Is MARTIN SCORSES & OLIVER STONE REALLY coming to the CINEMANILA FilmFest? ...HINDE

Cinemanila Official Site clears up & debunks the rumors
source: Business World Online
Article by JOHANNA D. POBLETE
click HERE for the full article

While recognition for Lifetime Achievement has been given to visiting celebrity guests in recent years, the rumors that either directors Martin Scorsese or Oliver Stone will attend the festival and receive some kind of citation are still just that, rumors.

Mr. Scorsese has evinced an interest in the Philippines’ film heritage, but will not be coming this year as the Cinemanila organizers, due to a lack of funds, missed the deadline set in June for securing plane tickets for him and his entourage. (There is an ongoing campaign to encourage Mr. Scorsese to visit the Philippines through a petition on martyinmanila.blogspot.com.) Meanwhile, arrangements with Mr. Stone have yet to be made, with the organizers holding out hope that the director, through his W producer Teresa Cheung, will still agree to come to the festival even at this late date.

Someone who will be at the festival to receive his Lifetime Achievement Award is screenwriter Pete Lacaba. Mr. Aguiluz said it was high time that Mr. Lacaba be recognized for his contributions to cinema, noting that India (by virtue of a working relationship fostered between Mr. Lacaba and Indian director Aruna Vasudev, Cinemanila lifetime achievement awardee in 2006) was quicker than the Philippines to do it. "Pete deserves to be a National Artist for cinema, bakit hindi (why not)?... Lahat ng pelikula ni Lino napunta sa Cannes, sinong sumulat? Si Pete Lacaba. (Every Lino Brocka film that went on to Cannes was written by Pete Lacaba)," said Mr. Aguiluz.

As to the persistent demand for foreign celebrity guests, Mr. Aguiluz has this to say: "We’re making an effort guys. We’ve already delivered. We brought Fernando Mireilles, we brought Quentin Tarantino. Our budget hasn’t improved, and you want us to bring Cameron Crowe? Then when they come, nobody will help us feed them. Get real, you guys, we’re not Imelda [Marcos], we’re just a bunch of guys trying to run the festival.

"From the beginning, we’ve declared that our stars are the films, you have to accept that, appreciate that. We’ve just delivered the movies that hire our stars. We never said we’re here to bring Tom Cruise, we’ve never packaged it like that... the priority is always the program, the films, and there should be nothing wrong with that."