There’s a certain nostalgia that James Mayo’s The Chanters exudes even though set in the present, with social media frenzy playing a part in its story. The film evokes simpler times — times when it was commonplace for neighbors to gather around a shared TV screen after dinner just to catch the latest episode of their favorite prime-time telenovela and when community meant much more than just an area of residence but that of deeper mutualistic (familial, even) cohabitation. It is this innocence that permeates — from the dressed-down simplicity in storytelling to framing (both literally and figuratively) the film from the point of view of a child — that makes The Chanters so endearing.
The Chanters takes place in the small municipality of Calinog, Iloilo, where Sarah Mae (Jally Nae Gabaliga), a preteen who’s part of the latest generation of Panay-Bukidnon tribespeople, preoccupies herself with an obsession with pop songs and the soap opera Kiss Me ♥ ♥ (pronounced “Kiss Me, Heart Heart”), and is rather not interested in learning the culture of her tribe —much to the dismay of her grandfather Ramon, their tribe’s last chanter. Lolo Ramon spends his days putting to paper from memory the epics of Sugidanon, an oral tradition passed on amongst their people. Soon, happenstance and burgeoning dementia lead to Sarah Mae reclaiming her culture, becoming a chanter herself.
The Chanters presents an intimate look at how two characters on the opposite side of almost all spectrums journey towards a middle ground, filling in the hitherto widening gap their generations once separated them by. This clash of old and new feels more intimate as the ground the film plays on is not wide-reaching; this isn’t a fish out of water story where a once uninterested stranger learns to love a culture he has only now encountered. The film scales it down and contains the drama within the smallest unit of society: family. By using family, the audience is able to better empathize with the inherent mournfulness that comes with the devaluation by later generations of what the former held dear. This goes hand in hand with the idea of immortalization through memory. The greatest heartbreak fading cultures face is not just people forgetting them but people inadvertently forgetting them because of the lack of interest. This is the compelling thesis at the core of The Chanters.
Intimacy — how personal this tale feels like — is evoked not only in the themes tackled but also through the film’s form. This one of the examples of a film using its form beyond gimmickry to uplift the narrative. The beautiful composition of scenes in the square aspect ratio of an Instagram post makes the film feel more innocent and confined. The audience gets to, more than see, but feel how small again the world feels like for a child. The Chanters makes use of a small barrio where everyone basically knows each other. How close-knit the community feels like becomes an effective contrast in setting up how monumental the act of Danica Reyes, Sarah Mae’s idol and the star of Kiss Me ♥ ♥, visiting their barrio is. This, in turn, gives weight to a decision Sarah Mae makes in the final act of the film (though my personal issue here is that the said turn felt too abrupt given how much was set up, but then again changing this would remove the drama of the decision).
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The Chanters is a pretty short film, given its 1-hour 16-minute runtime. Yet, even with this supposed briskness, the film feels longer than it actually is. Primarily, this can be attributed to how the film meanders in how it sets up the onset of Lolo Ramon’s dementia during its second act. There were more scenes than needed to drive the point that the old man had failing mental capacities.
Regardless, the flaws mentioned are mere nitpicks that do not in any way impair the effectiveness of the story The Chanters is trying to tell. Ultimately, it is an endearing tale of family and reclaiming fading traditions.
P.S. If you get to watch the film, make sure the cinema’s projection does the film justice. Some theaters crop the film’s frame leading to subtitles that are either too low or get cut completely.
