UPCOMING EVENTS
Journey of Consciousness
lakbay ng pagkaalam3 ("journey of consciousness3") continues on Aug13 at Helios, 411 Westheimer (at Taft), east of Montrose Boulevard in Houston, Texas, featuring another set of short films and documentaries by independent Filipino filmmakers Howie Severino, Rommel Eclarinal, Aimee Suzara, Oliver Eclarinal and Patrick Epino; the poetry of Pola Anne Anicete, Jerome Vielman, Julio Marquina and Carlos Marquina; and music by Atash (from Austin TX), Kasama and kayumanggi Pinoy rock band; and the pearl jewelry designs and creations by Rosario de los Reyes. Showtime begins at 8pm (doors at 7:30pm) Central US time, cover charge is $8 at the door. For more information, email sepoykoy@aol.com, arts@heliosrising.org, or call (832) 814-4053 or (713) 526-4648.
The films showing Aug13 at Helios:
School of Hope (2000) - Through this uplifting documentary, Howie Severino gives viewers a rare look at a school in the southern Philippine province of Zamboanga which offers a unique education for Muslim children of former fighters of the Moro National Liberation Front and promise for communities that have known mostly war and cruelty. With a curriculum that includes religious instruction and academic subjects like mathematics and science, Muslim students at this school can aspire to become lawyers and doctors. VCD color, 8 min 4 sec, Tagalog with English subtitles.
San Mateo (2003) - In this narrative by Rommel Eclarinal set in 1902 rural Philippines during the Philippine-American War, a young American soldier writes a letter to his family revealing his excitement and his exploits while the images convey the loss of innocence and the immorality of this war. 16 mm b&w, 9 min 30 sec, English. Previously screened at the NEWFILMMAKERS series at The Anthology Film Archives in New York City 2004, the Cinema Texas International Short Film Festival in Austin, Texas 2003, and lakbay2 at Pusod in Berkeley 2004. Director will be present.
Crizel (2001) - This intensely emotional short documentary by Aimee Suzara is dedicated to a young victim of the toxic waste left behind by the U.S. military upon vacating the bases in the Philippines, combining footage with 35 mm photography. Color, 4 min, English. Previously screened at lakbay1 at Pusod in Berkeley 2001.
Let Stand Before Serving (1999) - This narrative shot on location in Austin by Oliver Eclarinal explores the uncertainty of living away from one's homeland and the struggle between assimilation and tradition, questioning the Filipino colonial mentality. 16 mm color, 9 min 36 sec, English and Tagalog. Previously screened at lakbay1 at Pusod in Berkeley 2001 and lakbay2 at Malaprop's in Asheville, North Carolina. Director will be present.
Spunk (2003) - In this short contemplation by Patrick Epino, a man comes to terms with a critical part of himself and his Asianness. 16 mm b&w, 3 min 34 sec, English. Previously screened at Reel Asian International Film Festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada 2003; Asian American Showcase in Chicago, Illinois 2004; Asian Pacific Film & Video Festival in Los Angeles, California 2004; Slant at the Aurora Picture Show in Houston 2004; APAture Arts Festival in San Francisco 2003; Coppola Theater in San Francisco; Revival House in Westerly, Rhode Island; Chaos Studios Artspace in Colorado Springs, Colorado; Artwork SF at the Cosmo, San Francisco 2004; The Axiom in Houston; 111 Minna Gallery in San Francisco; lakbay2 at Pusod in Berkeley 2004 and lakbay3 at Malaprop's in Asheville 2004.
The bands playing Aug13 at Helios:
Atash is Farsi for "fire," the ancient symbol of truth and life energy. In world music, it is a collaboration of five gifted musicians based in Austin, Texas, fusing the ancient and the modern to create a message for the world which is both soulful and uplifting. The improvisational elements of jazz and the music of India and the Middle East meet the raw energy of rock and the intricacy of Western classical music, creating a dramatic and organic texture over which the powerful voice of Mohammad Firoozi passionately and poetically resonates. Atash's album Republic of Love (Ars Mundi 2003) is available in Austin at Tower Records, Red Fez, Waterloo Records, Becktell/Blackerby, and online at www.theconnextion.com. For more information about Atash, log onto www.atash.net.
Kasama features the guitar compositions of Oliver Eclarinal, with Ted Jaceldo on drums, Kokoy Severino on bass and Rommel Eclarinal on guitar. Described by the Austin Chronicle as "mysterious, Asian-tinged even flow of jangling introspective rock." For more information about Kasama, email oeclarinal@yahoo.com.
kayumanggi Pinoy rock band is the medium through which Kokoy Severino delivers his compositions manifesting the search for the Filipino cultural and political identity. Kokoy's all-Tagalog compositions express his meditations upon his culture of origin in the context of a global community of cultures, and explore issues such as the painful longing for the homeland, the political violence that permeates Philippine society, and the enigma of nationalism. kayumanggi's e.p. nagsilipat ang lahat sa Amerika (Fosforo Records 1999) is described in Dirty Linen Folk and World Music Magazine (Baltimore MD) as "obliquely political and colorfully poetic." kayumanggi features musicians Oliver Eclarinal, Ted Jaceldo, Caesar Jaceldo, Joyce Day, Jimi Clark, Carlos Marquina, Mario Chang and the words of Julio Marquina. For more information, email sepoykoy@aol.com.
