Questions: 1. What social issues do the following episodes of the film present?

Expound each of the issues a) Ang Liham ng Isang OFW The episode Ang Liham ng Isang OFW, really intended to show whats the status of our OFW when their outside the country. It explains practically what an OFW is and what makes them an OFW. In this episode the story runs like this. There is a happy family, a mother who is a housewife, a father who has a stable job, and their three children. One day, the father got fired from his job because he cannot comply on his required quota. He went home upset and very disappointed on what happened. He shares his feelings to her wife. This is where the fathers weak point has seen. A father should be a strong foundation of his family. He should be physically, mentally, and psychologically fit for him to be a strong foundation of his family. He should have a strong will to accomplish things and bring a great pride for the family. Thats why most of the family is suffering on poverty because the foundation of their family is missing, or the essence of being a foundation for the family is lost. This is one of the societal problems that I have seen from this episode. The other one is lack of job on our country. If we have enough jobs here in Philippines our fellow Filipinos should have not come to other country to earn money for their family. We have no choice but to go abroad, because of that the essence to be a complete family is kind of rare on Filipino family today. The life of our OFWs abroad is kind of lonely, sad because they miss badly their family and they suffer homesick especially to those who are new on the field. The sudden feelings of worrying on your family in the Philippines are one of the feelings that they got used to it as time passes by. If only we have enough jobs on the country, our OFWs do not need to go abroad and earn money. Then the essence of Filipino families will always be complete and happy. There will be no news on the OFW victims of tortured in abroad. The children will have a complete guidance from his/her parents that makes them to have a noble character.

b) Ang Liham ng Isang Guro The episode Ang Liham ng Isang Guro, shows on us the struggle on being a teacher and a great pride of a teacher has. In the story a boy who came up from the family of teachers, that wants to be a lawyer and not a teacher. His grandmother took care of him because his parents unfortunately die on his young age. On his young age he is aware on poverty they are suffering because they only rely on the pension on his grandma. He thinks that he came up from the family of teachers and they are professionals and why they are this poor, so he arrived at the conclusion supporting the stereotype to all the teachers that Walang yumayaman sa pagiging guro. This stereotype is one of the reasons why we lack of teachers today. Through the job they have they still have low salary and poor incentive through this they still have a great pride for each them. They say that, to see their students learning is priceless and honor for them. The status of our community is bad, we all suffering from poverty so for the most people today it is better to earn money than to gain pride. I am not saying that pride today is not that value anymore. I only want to say that students will much take technical courses than BS Education because of the stereotype on the field of the teachers.

c) Ang Liham ni Pekto The episode Ang Liham ni Pekto, is a comedy and as well a love story. This is love story of rich and poor that struggles because of social discrepancies. Pekto is a fisherman on their barrio while Halina is from Manila and just having a vacation on the barrio. Pekto was a barrios heartthrob having three suitors of beautiful ladies. On the time of Pekto roaming the barrio he suddenly see a fat, and white skin tone lady that strikes his heart and that is Halina. Love at first they said and it is like theyve been shot by the arrow of Cupid. Pekto courted Halina knowing that they have a discrepancy on social status. The story struggles because of the social discrepancies between rich and poor. Most of the women today, they find partner MMMM (Matandang Mayamang Mabilis

Mamatay) or professional people who has a stable job that supports the saying that In loving use your head not heart that affects the essence of true love. Poverty really is a factor of discrepancies between rich and poor. Also it give a stereotype for the poor that Rich is always on top and poor is always below that results to political biases between poor and rich in terms of human rights. Philippines itself also know that feeling, the feeling of being bully by the more rich country and take your weak points as their advantage and make use of it to increase their confidence and pride. Philippines and China, is one of the examples of discrepancies between rich and poor.

2. What did you learn from each episode of the film? Relate your personal experiences on the issues. The film was an educational film for me. The writer intended to emphasize the social problems that we encounter to give lessons for its audience especially to the students who have watched the film. In the episode Ang Liham ng Isang OFW, Ive learned to respect them more because I had already knew what the situation and sacrifices that they undergo in order to earn for their family. I salute all of our OFWs who always struggles abroad in terms of physical, mental, and psychological. They will be appreciated by our country for the hardships theyve got for their family. I have also learned to value my family the most next to God. I have also learned that in every failure there is always a chance to stand up and start all over again, your family will always be there for you and cheer you up in every problem that you have. In the episode Ang Liham ng Isang Guro, what Ive learned is to respect all of our teachers all of the time, understand our teachers if he/she is kind of bad mood because thats because a manifestation of over fatigue. Always respect them by means of having a greeting every time you see a teacher. Teachers will always be a teacher. They will always be every student second parents so value them and create a bond with them. Give gratitude to them by means visiting them on their faculty and having small talk and that do a lot for them. I also learned that you can learn to love things , like in the story being a teacher is not

what he wants but to become a lawyer but as time passes by as he forcibly take BS Education, he learned to love teaching and pursue what his grandmother has dream him for to be a good teacher of his generation. In the episode Ang Liham ni Pekto, I have learned that opposite is not a hindrance on love whether you are small and she is tall, when she is fat and you are slim, when she is rich and you are poor these all a challenge but had never been a hindrance for the two people who is in love. In true love physical traits is not that important, the important is the feeling between you and your partner and how much can you sacrifice to fight for your love and survive it. In finding your partner, use your heart and not this mind and this is the true essence of true love. In this episode also support the quote Actions speak louder than words. It shows that the effort that matters and not the sweet words that you always throwing at her, because of the effort of Pekto he overcome the discrepancy between rich and poor and completely his love story that their end husband and wife.

