Longing for more Pinoy book-to-screen adaptation titles

Philippine literature deserves to be seen in all audio-visual forms

BY RICA AREVALO

Dec 18, 2023 08:34 AM

  

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Our goal for 2023 was to attend film festivals and film markets from Europe to Asia and look for partnerships to aid our young filmmakers and creative talents in their cinematic development.

From these film markets, we have learned that there was one untapped opportunity that local producers and publishers should take notice—the book-to-screen adaptation market.

Book Adaptation Rights Market in Venice Production Bridge copy

There are a lot of Filipino films that was adapted from comics, novels, and even short stories. The House of Zapote Street by Quijano de Manila (Nick Joaquin) was the inspiration of Mike de Leon’s iconic film, Kisapmata. 

Lualhati Bautista’s feminist novels Dekada ’70 and Bata, Bata, Pa’no ka Ginawa? were commercial box-office hits in the theaters.

The comic series, Trese, by Budgette Tan and Kaio Baldismo produced by BASE Entertainment, a film production company in Indonesia, had a global-wide release
on Netflix.

'Trese'

Wattpad, an online platform where users can publish and read stories was a favorite site among production companies. Among the Wattpad titles produced into film were She’s Dating the Gangster, Diary ng Panget, Just the Way You Are, and Ex with Benefits. 

We believe there is a growing demand from the producers who are on the lookout for original intellectual properties (IP). 

'She's Dating The Gangster'

Last May at the Cannes Film Festival, they organized Shoot the Book! which was “a collaborative initiative, bringing together French and European publishers and agencies with international producers seeking future projects.”

The “stars” of the 10th anniversary edition were the publishers. They presented their books to film and television producers who were seeking projects for screen adaptation. One-on-one meetings were also held to discuss strong, potential projects. 

Producers were not only interested in financing but investing in the material’s development. The owners of the adaptation rights play a crucial part in this partnership but there is always a global demand for rich content, looking for the right story, distributing with proper timing. Shoot the Book! fostered this adaptation business.

'Ang Panday'

At the 80th Venice International Film Festival, the 8th  edition of the Book Adaptation Rights Market was held last September. A branch of the Venice Production Bridge, 34 international publishing houses and literary agencies were selected to participate in the market. Sadly, there was no representation from any Philippine publishing house.

We did meet writer Geraldine Solon, who was trying to sell her book, Indigo, to the foreign publishers. Geraldine is known for her debut novel, Love Letters which reached the overall Top 100 Amazon Bestseller List. She writes romance, women’s fiction, mystery, suspense, fantasy, and psychological thriller.

Indigo was published in 2019. It is the story of two soulmates in heaven brought to Earth unexpectedly. Grace must bring Michael back to Heaven, but Michael has lost his memory. On Earth, he is a married family man. Will Grace be successful with her quest?

'Darna'

In a study, films based on books comprise 70 percent of the top grossing film worldwide. Fiction titles as part of a series are most likely to become the most successful adaptation. Also, publishers can anticipate additional income from the books once the movie is released in cinemas.

Think of Jurassic Park, Twilight, The Hunger Games, The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, Fantastic Beasts, The Da Vinci Code, and Fifty Shades of Grey—all were the highest-grossing film adaptations in history.

The works of our National Artists F. Sionil Jose, Cirilo Bautista, Virgilio Almario, Bienvenido Lumbera, and N.V.M Gonzalez, among others, deserve to be produced and watched by the young generation in cinemas, television and streaming services.

We hope that in the future, our local publishers will be able to present their entire collection or catalogue for film adaptations of novels, dramas, short stories, children’s literature, biographies, comics, graphic novels, and even essays to a foreign film adaptation market. 

Darna or Ang Panday invading Hollywood or the European market? That is our wishful thinking. Let us push our homegrown stories and talents to world! 

Philippine Fairy Tales (XII) - Philippinische Märchen (XII)

 

Warum die Sonne heller scheint als der Mond
Why the sun shines brighter than the moon

Der Schöpfer der Welt, Bathala, hatte einen Sohn, Apolaki und eine Tochter, Mayari. Die klaren Augen der Kinder Bathalas erleuchteten die Welt. Die Menschen, alle Tiere, auch die Fische konnten gut sehen und waren Apolaki und Mayari dankbar.

Bathala liebte seine Kinder und begleitete sie auf ihren Spaziergängen durch die himmlischen Gefilde. Die Augen der Kinder strahlten ohne Unterlass, und deshalb war auf Erden ewiges Licht.

