Fresh from winning the grand jury prize at the recently concluded Cinemanila International Film festival, Squatterpunk tackles the life of youth in urban poor communities living the punk lifestyle. The film is set in the slums of Manila where law enforcement is rare. The camera follows the lives of the youth as they scavenge the garbage beach for a living while still managing to play  around. Images of riot and poverty are set against the background of a loud musical score that makes the film wild, pulsating and certainly punk. Yet despite the exploitative connotations of its title, "Squatterpunk" casts a  tenderly poetic eye at the squalor of Philippine society.

Tagged by international film fest directors with the labels “enfant terrible of Philippine Cinema” and “Che Guevarra of the Digital Revolution”, Khavn dela Cruz is certainly one of the most revolutionary talents working in Philippine cinema today. His films have been exhibited and won awards in prestigious film
festivals in the country and abroad. He has been the festival director of the .MOV International Digital Film Festival 2002. With his independent film company Filmless Films, he continues to add number to the already  prodigious body of work that is considered as cinematic gem by both local and international film communities.

Cinekatipunan presents

SQUATTERPUNK (Iskwaterpangk)
This is not a film by KHAVN

Grand Jury Prize, Cinemanila International Film Festival 2006

Venue: MAG:NET CAFE, KATIPUNAN
(in front of Miriam College, beside Rustan's Supermarket)
AGCOR Building, 335 Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City
Tel: 929.3191 | www.magnet.com.ph

December 6, Wednesday, 5:30-9:30pm
SQUATTER FPJ VS. SQUATTER KHAVN
3 decades ago, Fernando Poe Jr made a movie in the same location (Isla Puting Bato, Tondo, Manila) where SQUATTERPUNK was shot.
5:30pm FPJ's "Isla Puting Bato" (White Rock Island)
7:30pm The Brothers Quay Shortfilms
8pm Khavn's SQUATTERPUNK with livemusic by THE BROCKAS

December 20, Wednesday, 5:30-9:30pm
CYBERPUNK VS. SQUATTERPUNK
Two Japanese Cyberpunk classics.
5:30pm Shinya Tsukamoto's "Tetsuo: The Iron Man"
6:45pm Sogo Ishii's "Electric Dragon 80,000 Volts"
8pm Khavn's SQUATTERPUNK with livemusic by THE BROCKAS

Admission is free.

ABOUT SQUATTERPUNK

"Made by any other filmmaker you would call this film daring and adventurous. It is shot in the kind of slum neighbourhood where law enforcement is rare. The film does not exactly fit in the social awareness policy of realist and direct cinema documentary filmmaking. The film is energetic and funny in a place that is supposed to be depressing. The score of the film is loud if not deafening. And not en vogue. It brings us back to the no future eighties of the original anarchic punk.

But it is consistent in its style of black and white images and its rhythmic montage that is clearly driven by the musical sound track. Compared to the ironic collage way of working in most of Khavn’s other films, this film is crystal clear if not neat. Well, only in comparison with his other sometimes exuberant experiments. By any other standard, it is a wild and pulsating film.

The film shows something of the life in the slums in a quite special way. It shows how poor, forgotten and ignored street children can have a good time. Playing and swimming in rotting garbage can obviously be fun. So not the cliche image of tears in a child’s eyes makes us aware of this disgraceful situation but the vitality and pleasure of the protagonists. In addition, maybe even stronger than pity this pleasure enforces the inevitable message: no future." (Gertjan Zuilhof, Rotterdam International Film Festival)

"A rollicking ride into the depths of poverty-inspired despair, with that distinctly Philippine sense of hope, rising above the regular smell of garbage, swinging and slamming with joyous riot music. This is Khavn returning to the bare, essential, and simply punk." (Joel Toledo)

"Despite the crude, violent, exploitative connotations of its title, SQUATTERPUNK casts a tenderly poetic eye at the squalor of Philippine society." (Lourd De Veyra)

“Pinoy Punk Rock is the music that reflects the lively and chaotic world of the urban poor in an independent masterpiece titled SQUATTERPUNK by the internationally award-winning director Khavn." (Jude Bautista, Manila Times)

SYNOPSIS

An ode to joy amidst poverty, SQUATTERPUNK is the pre-Spanish Philippine part of Khavn's "Black Silence Trilogy" ("2. Ultimo", "3. The Longest Moment You're Not Here"). Set in the slums of Manila, we follow the lives of the youth as they scavenge the garbage beach for a living while still managing to play around.

CREDITS

Director, Writer, Producer: Khavn
Editor: Lawrence Ang (with Caloy Carlos & Sunshine Matutina)
Music: The Brockas, Bobby Balingit, Tengal, Buccino P. De Ocampo
Cinematographer: Albert Banzon
Assistant Director: Rayg Generoso
Cast: Hapon and the Isla Puting Bato Community
Length: 79 minutes