Movies by Hiyas Baldemor Bagabaldo
Carving Thy Faith
A five-year visual ethnography of traditional yet practical orchestration of Semana Santa in a small town where religious woodcarving is the livelihood. An experiential film on neocolonial Philippines’ interpretation of Saints and Gods through many forms of rituals and iconographies, exposing wood as raw material that undergoes production processes before becoming a spiritual object of devotion. - A sculpture believed to have been imported in town during Spanish colonial conquest, locally known as Mahal na Señor Sepulcro, is celebrating it...
Sins Senses Saints
Are you going to push yourself hard to behave according to what the authorities dictate until you become numb as a wilted wood? An experimental film about the pressure of conforming to the society. Accustomed to the standards, people are throwing judgment and prejudice against each other that squeeze them much harder towards the invisible walls. Hypocrisy is celebrated and there’s no room for moving and no space for breathing. Human senses may be the roots of all sins, but these senses are also the foundation of life.