30 July 2013 – The new feature-length documentary, “Marilou Diaz-Abaya: Filmmaker on a Voyage,” had its New York City debut at a special screening co-organized by the Philippine Consulate General and Asian Cinevision at the Kalayaan Hall of the Philippine Center on July 26. 

The film, written, produced and directed by Mona Lisa Yuchengco is a tribute to the iconic and groundbreaking Filipina filmmaker.  The film explores Marilou’s struggles and triumphs as an artist and also paints a portrait of her as mother, spouse, and educator. The director is known best for her women’s trilogy Brutal (1980), Mortal (1982) and Karnal (1983) as well as Baby Tsina (1984), Jose Rizal (1998), and Muro-Ami (1999).

In his opening remarks, Consul General Mario L. de Leon, Jr. observed that Marilou Diaz-Abaya “has forever changed Philippine cinema for the better.”  John Woo, Executive Director of Asian Cinevision and the Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) noted that Diaz-Abaya’s films deserve to be seen by international audiences as examples of groundbreaking Asian Cinema.

The screening was followed by a talkback segment featuring Director Mona Lisa Yuchengco and Ms. Fiel Zabat, award-winning production designer on many of Diaz-Abaya’s films including Karnal.The question and answer segment was moderated by critically-acclaimed Filipino screenwriter and film scholar Gil Quito.

Diaz-Abaya’s classic Karnal, along with other Philippine films, is currently part of the line-up for this year’s AAIFF in New York.   For more details on the AAIFF screenings, the public may check the website at www.asiancinevision.org.

Members of the Assumption Alumnae Association Abroad of New York (AAAA) were likewise present at the film screening to show their support for fellow alumnae Mona Lisa Yuchengco and the late Marilou Diaz-Abaya. END