18 May 2016 –  The Sentro Rizal Film Festival made its debut in Germany with Ida del Mundo’s period piece, K’na the Dreamweaver, at the Dom Forum in the center of Cologne. It was followed by screenings of Jerrold Tarog’s acclaimed bio-epic Heneral Luna at the Film Forum in Cologne and Enzo William’s historical action drama Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo in the Rio Filmpalast in Munich.

The Dom Forum was filled to capacity for the Film Festival’s opening on April 28. At the reception held afterwards, Consul Rona Beth Goce introduced Sentro Rizal and its role in promoting Philippine arts, culture and language through its branches overseas while Artikulo Uno’s Project Associate Celina Peñaflorida fielded questions about the making of K’na the Dreamweaver.

The showing of Heneral Luna on April 30 attracted a crowd of more than 200 attendees, with some coming as far away as the Netherlands. During the post-screening Q&A, one of the attendees said, “Having this film in Germany is important for Filipinos living abroad not to lose track of our history.”

Philippine Ambassador to Germany Melita Sta. Maria-Thomeczek acknowledged the role of the Filipino community organizations for the success of the Sentro Rizal Film Festival in Germany as she welcomed the crowd to the screening of Heneral Luna.

The festival was sponsored by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), home of the Sentro Rizal Secretariat, in cooperation with Artikulo Uno Productions and the Sentro Rizal Berlin of the Philippine Embassy.

Local Filipino organizations promoted and organized the film showing in their cities with the support of the Philippine Consulates in Bavaria and North Rhine Westphalia. 

The Katolisches Bildungswerk, Friends e.V., Babaylan Germany e.V. and Philippinische Katolische Gemeinde Köln banded together to bring K’na the Dreamweaver to Cologne, while the European Network of the Filipino Diaspora (ENFID) took the lead with organizing the film showing for Heneral Luna. In Munich, the Filipinianae.V. München brought together the Filipino community for the screening of Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo. END