Through its GoBeyond Communities (GBC) program, UnionBank empowers team members to do volunteer work for causes they believe in. This time, the program is supporting a one-of-a kind initiative that’s fit for staying home as GBC partners with Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP) 2020 to help Filipino filmmakers and workers in the local film industry who are struggling economically due to the pandemic.
UnionBankers can purchase access passes to the festival until December 13, 2020 and each one is equivalent to participation in one GBC project this year.
Close to 200 critically acclaimed full-length and short films are being showcased in PPP 2020, a film festival organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines. Among them, the world-renowned Brutal produced by Bancom Audiovision.
Brutal tells the story of a woman who experiences trauma after killing her husband and his friends, and the feminist journalist who was drawn to the case to unravel more mysteries about the deaths. The film was released in 1980 and starred Amy Austria, Gina Alajar, and Charo Santos-Concio. It was written by Ricky Lee and directed by Marilou Diaz-Abaya.
Another Bancom produced film Kisapmata, has undergone restoration and will be made available online on December 19, 2020, at the Vintage Filipino Cinema Facebook page. Through UnionBank CSR, PHP1,755,398.25 subsidized the restoration cost of the film. Similar to UnionBank’s support to UST’s Lumina Pandit project, the Bank also advocates to preservation of the country’s cultural and art heritage.
The movie was released in 1981 and was based on a true crime report. It was directed by Mike de Leon, starring Charito Solis, Jay Ilagan, Charo Santos, Ruben Rustia and Vic Silayan.
The restoration was done by L’Immagine Ritrovata and Wildsound Studios and was co-funded by UnionBank and Mike De Leon. The restored version also had a theatrical premiere at Il Cinema Ritrovato (Rediscovered Cinema) in Bologna, Italy last August 2020.
Bancom Audiovision is a film production company under the Philippines’ first investment banking firm Bancom, which was acquired and merged with UnionBank. The Bank has waived all fees and royalties for the use of the movie, and proceeds will benefit the filmmakers and PPP beneficiaries.
The GoBeyond Communities program is UnionBank’s social sustainability thrust that pursues projects on inclusion, education, environment, and employment and livelihood opportunities. Since its inception in 2015, the program has benefited at least 2.1 million individuals. This partnership with Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino allows UnionBankers to reconnect to its roots and support Filipino filmmakers and the entertainment industry who were heavily hit by the quarantine protocols implemented during the pandemic.
