are the ones I never get around to see, and the ones I don’t plan to catch are the ones that I do and end up enjoying. Like I said, tadhana. But this star-crossed romance of mine, it’s got me pondering. Is this practice of storm chasing the next screening of the film you’ve missed part of what makes indie “indie”? Or are these just the natural limits of limited release?

Back when I was working as a copywriter for an ad agency, my nights were always in constant flux. Overtime was but a normal part of the agency life. Many times, whenever I try to catch the Cinemalaya selections at Glorietta, I end up with an unused ticket or not trying at all. Usually, these one-time mall screenings are already the biggest (and I am using that term loosely) that they can get and the burden with missing them is that, like a blind man playing bowling, you never know when or where next it will strike. There’s just a gamble to it. If you are lucky, maybe you’d be able to catch it the following week at a university screening. (Good luck reaching UPFI by 5.30 in the afternoon.) If not then, maybe next month, or the month after that, or the month after that, or until that month becomes the year after that. You’d have to resort to clicking “Get Notifications” on their Facebook page just to cling to that little piece of hope that somehow their next post will say that they’re screening at a place and time perfect for you. But when the notifications quit coming and the screenings stop popping, and when fetch totally does not happen, cheer up. You can always wait two and a half years, for the DVD release… if it does get a DVD release.

The thing with indie cinema is that, yes, we can say that the groupie spirit is part of its zeitgeist. It’s the thrill of the “where next?” uncertainty, a pilgrimage where the experience of seeing that image finally projected in front you is the reward for your devotion. And, yes, that’s a great thing; it’s a great feeling.  But are you necessarily not “indie” enough just because you can’t keep up? I’ve been told repeatedly that if one can’t make time to go to a screening, it’s just that they’re not committed enough. But can you be constituted as lacking in passion just because you can’t make like Penny Lane and follow the tour? Is this just a matter of passion?

From a distribution standpoint, yes, it’s quite risky to aim for wide release. You have to consider the budget constraints and the question if people will actually pay to see your movie. The discussion has already become quite antiquated. We’ve heard time and time again how Pinoy indie isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and even if filmmaking, idealistically, is not about earning but about getting your stories told, idealism still must strike a balance with cold hard realism. But doesn’t anybody beg to wonder, what about those with the interest in indie but simply lacking in means? Do you just keep relying on word of mouth, hoping that the already existing indie crowd spreads the joy of indie cinema to untapped markets? How can you cultivate this passion without resorting to piracy? How can you convert and inspire people to take up the indie banner? Why am I always ending my paragraphs in questions?

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Look at the likes of On The Job, Tuhog and That Thing Called Tadhana. Whether it’s by indie auteurs deciding to direct mainstream or indie favorites getting picked up for wide release, these flicks have tickled the taste buds of many and at the same time hipsters don’t feel any shame admitting that they like them. They feature smartly written scripts, good cinematography, and performances that don’t send cringes down your spine. They balance the mainstream with the indie. Maybe this is a step towards the right direction, piquing curiosities and interests to wonder what indie has in store for them.

With Netflix setting its sights in Asia, who knows, there might come a day where we get to see indie flavor released via Video on Demand. No need to keep refreshing Facebook pages hoping for a post regarding screenings to pop up. Just get a monthly subscription and stream what you want when you want it. It may not address the issue of indie piracy in whole but I do believe that by distributing media in a form both accessible and affordable we can take a huge bite out of it.

Maybe in the future, distribution won’t be a limiting factor any more. Just like how the advent of home media and digital downloads gave birth to a new generation of cinephiles, a generation able to watch any foreign film that interests them with a click of a mouse and without the trouble of finding select cinemas that carry the hard-to-find titles they’re searching for, maybe the same practice could happen locally. The technology is already there, you know. What’s keeping us from adapting? There may just come a day where one’s will is the only factor in truly and absolutely making a way.

*still from Adolfo Alix Jr.‘s Death March (2013).