Alvin Yapan, the director of “Oro,” is suspended for one year from participating in the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) after a panel on Friday found him and his team guilty of breaching their rules.
Shandii Bacolod, the producer of “Oro,” got the same penalty. Bacolod said they will not be appealing the sanction.
The decision was announced less than week after the controversy surrounding a dog-slaughter scene in Yapan’s film, one of the entries to this year’s MMFF, erupted on social media, led by complaints from animal welfare group Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS).
Yapan’s representatives had justified the use of a real animal by saying that the scene “was within the bounds of culture in that area where dogs are eaten as food.”
They also claimed no one from the film’s production team, including its cast, participated in the slaughter, and that they were merely filming an event in the community based in Caramoan, Camarines Sur.
In an interview on Friday, Film Development Council of the Philippines chairperson Liza Diño, a member of the MMFF executive committee, told reporters that the basis for the ban was the admission that the team of “Oro” lied when they initially said that no animals were harmed during the filming of the scene.
Diño was overcome with emotion while announcing the MMFF executive committee’s decision, clarifying that their decision to ban Yapan from joining the annual festival had nothing to do with the issue of censorship.
“We have so much respect for the director because of what he wants to say in that scene,” said Diño. “The only reason why this is a big issue now is because of what happened behind. There were reports that a real dog was killed. …That is the issue. We have no intention on maligning the artistic merits, the cinematic excellence of this film. There was a violation of the law and that we just have to really address it.”
The committee earlier in the week stripped “Oro” of its Fernando Poe Jr. Memorial Award for Excellence at the request of Senator Grace Poe, the daughter of the late action star to whom the award was named after. Poe reasoned that his father would not have condoned “an act of animal cruelty.”
A version of the film featuring the scene in question has also been pulled out from cinemas.
Bacolod, in an interview after learning of the committee’s decision, apologized for showing to Filipino moviegoers a dog being butchered.
“Bilang producer ng pelikulang ‘Oro,’ gusto kong humingi ng tawad sa lahat ng mga nasaktan at naapektuhan sa eksena sa palagay nila ay natapakan ang kanilang mga sensibilidad. At siyempre, may mga tao rin talaga na hindi nila kinaya so sa mga nakapanuod at hindi nagustuhan ang eksena at nasakatan sila, I deeply apologize.
“Wala po kaming intensyon na saktan o sirain ang kanilang bagong taon. Hindi po namin iyon sinasadya. Ginawa po ang pelikula in good faith. May magandang intensyon at may ibang misyon — iba iyong pinaglalaban po ng pelikula. Along the way ay may na-agrabyado at ito po ay nag-create ng gulo ngayon sa social media. Patawad, I’m really, really sorry. It wasn’t meant to happen,” he told ABS-CBN News’ MJ Felipe.
“Oro” is top-billed by screen veteran Irma Adlawan. The film is a retelling of the story of massacre victims that happened in a small mining community in Caramoan back in March 2014.
Bacolod, in the same interview, stressed that they will abide by the MMFF’s decision, but maintained that he is against the ban imposed on Yapan, likening it to censorship.
“Hindi makatarungan na i-ban ang aking direktor sa paggawa ng pelikula. Dahil ang paggawa ng pelikula ay isang freedom of expression at ito ay isang constitutional right. Kung may nagawa kang mali, puwede kang parusahan. Ang mali kasi it opens a door for reforms. But it doesn’t end your right as a human being.”
Bacolod also reiterated that he is ready to face possible legal charges surrounding the alleged animal cruelty in the film, and called out PAWS for what he described as “trial by publicity.”
“Naniniwala talaga ako na may mga bagay na may maso-solve kung uupuan o paguusapan,” he said.
This story was first published on ABS-CBN News Online and republished with permission.
