Independent film “Area” directed by revered filmmaker Louie Ignacio won the Special Jury Prize award in the 12th Eurasia International Film Festival held at Almaty, Kazakhstan on September 30, 2016.
The Philippine film outshined 12 other countries under the best feature film category in the said prestigious filmfest.
“Area”, infamously known as the “binyagan ng mga hindi pa tuli” is a place in Barangay Sta. Teresita (near Pampang), Angeles City, Pampanga where sex workers offer their services at cut-rate.
The film aims to show what’s really going on inside the “Area”, the hierarchy of whorehouse operators, pimps, prostitutes, clients and their protectors, and its contribution in the history of Angeles City.
“‘Area’ is that place nobody talks about in polite conversation, and yet everyone knows what’s going on there. It’s the city’s best-kept secret. I can imagine how many Kapampangan boys and men lost their virginity there. If Fields Avenue is for foreigners, Area is its affordable counterpart, whose patrons are the locals,” Gawad Urian 2016 Best Screenplay awardee and “Area” scriptwriter Robby Tantingco said.
In the late 1930s, the place served as a hiding place for Huks and NPAs but its clients included military men and the private armies called Beatles and Monkees.
“There was a time when there were as many as 700 casas inside ‘Area’. Today only two or three have remained. ‘Area’ is about to disappear, and the film is its swan song,” Tantingco added.
Among the cast of Area produced by Ferdinand Lapuz, a native of Angeles City, and Dennis Evangelista are multi-awarded actor Allen Dizon, comedy queen AiAi Delas Alas, Kapampangan King and Queen of Poets Francisco Guinto and Eufrocina Peña, and environmentalist and veteran journalist Cecile Yumul.
The Philippine premiere of the film Area will be on October 22, 2016. –Larrica Angela Cunanan