Lola Igna

Lola Igna (transl. Grandma Igna) is a 2019 Filipino comedy film directed and written by Eduardo Roy Jr., and starring veteran actress Angie Ferro, and Yves Flores. It had a theatrical release in the Philippines on September 12, 2019 as one of the entries of the 2019 Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino.

Lola Igna
Theatrical Movie Poster
Directed byEduardo Roy Jr.
Produced byAlmond Derla, Eduardo Roy Jr., Ferdinand Lapuz, John Joseph Tan
Written byEduardo Roy Jr.
StarringAngie Ferro, Yves Flores
Music byAndrew Florentino
CinematographyTey Clamor
Edited byCarlo Francisco Manatad
Production
company
ERJ Found Films and EMBA Productions
Distributed byFilm Development Council of the Philippines
Release date
  • September 12, 2019 (2019-09-12)
Running time
122 minutes
CountryPhilippines
LanguageFilipino
Budget₱1.5 Million
Box office₱3.5 Million

Cast

Main cast

Supporting cast
  • Maria Isabel Lopez as Nida
  • Meryll Soriano as Ana
  • Soliman Cruz as Town Mayor
  • Royce Cabrera as Bok
  • Jojo Riguerra as Nida's Husband
  • Peewee O'Hara as Senyang (Nida's Storekeeper)
  • Armand Reyes as Gusting
  • Joel Saracho as Quack Doctor
  • Rener Concepcion as Carias (Igna's Husband)
  • Chamyto Aguedan as Tourist
  • Sarah Pagkalinawan-Brakensiek as Tourist

Production

Lola Igna was directed by Eduardo Roy Jr.[1] under the production of Found Films and EMBA Productions.[2]

According to Roy, the concept of the film originated from his own reflections on his relationship with his maternal great-grandmother who is a resident of Sagada who died at the age of 80 years in 2012. The film was a tribute to Roy's great grandmother, describing it as story of what if he got to bond more with his great grandmother since he did not have a chance to learn more about her since she lived in the remote Mountain Province. Lola Igna is a representation of Roy's great grandmother and the main protagonist who went to Sagada to meet Igna represents himself.[1]

The film was to feature in Cinemalaya twice; the first in 2012 and the second in 2017.[1] The film had to be pulled-out as one of the official entries of the 2012 edition due to revisions on the script that would satisfy the demands of an international distributor[3] and due to budgetary concerns. Work on the film had to be halted due to director Eduardo Roy's illness consequentially caused its withdrawal from the 2017 edition of Cinemalaya.[1]

Release

This film was supposed to be part of Cinemalaya 2012 but it was withdrawn because the film's script was revised by its producer in order to meet the needs of an international distributor.[3] It was chosen again and was supposed to feature as one of the entries of the Cinemalaya 2017 but production backed out from the film fest.[4]In 2018, Lola Igna was chosen as one of the official entries of the 2018 ToFarm Film Festival Philippines. However, it got pulled out again.[1] It was announced as an official entry to the 3rd Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino of the Film Development Council of the Philippines and was shown in Philippine cinemas from September 12-19, 2019.[5]

Reception

Critical reception

The film has received critical acclaim in the 2019 Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino's Awards Night on September 16, 2019. It was awarded the coveted "Best Picture", Best Screenplay, Best Musical Score and Best Actress for Angie Ferro.[6]

A review excerpt published by GMA News and written by J. Neil Garcia stated: "What an ordinary, straightforward, and given the recent spate of miserablist and ‘poverty-porny’ films entirely refreshing vision of our people’s inner truth—indeed, of all of humanity’s inner and most resplendent truth: while everyone and everything passes, what will remain of us is love. Kudos, hence, to Lola Igna’s producers, writers, cast, and crew, for such a touching and memorable film. Congratulations to Roy, who is moving from strength to strength as a director, and who is definitely one of our cinema’s bright new lights. And of course, hats off and immense respect to the great Angie Ferro, whose dignified and poignantly human ‘enfleshment’ of Lola Igna will doubtless be a touchstone performance for other actors for many generations to come."[7]

Meanwhile, Oggs Cruz of Rappler.com commented that, "Eduardo Roy, Jr.’s Lola Igna is an absolute charmer. Society still plays a crucial part in this otherwise private concern, and Roy doesn’t just understand that, he fully comprehends that everything is interconnected. The film instinctively balances the inhumanity of being a world record and the profoundness of the pleasures of death after living a life fully lived, resulting in a truly tender portrait of this world’s most subtle and mysterious injustices."[8]

Miggy Ramos of Cinema Bravo writes a review entitled, "Beautiful, heartfelt lessons in life (and death)", praising the film favorably and stating that, "Lola Igna gives us a chance to revisit our purpose in life: the very reason for our existence. It tells us that life is precious and that we have to be thankful for it every day. We may not know what the future would bring but living in the present is much more important. Lola Igna, as a character and a film, could help us move on from our struggles in life by simply living more and loving the people around us to the fullest."[9]

Accolades
Year Award-giving body Recipient(s) Award Result
2019
 3rd Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino[10]
Lola Igna
Best Picture
 Won
Angie Ferro
Best Actress
 Won
Andrew Florentino
Best Musical Score
 Won
Eduardo Roy, Jr. and Margarette Labrador
Best Screenplay
 Won
Maria Isabel Lopez
Best Supporting Actress
 Nominated
2020
 7th Urduja Heritage Film Awards[11]
Lola Igna
Best Heritage Film
 Won
Yves Flores
Best Supporting Actor
 Won
Angie Ferro
Best Actress in Comedy or Musical
 Won
Eduardo Roy, Jr.
Best Director
 Won
Meryll Soriano
Best Actress in a Cameo Role
 Won

References
  1. Dimaculangan, Jocelyn (31 May 2018). "TO Farm Film Fest 2018 finalists revealed; one entry was supposed to be part of Cinemalaya". PEP.ph (in English and Filipino). Philippine Entertainment Portal, Inc. Archived from the original on 23 November 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  2. Valiente, Tito Genova (12 September 2019). "Death and life according to 'Lola Igna'". BusinessMirror. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  3. Dimaculangan, Jocelyn (26 March 2012). "The entryem Lola Igna/em has been pulled out from the 2012 Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Fe". PEP.ph. Philippine Entertainment Portal, Inc. Archived from the original on 6 November 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  4. "What to expect from Cinemalaya 2017". PEP.ph. Philippine Entertainment Portal, Inc. 24 August 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  5. "Complete Lineup of PPP 2019 Revealed". Film Development Council of the Philippines. 11 July 2019. Archived from the original on 16 September 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  6. "'Lola Igna' wins 'Best Picture' at Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino 2019". CNN Philippines. 16 September 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  7. "What remains is love: a review of 'Lola Igna'". GMA News Online. Archived from the original on 2019-12-15. Retrieved 2020-01-12.
  8. Cruz, Oggs. "Movie reviews: Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino 2019 films part 1". Rappler. Archived from the original on 2019-12-20. Retrieved 2020-01-12.
  9. Ramos, Miggy (September 17, 2019). "'Lola Igna' review: Beautiful, heartfelt lessons in life (and death)". Cinema Bravo. Archived from the original on September 24, 2019. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
  10. "'Lola Igna' tops Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino 2019 awards". ABS-CBN News. 15 September 2019. Archived from the original on 18 September 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  11. "'Quezon's Game' wins big at 7th Urduja Heritage Film Awards". ABS-CBN News. 2 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
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