The Woven Stories Of The Other
Filmfest 2007

Spoken entirely in Mindanao Bisaya and starring the local people, 22-year-old Sanchez’s HD feature is a revelatory look at a culture in flux. Manay, a priestess – a Balyan – and the bearer of stigmata is at the centre of several incidents that touch upon themes of identity, loss, and change. While the Balyan rails against her disappearing Buhi traditions, a group of guerillas studies Marxism in the forest, and two children go on a search. A beautifully haunting score complements rich, tableaux-like images to create a vivid and sometimes conflicting portrait of a people. Hong Kong International Film Festival