"Totally out of the loop now," says a musician friend when asked if he knew any major happening in the now quite quiet Cebu music scene. Ok, that's sad, considering that Cebu prides itself as being a music hub.
So now what have we for Soundbite this month?
Let's try taking a quick look at the indie film scene, where we chanced upon the story of a Manila filmmaker who journeys to Cebu to document -- yes, you guessed it -- the Sinulog. He ends up, however, with a former politician who begins to confess his crimes to the filmmaker's camera, and this is where the fun begins; and to accompany this protagonist through his journey in this 90-minute long digital film, our local musikeros are up to the task.
Entitled "Confessional", this mockumentary is directed by Jerrold Tarog and Ruel Dahis Antipuesto, and shot mostly in Cebu but with some scenes taken in Manila and Dipolog. With the film done primarily in Cebuano, the filmmakers' decision to use music of different genres from our local bands is indeed befitting.
In one of the blogs in the movie's online cave, Jerrold Tarog shares his thoughts about our musicians; that they're "lucky to get music from some of the coolest Cebuano bands around," being that these musicians are able to create originals that sound like no other by way of exploring beyond their musical inspirations.
This exceptional roster includes Smooth Friction, Zarah Smith, Missing Filemon, Happy Days, Shadowbox Serenade, Skunky Muggles, Coolie Dread and the Microphone Commanders, Missing Filemon, plus music all the way from Cagayan de Oro and Dumaguete -- Gasulina and Enchi. You can check out the movie's multiply site, www.confessionalmovie.multiply.com for other cool stuff about the movie, such as the promotional music video of Missing Filemon's Sinesine, for which the movie directors are also responsible.
The way indie films are, budget is tight of course, but this did not pose as a hindrance for the bands. There was no, or very little profit, except their music finding its way into the boombox and to a wider audience. Aaah...the things we do for love...of the things we do.
Plans of showing Confessional here in Cebu early next year are in the works, so no worries to music enthusiasts and film buffs in the island who missed the screening in Manila (as the only Cebuano entry in Cinema One Originals, mind you). As for plans of producing an album for the soundtrack, co-producer Victor Villanueva is hopeful. And you may agree with the prospect of pumping the volume back up a notch in our local music scene, even through this other underground industry; with both scenes intertwined, we may hear more than music from scattered pocket concerts.
more BITE stuff here