Eines Tages aber verließen den alten Bathala die Kräfte, und er starb. Nach seinem Tod begannen Apolaki und Mayari miteinander zu streiten, denn jeder von ihnen wollte die Welt alleine beherrschen. "Ich bin ein Mann, und deshalb werde ich meines Vaters Nachfolger sein",erklärte Apolaki. "Ich werde üner die Welt herrschen, ob es dir gefält oder nicht."

Vor Wut sprühten die Augen Mayaris Funken, und sie begehrte auf: "Ich bin meines Vaters Kind wie du. Ich werde ihm auf den Thron folgen, ob es dir gefällt oder nicht."

Die Geschwister zankten sich immer heftiger und waren einander böse. Schließlich packten sie Holzklötze und fingen an sich zu schlagen. In der Hitze des Gefechts schlug Apolaki Mayari ins Gesicht, sodaß sie auf einem Auge erblindete.

Als Apolaki sah, was er getan hatte, bedauerte er alles und sprach: "Schlagen wir einander nicht mehr, Schwester. Teilen wir unseres Vaters Königreich unter uns auf. Wir wollen abwechselnd herrschen und Freunde sein."

Mayari stimmte zu und seither Apolaki , den wir Sonne nennen, tagsüber die Welt. Mayari, die wir Luna oder Mond nennen, herrscht in der Nacht. Wenn Apolaki den Thron besteigt, überflutet die Welt ein warmer Schein, der von seinen klaren Augen ausgeht. Wenn Mayari herrscht, hüllt sich die Welt in einen kühlen, matten Glanz, denn Mayari ist auf einem Auge blind.

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The creator of the world, Bathala, had a son, Apolaki and a daughter, Mayari. The clear eyes of the children of Bathala illuminated the world. The people, all the animals, even the fish, could see well and were grateful to Apolaki and Mayari.

Bathala loved his children and accompanied them on their walks through the heavenly realms. The eyes of the children shone continually, and therefore there was eternal light on earth.

But one day old Bathala lost his strength and died. After his death, Apolaki and Mayari began to argue with each other because each of them wanted to rule the world alone. "I am a man and therefore I will be my father's successor," declared Apolaki. "I will rule the world whether you like it or not."

Mayari's eyes sparked with anger and she demanded: "I am my father's child like you. I will follow him to the throne whether you like it or not."

The siblings bickered more and more and were angry with each other. Finally they grabbed wooden blocks and started beating each other. In the heat of the moment, Apolaki hit Mayari in the face, blinding her in one eye.

When Apolaki saw what he had done, he regretted everything and said: "Let us not strike each other any more, sister. Let us divide our father's kingdom between us. Let us rule and be friends in turn."

Mayari agreed and since then Apolaki, who we call the sun, the world during the day. Mayari, which we call Luna or Moon, rules at night. When Apolaki ascends the throne, the world is flooded with a warm glow emanating from his clear eyes. When Mayari rules, the world takes on a cool, dull glow because Mayari is blind in one eye.

Christian confidence amid mysteries

 

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

WE are now days before Christmas. Our longing for the birth of Christ is heightened, thanks to our tradition of the Simbang Gabi that up to now enjoys vast popularity especially among the simple people who are gifted with a lot of faith. Let’s hope that this tradition continues “sine fine” or “in aeternum.”

In the readings of December 18, we are told about a branch of David that will be raised up, a king who is wise and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. (cfr. Jer 23,5-8) This is, of course, referring to Christ himself. We should feel the excitement of his coming.

Thus, in the responsorial psalm, we are made to declare with joy, “Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.” (Ps 72,7) Obviously, that’s what Christ would accomplish, although his kind of justice and peace may not coincide with our own ideas of them.

The gospel of the day talks about Joseph who thought at first to divorce from Mary when he found her with a child in her womb even before they lived together. But a special divine intervention was made to clarify the matter to him. And he immediately changed his mind and followed what God had wanted him to do and to be. (cfr. Mt 1,18-25)

All these readings somehow tell us that we have every reason to be confident and happy even amid some mysteries and unpleasant circumstances, as long as we stick to God in his will and in his ways. This trust in God should always be nourished by us.

We need to realize that our life always has more to offer to us than what we can understand, let alone, cope. In the face of all this, I believe the attitude to have and the reaction to make is to be calm, pray hard, and while we do all we can, we have to learn to live a certain sense of abandonment in the hands of God.

In this life, we need to develop a sportsman’s attitude, since life is like a game. Yes, life is like a game, because we set out to pursue a goal, we have to follow certain rules, we are given some means, tools and instruments, we train and are primed to win and do our best, but defeats can always come, and yet, we just have to move on.

It would be unsportsmanlike if we allow ourselves to get stuck with our defeats and failures, developing a loser’s mentality. That would be the epic fail that puts a period and a finis in an ongoing narrative, when a comma, a colon or a semicolon would have sufficed.

