HIMALA is Back on the Big Screen (With Singing!)

Manila, Philippines--The 1982 film "Himala," directed by National Artist Ismael Bernal, follows the story of a barrio Cupang lass,  Elsa, played by a young Nora Aunor,  who allegedly saw an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. "Himala, " retitled "Isang Himala," is back on the big screen as a musical film, an official entry to the 50th-anniversary of the annual Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF).

Both films were based on the original story, the screenplay of which was written by another national artist, Ricky Lee. The musical version, however, features music and lyrics by Vince de Jesus, which was recently turned into an immersive theatrical experience by local theater companies The Sandbox Collective and 9 Works Theatrical.

Foreground: Sweet Plantado Tiongson, Aicelle Santos

According to "Ang Himala's" cinematographer, Carlo Mendoza: "Our director, Pepe Diokno's vision was for us to reimagine this classic and be expressionistic with it. Of course, one of the first discussions was how we would present the world of Cupang.

"It was the first concern of our team.

"The decision to shoot the entire film in an [enclosed] studio and not on location already allowed us to be more visually expressive and to do something different without losing the essence of Cupang, which was supposed to be dry, longing for [its first] rain [in years].

"The world-building began with the discussion between Pepe and our production designer, Ericson Navarro, who posed the question: what if Cupang felt like a purgatory? That started our expressionistic approach to finding a different approach to Cupang.

"We didn't want to do the dunes [the main setting in the original film]. We couldn't do dunes in the studio. So Ericson pitched the idea of a community in the crater of a volcano, which gave the feeling of purgatory and, at the same time, the original intention of the movie to make Cupang dry and hot, longing for rain, longing for life to happen again."

MMFF 2023 Best Director Diokno [who directed the critically acclaimed historical film "Gomburza"] shared the unique challenges in helming this "Himala" compared to his earlier film. With "Gomburza," the challenge was to stay faithful to history. With "Isang Himala," Lee imposed the challenge to reimagine Bernal's classic film faithfully yet "unfaithfully."

Middle: Filmmaker Pepe Diokno

"We kept the essence of Elsa's story but played around with sound and visuals to make something unique. For me, the magic of musicals is that they are expressionistic," Diokno told BroadwayWorld.

"Sir Ricky says that musical characters can express through songs the thoughts and feelings they don't usually say in dialogue. Jumping off from that, sound and visuals can also express what they don't usually do in a more 'realistic' film. So we built Cupang in a studio, which came with its challenges and opportunities.

"It was like a sandbox that allowed everyone from the actors to production design, camera, and lights to play around. But we were united in our love for the story and De Jesus's [haunting, immersive] music and in our goal to transport our viewers into this space and immerse them in the world."

Besides its immersive qualities, the cinemagoers will be rewarded with a deeply emotional experience.

"When I saw The Sandbox Collective and 9 Works Theatrical's staging, directed by Ed Lacson and starring Aicelle Santos [who reprises her role as Elsa in the film], it was the most emotional theater experience I've ever had. I laughed, cried, got goosebumps, and it stayed with me for years. That's the same experience I want to share with viewers this MMFF. This is why I need to have Aicelle and [her co-stars) cast in our film and pay homage to the stage [adaptation] with our version."

Bituin Escalante, Neomi Gonzales, Kakki Teodoro, Vic Robinson, Floyd Tena, Sweet Plantado Tiongson, and David Ezra join Santos in the film's cast.

According to Lee, Elsa's story was inspired by a series of alleged Marian apparitions, which took place from 1966 to 1972 on Cabra Island, Lubang, Occidental Mindoro.

"Isang Himala" is Diokno's first musical film. (With additional reporting by Oliver Oliveros)

Photos: CreaZion Studios

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