The poets reading Aug13 at Helios:
Pola Anne Anicete is a young Pinay artist who has been writing prose and poetry since first grade. "Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of human emotion." An ardent environmentalist since the age of seven, Pola explores expression not only in words but also through music and photography. For more information about Pola, email pasanicete@hotmail.com.
Jerome Vielman considers poetry as a testament to humanity's creative potential. "Poetry is a form of creative empowerment, a way we can truly communicate our stories, our lives." Through his work, Jerome seeks to empower a community through creative communication. Jerome is the Executive Director of Houston's Asian Pacific American Heritage Association, an organization which provides leadership in planning and coordinating events celebrating the Asian Pacific American heritage, and promoting cross-cultural understanding of the Asian American culture and its diversity through education and communication between and among Asian/Pacific Islander and other racial groups. For more information about Jerome Vielman, email jerome@apaha.org. For information about APAHA, log onto www.apaha.org.
Julio Marquina Varela refers to himself as a wordist and "will continue to be a wordist until I run out of words to write, say, or think." His work in both Spanish and English reflects the international character of the Houston community. For more information about Julio Marquina, email kxau2@yahoo.com.
Carlos Francisco Marquina Varela was born in Lazaro Cardenas, Michoacan, Mexico. He performs his poetry regularly in English and Spanish in the Houston area and beyond. For more information about Carlos Marquina, email penguin_cfmv@hotmail.com.
The filmmakers screening Aug13 at Helios:
Howie Severino is an award-winning Filipino documentarist whose reports about environmental and socio-political issues appear on the weekly i-Witness investigative news program on GMA, a national television network in the Philippines. His work has been shown in international film festivals in Japan and California. "Journalism is a vehicle for changing and improving society no matter what medium you're in. Our job is to find and present information about important issues so that people can use it to make decisions, form opinions and take action." For more information, email howieseverino@yahoo.com.
Rommel Eclarinal grew up in Subic, Zambales, Philippines, just miles from the largest American naval facility outside the United States, experiencing first-hand the subjugation of an oppressed people by a colonial power. Rommel earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film at Brooklyn College in New York before embarking on his current pursuit of a Master of Fine Arts at the University of Texas at Austin where he had graduated with a degree in sociology. His work explores issues of oppressed peoples, particularly in the Philippines. For more information, email reclarinal@mail.utexas.edu. Rommel will be present at the screening.
Aimee Suzara is a 28-year-old environmental and social justice activist, poet and writer working with Youth Speaks as a creative writing mentor and the Arts in Education Associate, overseeing its Chapter O.N.E. (Oral Narrative Experience) workshops in high schools throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. She is also a rape crisis counselor at San Francisco Women Against Rape, a performing member of multi-ethnic and multi-arts revolutionary women's group Dancers Without Borders, and a founding member of the Filipino/American Coalition for Environmental Solutions (FACES). She graduated from the University of California-Berkeley, where she studied under poets/scholars Ishmael Reed and Thom Gunn. She has also studied creative writing through Voices of Our Nations under accomplished writers/educators Elmaz Abinader, Quincy Troupe and Saul Williams. She is currently working on a poetry chapbook and compact disc of spoken word to be released later this year. For more information, email dragonflies@prodigy.net.
Oliver Eclarinal was born in Subic, and is currently an artist and musician studying at San Francisco State University where he is pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in Cinema, after completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film from the University of Texas. For more information, email oeclarinal@yahoo.com. Oliver will be present at the Helios screening.
Patrick Epino is currently completing his Master of Fine Arts in Cinema at San Francisco State University. In addition to Spunk, he has recently finished his first feature-length project, Fish in a Barrel, and is now working on his next film, a multi-format narrative on sadness. For more information, email realmodern@yahoo.com or log onto www.empireandsleep.com.
The pearl jewelry to be available Aug13 at Helios:
Tati Severino is the designer and creator of Houston-based Rosario de los Reyes' pearl jewelry, which she makes herself all by hand. She is a retired Montessori teacher and international social worker. For more information about Tati Severino, email tgseverino1@juno.com.
Wear your kayumanggi Pinoy rock retro soccer jersey to the show or purchase one at the show and receive a special surprise gift. Also available at the show: Republic of Love (Ars Mundi 2003) by Atash, album on cd; dati pang kita'y nakilala (Fosforo 2004) by kayumanggi, single on cd, featuring 3 songs and 5 tracks including a techno remix of sabi nila by Tara Lacarna in Los Angeles and a live version of sabi nila recorded at piNoisepop4 at Bindlestiff, San Francisco; nagsilipat ang lahat sa Amerika (Fosforo 1999) by kayumanggi, extended play on cd featuring Tchiya Amet on keyboards; Life is Timing (2004) by Shaakir, his 6th album on cd showcasing his unique style of smooth, soulful jazz on the saxophone.
Please send event and cultural news items to info@houstonculture.org as soon as you are able, so we can add them to our calendar, www.houstonculture.org/events and mention them to the listeners of KTRU, Rice University Radio, 91.7fm.
Houston Institute for Culture
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