We need a sporting spirit because life’s true failure can come only when we choose not to have hope. That happens when our vision and understanding of things is narrow and limited, confined only to the here and now and ignorant of the transcendent reality of the spiritual and supernatural world.

This should be the attitude to have. It’s an attitude that can only indicate our unconditional faith and love for God who is always in control of things, and at the same time can also leave us in peace and joy even at the worst of the possibilities.

We have to follow the example of the many characters in the gospel who, feeling helpless in the many predicaments they were in, earnestly rushed to Christ for some succor. They went to him unafraid and unashamed and they got what they wanted.

How did you learn German quickly?

Florian

432 followers

155 following

Hi.

I was born in Germany, so I cannot tell anything other than I have learned it since birth, so German came naturally to me.

But maybe I can give you some insight on how to quickly learn the language as a foreigner:

• Speak with German people
• The Internet is filled with German speaking folks, just choose a community that fits your interests.
• Make an account on Quora in German (Quora auf Deutsch)
• In my honest opinion, even as someone who has a great standard even by the means of a German citizens, I learned a lot on the Website.
• Additionally I sincerely believe Quora is the best place to learn a new language
• Buy German literature
• And start small!! There is no shame in starting with children´s books, the more time you invest in learning the basics, the less effort you will have to put into the “higher” fields of German
• German is very hard to learn, but relatively easy to master
• Visit a German speaking country
• I can´t stress this enough, as I firmly believe that anyone can only truly speak a language when they visited the country it is natively spoken in.
• Have fun
• Anything is learned faster when you have fun while doing so
• Listen more, speak less
• If you have the ability to listen more than you speak, you have the world´s knowledge at your feet.
• If not, try your hardest to achieve this skill
• Rest enough
• Someone who chooses quantity over quality, e.g. learning a lot without taking regular resting phases, will actually forget most of what he/she has learned.

Thanks for reading, and good look with learning such a beautiful language.

Mit freundlichsten Grüßen,

~Flo

Why is the bread in Germany so good? What is the difference from other countries’ bread?

 

Thomas Jollans

Trans-European human

Why is the bread in Germany so good? What is the difference from other countries’ bread?

There are two main distinguishing features of the breads of Northern Europe (including Germany, Scandinavia and Poland) as compared to the breads popular in countries like France, Italy and Britain:

• They typically use rye rather than just wheat for flour. In Germany, breads made from mixtures of different grains are quite popular, but breads made predominantly from rye are also common.
• They normally use sourdough for leavening rather than baker's yeast; this gives them their characteristic sour flavour.

Whether they’re better is a matter of opinion. Some people hate the taste of sourdough bread. I love it.

That’s not to say there aren’t plenty of other wonderful styles of bread. Take a nice baguette, for instance!

Depending on what you’re comparing it to, there may be more to it, though: a good German or Danish rye bread, a fresh baguette, a warm pita bread, or even a roti – those are solid. They have substance. They’re made of bread and you can taste it.

An American-style sandwich bread, on the other hand, is usually made of nothing but air, deceit, and sugar. (Not that there isn’t good bread in the US. There is. But you know the type of ‘bread’ I mean)

Yllana Aduana gets ‘double points’ in Miss Earth 2023 ‘Best Bikini’ voting

Miss Philippines Earth Yllana Marie Aduana’s official bikini photo/MISS EARTH FACEBOOK PHOTO

By: Armin P. AdinaINQUIRER.net 

MANILA, Philippines — Yllana Marie Aduana, the country’s representative in the 2023 Miss Earth pageant, is among the two top vote-getters from Asia and Oceania in the first round of online voting for “Best Bikini,” along with host delegate Do Thi Lan Anh from Vietnam.

The two leaders from each of the four geographical regions from the first round of voting conducted on Facebook have earned the opportunity to get double voting points for a period of 24 hours, between 11 p.m. on Dec. 16 and 11 p.m. on Dec. 17 in Vietnam (Manila is ahead by an hour from Vietnam).

“Continue voting for your favorite delegate for her chance to directly enter the Semi-Finals,” the Miss Earth pageant said on social media. To vote, visit https://www.missearth.1voting.com.

The leaders from Africa were Fifaliana Valisoa from Madagascar and Courtney Jongwe from Zimbabwe, while for the Americas, the top vote-getters were Gretha Matiauda from Paraguay and Jhosskaren Carrizo from Venezuela.

Victoria Lazarova from Bulgaria and Noa Claus from the Netherlands, meanwhile, topped the voting for European delegates.

