(TOKEN. Noted filmmaker Brillante Mendoza receives a replica of the Holy Rosary Parish Church of Angeles City as a token of appreciation for the special screening of his prizewinning Ma’ Rosa at SM City Clark cinemas that included a film appreciation workshop with city students. With him are Center for Kapampangan Studies director Robbie Tantingco, SM asst. VP for operations- North Luzon4 Junias Eusebio, SM senior VP for marketing communications group Millie Dizon and city councilor Amos Rivera. Photo by Bong Lacson)
VERY RECENTLY, highly acclaimed Kapampangan director Brillante Mendoza held his film festival featuring one of his masterpiece “Ma’ Rosa” at the Event Center of SM City Clark.
The Brillante Mendoza Film Festival was set to share with the Kapampangans the film which earned international awards.
Ma’ Rosa is a 2016 Filipino drama film directed by Brillante Mendoza.
It was selected to compete for the Palme d’Or at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.
At Cannes, Jaclyn Jose won the award for Best Actress.
It was selected as the Filipino entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards but it was not nominated.
Rosa (Jaclyn Jose) is married to Nestor (Julio Diaz) with whom she has four children. Rosa’s family runs a sari-sari store in a neighborhood in Manila.
The income from the small convenience store business alone isn’t enough to meet the family’s daily needs, so illegal drugs particularly “ice” or crystal meth are also sold at Rosa’s store.
One day police officers arrest Rosa and Nestor for selling drugs and ask them for “bail money” or a bribe for the couple’s release.
Rosa’s children, left on their own to deal with the struggles of daily life, find a way to free their detained parents.
