The Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival is an annual event that showcases the best of independent films—in full-length or short film categories—in the Philippines. Now on its 14th year run, Cinemalaya continues to provide independent film creators an avenue to harness their craft and connect to what the festival has built with in its now-wider audience.
Among the ten full-length entries that competed in its week-long run, from August 3 to 12, is Kuya Wes by James Robin M. Mayo, a feature tackling the act of seeking the good in everyone, including oneself.
The titular role, played by Ogie Alcasid, portrays a timid but cheery worker of a remittance center who remains passionate and generous in spite of tendencies of exploitation of the people around him, including his own family. However, a major crush on a regular customer Erika, played by Ina Raymundo, leads to a paradigm shift that pushes Kuya Wes to reconsider his disposition in life.
The story can drive the audience to getting frustrated at Kuya Wes’s inclination onto selflessness, and at the same time, rooting for Kuya Wes’s inclination onto selflessness. For a moment, even when his kindness has become prone to abuse, one realizes that, after all, there is a sense of fulfillment in caring for others without expecting anything in return. Nevertheless, as the story’s atmosphere progresses from jovial to gloomy, one is reminded that selflessness has its limitations—that there is a point where a person has to prioritize caring for himself. Kuya Wes also takes this reflective journey, narrated through skillful storytelling made possible by Mayo’s direction and Denise O’Hara’s and Heber O’Hara’s screenwriting, and through effective musical scoring by Immanuel Varona and Erwin Fajardo.
Moreover, Alcasid’s flair in interpreting cheerful and energetic roles has brought significant impact to his performance as the titular character. The portrayal of Raymundo’s charming but mysterious Erika and Moi Marcampo’s skeptic but concerned workmate Joy has also helped in driving the story’s primary message across its audience.
Kuya Wes is a seemingly light tale that, at the end, imparts an important lesson on how one should love—there is essence in giving, but never at the expense of forgetting oneself.
CAST
Ogie Alcasid, Ina Raymundo, Moi Bien, Alex Medina, Karen Gaerlan, Nestro Abrogena, Star Orjaliza, Rubi Rubi, Edmund Santiago, Gerhard Acao, Raqs Regalado, Sir Rener Korikz A. Concepcion, Timothy Mendoza, Erika Clemente & Trisha Melocotones
PRODUCTION
Director: James Robin M. Mayo
Producers: David R. Corpuz, Thop Nazareno & Ferdinand Lapuz
Executive Producers: Ogie Alcasid, Piolo Pascual, Bb. Joyce Bernal & Erickson Raymundo
Line Producer: Sarah Pagcaliwagan-Brakensiek
Associate Producer: Iana Bernardez
Screenplay: Denise O’Hara & Heber O’Hara
Production Designer: Ericson Navarro
Director of Photography: Theo Lozada
Editor: Thop Nazareno
Sound: Immanuel Varona
Music: Erwin Fajardo
Assistant Director: Alyssa Villanueva