The 86 delegates participated in the preliminary competition held in the city of Da Lat, the capital of Lam Don Province in southern Vietnam, on Dec. 16. The ladies paraded in swimsuit and in national costume during the event.

Aduana brought “Maria Makiling” to the Miss Earth stage in Vietnam with her national costume inspired by the Philippine mythological deity. Mount Makiling, named after her, is found in the province of Laguna where she is from.

Patrick Isorena designed the costume, with an intricately-detailed golden armor, headpiece, and back ornamentations with dangling crystals. Aduana walked the stage with a rolling skirt designed like a mountain with protruding palm fronds. It also opened at the front, where she stepped out to unfurl pieces of flowy white fabric attached to her waist. For the swimsuit round, she paraded in a crystal-embellished tangerine two-piece string bikini.

Aduana will attempt to become the fifth Filipino woman to be crowned Miss Earth, following Karla Henry in 2008, Jamie Herrell in 2014, Angelia Ong in 2015, and Karen Ibasco in 2017.

Reigning Miss Earth Mina Sue Choi from Korea will crown her successor, who will be chosen at the end of the coronation program at the Van Phuc City development project in Ho Chi Minh City on Dec. 22.

IN PICTURES: What Pinoy celebs want for Christmas

BY CARISSA ALCANTARA

Dec 17, 2023 07:06 AM

  

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AT A GLANCE

• These celebrities may be busy with their daily schedules, but one thing puts a smile on their faces, and that is making their Christmas wish come true.

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With only a few days before we celebrate Christmas, this year has been a challenging event for all; it may be personal and career growth. This holiday season gives us hope for a peaceful and happy year.

These celebrities may be busy with their daily schedules, but one thing puts a smile on their faces, and that is making their Christmas wish come true. 

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Marlo Mortel 

"Ako ang gusto ko lang naman ngayong pasko is maging healthy yung mga tao and abangan nila yung mga bago ko na mga kanta." 

(All I want this Christmas is for people to be healthy and for them to look forward to my new songs)

Roselle Nava 

"Actually mine is very simple lang kasi we usually spend our Christmas at home, so my Christmas wish is to be with family." 

(Actually mine is very simple because we usually spend our Christmas at home, so my Christmas wish is to be with family) 

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Jose Mari Chan 

"My personal wish is to continue good health and happiness with our family, with our children and grandchildren."

Kuh Ledesma 

Kuh Ledesma 

"My Christmas wish is simple lang, magkaroon ng world peace, totoo na talaga." 

(My Christmas wish is simple, to have world peace, it's really true) 

Enchong Dee 

"Christmas wish ko? Sana manalo ng award yung GomBurZa, kasi we've worked hard for it and very excited kami for people to watch it." 

(My Christmas wish? I hope GomBurZa wins an award, because we've worked hard for it and we're very excited for people to watch it) 

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Rob Gomez 

"Ang Christmas wish ko po ay makapag-ibang bansa kasama yung daughter ko and yung mom niya." 

(My Christmas wish is to go abroad with my daughter and her mom) 

Matteo Guidicelli 

"I guess for 2024 and in the future, sana mag-baby na kami. In God's time. At the end of the day, my priority is my wife and my family. That's part of the plan."

(I guess for 2024 and in the future we will have a baby. In God's time. At the end of the day, my priority is my wife and my family. That's part of the plan) 

Dingdong Dantes

"Yung gift and Christmas wish ko is iisa lang, and that is the gift of time kasi gusto ko ng maraming oras with my family." 

(My gift and Christmas wish are the same, and that is the gift of time because I want a lot of time with my family) 

Marian Rivera 

"I really wish for the world to heal and for everything to be okay, for the children to be able to study properly. And, of course, for our family, I hope for good health and for us to continue loving each other; that's our goal."

Daniel Padilla 

"My personal wish is peace of mind. What I really want to wish for myself, and my family, and all the people I love is to have good health and a happy life." 

Sassa Girl 

"Wish ko ngayong pasko is sana magka-jowa na ako"

(My wish this Christmas is to have a boyfriend) 

Heart Evangelista

"My Christmas wish is just for everybody to be healthy, its the real sign of wealth. Health is wealth" 

Aster Amoyo 

"Of course, my Christmas wish is just not for myself. Of course, for my family and everyone, my wish is health and safety for everyone." 

(Of course, my Christmas wish is just not for myself. Of course, for my family and everyone, my wish is health and safety for everyone) 

Jak Roberto 

"Since, I'm launching a new business, my wish is sana mag succeed siya and wish ko na rin na sana dumami pa yung blessings sa career." 

(Since, I'm launching a new business, my wish is that it succeeds, and I also wish that there will be more blessings in my career)