Oh twenty-sixteen, the Debbie-downer of the decade. Doing away with many of the world’s best men
and women (and gorillas) while peppering the planet with bombings, cardboard
killings, and poor presidential choices, 2016 was a year that people feverishly
hoped they could make better with a little more rice.
Despite its notoriety however, 2016 wasn't all that bad. Many forget to
hashtag-count-their-blessings and remember that the year had its moments too.
Remember, remember:
Cebu Zine Fest
Hooray for quirky and thought-provoking pamphlets, zines and
knickknacks! Gathering more than 50 artists, designers, studios, presses and
independent publishers in one gallery, Cebu Zine Fest broadened horizons
and celebrated the resistant and rebellious spirit of DIY.
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| Photo by 856 Gallery |
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| Photo by 856 Gallery |
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| Photo by 856 Gallery |
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| Photo by 856 Gallery |
Book Launches and Readings
Back in April, warm and spirited Bathalad poetess
Karla Quimsing launched her delectably gregarious poetry book, “Pancit Poetry.”
Early in July, established and celebrated Cebuano poet Adonis Durado came back
to Cebu to launch his third poetry collection, “Lisay sa Bugan.” Bathalad’s ever
wandering poet, Jona Bering debuted her first collection “Alang sa Nasaag” as
well. And don’t forget the sensual and
playful “Lawas” by poetess Cindy Velasquez. Seductive and alluring, the
Bathalad poetess' book was launched back in August this year.
Festive Film Fests
This year’s Binisaya Film Festival run was the biggest yet.
Not only did the festival take both international Asean and local independent
films around the country (from Manila to Cebu to Davao), but BINISAYA 2016 also
brought the films to commercial cinemas as well, widening its reach across the
nation.
The festival also saw its first ever local film premiere: the Cebu
debut of Christian Linaban’s philosophical stoner romp, SUPERPSYCHOCEBU.
Believe it or not, many local independent films that do make it to National festivals
premiere outside of their place of origin, showing in the national capitol before even
showing in local cinemas because of the demands of their sponsors.
Thankfully,
the proponents of the Cebuano Film industry have been busy cultivating the film culture in Cebu, and 2016 definitely was a winning year for everyone.
On a more recent note , who can forget this year’s Metro Manila Film Fest?
Though the festival’s run was cut short because of Oro's dog-killing shenanigans,
this year’s MMFF was great. Canning the
ludicrously mind-numbing and product-placement littered commercial films of Vice
Ganda, Vic Sotto, Chris Aquino and the like, the MMFF big wigs decided it was
time for change.
Though there are people who continually whine that indie films still don't deserve
a place during the Filipino Christmas season, we hope that MMFF keeps snubbing the old brainless, profit-focused line-up of old.
Boardgame Cafes
2016 saw the opening of two great boardgame cafes,Dice Kong and Vault. Vault opened earlier in the year to serve up big bowls of food along with a decent stash of tabletop boardgames at The Greenery. With its industrial ambiance and its aptly-priced servings, Millenials can find Vault a great place to discover tabletop gaming.
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| Photo by Vault |
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| Photo by cebupot |
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Photo by Vault
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In November, Sher Ko, Ian Ong and Poy Mendoza from the Cebu Board Gaming Society decided to band together to open up Dice Kong, a Board Game cafe that everyone's (Poy most especially) dreamt of ever since the group began. The Cebu Board Gaming Society's been around since 2012, but before Dice Kong came along gamers had to make do with hopping from one designated cafe to another, lugging with them a number of tabletop boards and boxes
Now that Dice Kong's open though, the Cebu Board Gamers have a sweet boardgaming cubbyhole to hang out in. Located at Axis Vibo, Sher, Ian and Poy's boardgaming cafe offers a wide variety of games that seasoned gamers and newbies would both enjoy.
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| Photo by Dice Kong |
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| Photo by Dice Kong |
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| Photo by Dice Kong |
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| Photo by Dice Kong |
