{"id":412004,"date":"2024-08-19T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-19T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=412004"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"NMC-to-showcase-local-filmmakers-at-Marianas-Lens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/NMC-to-showcase-local-filmmakers-at-Marianas-Lens\/","title":{"rendered":"NMC to showcase local filmmakers at \u2018Marianas Lens\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Northern Marianas College will showcase the work of up-and-coming local filmmakers when it hosts \u201cMarianas Lens,\u201d a showcase of short and feature films on Thursday, Aug. 22, at American Memorial Park starting at 5pm. Award-winning films will include \u201cSteps on the Shore\u201d by Elijah Pajarillaga, \u201cTwo of a Kind\u201d by Jedric Villar, \u201cHome\u2019s Second Chance\u201d by Sheryne Yang, \u201cTala\u201d by Justin Ocampo, and \u201cISLA: Isla\u2019n Esper\u00e5nsa\u201d by Galvin Deleon Guerrero. Screenings will be followed by a panel discussion with some of the filmmakers.<\/p>\n

\u2018Steps on the Shore\u2019<\/p>\n

Pajarillaga\u2019s \u201cSteps on the Shore\u201d follows a high school graduate during his last days on island before heading off to college as he grapples with lingering conflicts involving family and his sense of belonging to the island. The film Best Made in the Marianas award at the 2022 Guam International Film Festival, also known as the GIFF. The film, which he wrote, directed, and starred in, bested three other films to win the coveted award.<\/p>\n

Pajarillaga is a son of the Marianas who graduated in 2021 from Grace Christian Academy Saipan and is currently pursuing a film degree from Wesleyan University in Connecticut. At Wesleyan, he has also been a videographer for the university\u2019s Communications Department and the Women\u2019s Volleyball Team.<\/p>\n

\u2018Two of a Kind\u2019<\/p>\n

Villar\u2019s \u201cTwo of a Kind\u201d is a modern Western that serves as a sequel to \u201cTwo in a Pack\u201d. The film follows a wanderer who meets an unlikely ally to help clear his name. The film took home the Best Student Film at the AltFF Alternative Film Festival.<\/p>\n

Also a son of the Marianas, Villar graduated in 2021 from Mount Carmel School and is currently studying film at Montclaire State University. At the university, he continues to collaborate with other filmmakers as a director, writer, and cinematographer. Villar also composed the score for another film to be screened at \u201cMarianas Lens\u201d, Deleon Guerrero\u2019s \u201cISLA: Isla\u2019n Esper\u00e5nsa.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Home\u2019s Second Chance\u2019<\/p>\n

Yang\u2019s \u201cHome\u2019s Second Chance\u201d is a visual poem about the light beauty and dark tragedy of Saipan.<\/p>\n

Produced as part of the college\u2019s 2023 Cinema on Saipan summer seminar, the film also took home the top Proa Award at the seminar\u2019s concluding film festival.<\/p>\n

According to Yang, the film \u201cis a short visual poem of how a home should be taken care of the place we call home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Tala\u2019<\/p>\n

In Ocampo\u2019s \u201cTala,\u201d a naive girl struggles with the reality that her father is not the ideal man she\u2019s built him up to be as she works towards reconciliation with the other members of her family in this semi- autobiographical family drama. \u201cTala\u201d has been featured in film festival around the world, including the GIFF, the Cebu International Film Festival, and the Hawaii International Film Festival.<\/p>\n

Born and raised on Saipan, Ocampo is the son of Tagalog and Kapampangan immigrants. His directorial debut film, \u201cWe Drank Our Tears: Rafael Mafnas\u2019 Story\u201d won Best of Festival at the GIFF in 2018, was featured at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival that same year, and is available for rent on Amazon Prime. Ocampo graduated with degrees in Digital Cinema and American Studies at the University of Hawai\u02bbi at M\u0101noa and is currently the lead media specialist for the Honolulu City Council.<\/p>\n

\u2018Isla\u2019n Esper\u00e5nsa\u2019<\/p>\n

Deleon Guerrero\u2019s \u201cISLA: Isla\u2019n Esper\u00e5nsa\u201d follows a high school math genius who enters the island\u2019s criminal underworld of high-stakes gambling in order to earn enough money to take him and his family to the states. Earlier this year, the film premiered at Hollywood Theatres to a sold-out audience and is currently making its way through the film festival circuit, which has included screenings at the Tokyo Lift-Off Film Festival and the Portland Film Festival. The film is the first of three anthology films that will explore themes of faith, hope, and love in the Marianas.<\/p>\n

With almost 30 years in educational leadership, Deleon Guerrero has also produced over 50 stage and film productions ranging from plays by William Shakespeare, Disney musicals, to original scripts. These productions included award-winning films that have been featured in film festivals around the world, such as the \u201cWe Drank Our Tears\u201d anthology that tells the stories of indigenous Chamorro and Carolinian civilians surviving during the World War II battles on Saipan.<\/p>\n

Held as part of Northern Marianas College\u2019s Welcome Week for the 2024-2025 academic year, \u201cMarianas Lens\u201d is being coordinated by the College\u2019s Community Development Institute to promote career-technical training in emerging industries like film and videography. For more information about upcoming programs and training opportunities, contact the institute at cdi@marianas.edu<\/a> or call (670) 237-6802.<\/p>\n

All films will be screened starting at 5pm at American Memorial Park\u2019s Visitors Center Theater. While admission is complimentary, seating is limited on a first-come, first-served basis. (PR)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

A production still from \u201cSteps on the Shore\u201d by Elijah Pajarillaga.<\/p>\n

-NMC
<\/figcaption><\/figure>

<\/p>\n

A production still from \u201cTwo of a Kind\u201d by Jedric Villar.<\/p>\n

-NMC
<\/figcaption><\/figure>

<\/p>\n

A production still from \u201cHome\u2019s Second Chance\u201d by Sheryne Yang.<\/p>\n

-NMC
<\/figcaption><\/figure>

<\/p>\n

A production still from \u201cTala\u201d by Justin Ocampo.<\/p>\n

-NMC
<\/figcaption><\/figure>

<\/p>\n

A production still from \u201cISLA: Isla\u2019n Esper\u00e5nsa\u201d by Galvin Deleon Guerrero.<\/p>\n

-NMC
<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Northern Marianas College will showcase the work of up-and-coming local filmmakers when it hosts \u201cMarianas…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-412004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/412004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=412004"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/412004\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=412004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=412004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=412004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}