Stream Kapampangan films for free on this site

When it comes to the unfurling of life’s harshest truths, there’s nothing like witnessing it in a movie—especially when a character makes you feel like you’re looking in the mirror. 

If you’re ready to sign up for those emotions, CineKabalen is serving us 14 short films from Pampanga, Bulacan and Zambales. This April, maybe spending your (indoor) summer with stories on acceptance, fears and forgetting is the next best decision. 

Dubbed “Here Comes Sinukwan” (an ancient Kampampangan God), CineKabalen’s 2021 festival is staging its largest edition to date with invited filmmakers from the seven provinces of Central Luzon to share their stories, according to director Carlo Enciso Catu. From Apr. 14 to 21, 2021, we can stream these films for free on FDCP’s (Film Development Council of the Philippines) website. 

In the roster, we’ll meet an unhappy mother who locks up her daughter out of fear in “Saingsing”; a gay Sampaguita farmer who renovates their kitchen after knowing his son is coming home in “Quing Lalam Ning Aldo”; Bert and Tasho who talk about overthinking in “Yellow” and more.

The lineup also includes “Ang Huling Hantungan,” “Babuyan,” “Coda,” “Habulan,” “Home For The Ages,” “Huling Hiling,” “Kibo,” “Amigo,” “Mipasoso,” “Sangkan” and “Kalinguan Tane Ing Lutu Nang Ima,” which we learned more about during our interview with EJ Gagui, the director.  

“Developing coming-of-age stories helped me understand my own experiences. Through my short films, it made me appreciate them artistically and see how I‘ve matured as a person,” Gagui told us. “Kalinguan Tane Ing Lutu Nang Ima” follows Letty who returns to her hometown on her mother’s first death anniversary. In the process, she is forced to cook “bringhe,” her mom’s specialty. 

Speaking of cooking, CineKabalen is also open for entries for its Culinary Cinema Section. If you’re up for the challenge, head to their page. 

Still from “Quing Lalam Ning Aldo”