(RICHARD A. REYES / INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — The Senate is set to conduct public hearings on bills aimed at promoting the growth and development of the country’s movie industry by, among others, setting up a facility and creating a body to preserve local films.
The hearing on Senate Bills 1033, 1032 and 2250 filed by Senator Jinggoy Estrada, is set on July 10, Monday and will be conducted by the committee on public information and mass media.
“Two decades have passed since the enactment of Republic Act No. 9167, the law that directs the FDCP (Film Development Council of the Philippines) to establish a film archive, but the permanent facility for film preservation with sufficient storage space and proper equipment has yet to materialize,” said Estrada, referring to SB 1033 which is pushing for the creation of the National Film Archive of the Philippines (NFAP).
“This bill aims to address this problem by creating NFAP, which will ensure the protection and preservation of Filipino films that are part of our historical and cultural heritage,” he added.
Estrada also revealed that about 65 percent of the country’s film archives have either been lost or destroyed based on the data from the FDCP.
“Whatever remains unarchived are exposed to daily damage and deterioration. It is also estimated that out of more than 8,000 movies shot on film, only around 2,000 have surviving copies,” he said.
Estrada said SB 1032, or the proposed World-Class Filmmakers’ Incentives Act, “aims to promote and support the production of high quality and globally competitive Filipino films through the provision of incentives and tax exemptions,” while SB 2250 “proposes the institutionalization of a physical and online festival for new quality genre films and a free screening of classic movies every September.”