3. Did this film change your personal views about any of the issues it tackled? If so, what sequences of the film did you find most forceful? If not, what sequences of the film did you consider were not and why? This film changes several of my personal views on the issues it tackled. In the episode Ang Liham ng Isang OFW, it changes my view to all of the fathers out there. I realized that being a father is having a huge pride within it you should carry it with confidence and a strong will to take your family to the top of their dreams. Father will always be the foundation so take a good step to be a responsible and great father for your family. In this episode, the wife became OFW because of the weakness of his husband that got fired from his job. If the father is a strong foundation, I think the wife will not be an OFW and his husband will find another job on other company so I decided to tackle the importance of the father in this episode. If the foundation was weak and all of the sudden its parts will break into pieces. In the episode Ang Liham ng Isang Guro, changes my view of becoming a teacher. Before I watch this film, I am

close fist of becoming a teacher but after realizing that we lack of teachers in our country at least I am open to become a teacher as part time after I take my degree and having my license on engineering. I would like to share my knowledge to those who wants to learn and achieve their dreams and goals in life. In this film, I find the most forceful sequence in the movie, is when the grandmother of the guy is talking about the life of being a teacher. The pride of being a teacher is priceless. To see your student is learning is a prize for them. Teaching the future leaders of the country is an honor and for them and whats more of influencing them in your beliefs and sharing your wisdom to them. In the episode Ang Liham ni Pekto, changes me my view to the discrepancy between rich and poor. I realizes that, everything has a right even that is a poor, a scavenger, it is still has a right. Give them their rights. These are one of their treasures that the rich keep on stealing at.

4. Did the film use effective techniques to convey messages? What specific artistic style did the film use to impart ideas to its viewers A good movie has a message within it. One of the goals of the writer of the movie was to send his message to his/her audience. I got plenty messages from the writer and strike me from his/her story. The gesture of the actors and actresses was one of the factors that help the audience to understand clearly on what the writer is trying to say. Through the help of the director by shooting every detailed part of the story was one of the important in conveying its messages to its audience. If the story is very good but the directing is bad, that will go to waste because the audience will get distract on what the story is trying to say, so having a good director in a movie really a huge factor to deliver its messages to the audience. One also the techniques that they have done is each ending part of the episode, they flashed a quote or message that mostly got from the Bible. This is a good technique because it is like you can reflect on the quote and suddenly the flashback of the episode will flash on your mind. Sometimes the flashed messages are like a summary of all the messages in the

episode. It will strike someone if he/she has truly watched the movie because as you will read the quoted messages, you will suddenly feel the message of the story. One also of the good techniques is having background music on some scenes in the movie. Like in the episode Ang Liham ni Pekto, in which on the romantic scenes there is background music. This boost the highlights of the scene, it gives more life and interest for the audience. The detailed part of the romantic scene gives more color when there is background music on it. In the episode Ang Liham ng Isang Guro, it also has a good timing of background music that boost the feeling of the character and strikes the audience feeling. Like when they are crying, when the guy is writing a letter you feel the sadness of the guy on the first part of the story the regrets of taking education course. Sounds is a good technique in boosting ones feeling in the movie, it is more concrete and giving a strong and striking feeling for the audience so this is a good technique to deliver the message to the audience.

5. Which of the following film genres: drama, comedy, musical were effective in shaping up the interest of the viewers for quick and easy grasp of the film contents? Drama, comedy, and musical were pretty all good for shaping up the interest of the viewer. Before you pick on the three, know the sequence of the movie first and think which genre will best fit. Musical, is pretty effective for those movie who has a lively storyline and movie Kalatas has a sensitive storyline that deals to the social problem of the country. For me, it is not that fit to the movie Kalatas. Comedy is one of the movies who always caught up interest of the audience especially to the Filipino who loves to laugh and to laugh. The movie Kalatas was pretty sensitive to be a comedy movie because the message of the story cannot emphasize on it. The flow of the story and the episode is not that fit for the comedy. For me, drama is the best fit on the movie Kalatas because of its flow that it has and its episode on the story. The movie is pretty sensitive that makes it perfectly fit to be a drama movie. The essence of the story will be more emphasize and its message can deliver to its audience

perfectly. It shapes the viewers interest because it is fit on the genre. The effort of delivering the story to its audience was pretty light because it is on the right genre. Again, in my opinion the movie Kalatas is perfectly fit to drama.

6. Who among the film characters would you consider parallel to the ways you think, behave, and feel.

Among the film characters in the movie, I find myself in the character of Pekto in terms of think, behave and feel. The character of Pekto was so familiar to me and I am very comfortable to watch that episode. We have same way of thinking, and his sense of humor. Pekto really has a good sense of humor thats why on that episode it is kind of romantic-comedy. He is always full of energy and always touching someone feeling through his smile. He is a family centered man thats why we are parallel to each other. Pekto work for his family through fishing, and I can say he is happy on what he is doing. Pekto also was a friendly guy. He can adapt to someone attitude and behavior if there is a new comer on their barrio. He has a lot of friends on their barrio, he really values on what relationship that he has on his circle of friends. They share what they have. It is like give and take. I practically say that I really see myself on him, the family centered attitude, a joyful person, and a friendly one. His attitude is like a rubber band, it is flexible. He can adapt to his environment to survive and make the best most out of it. He has also a true man words and that I also have. We both has a word that we really meant it, and do not give up until we get it. Like in the story, his love to Halina expresses it through his effort and he did not give up until his last chance of catching Halina on their barrio. He give all out of what he has and shows he really mean all the words that he has said to Halina.

7. What fruitful message would you generate out of the film Kalatas There are plenty of messages from the story but I see the most fruitful message from the title itself Kalatas. I think the writer want to show the status of kalatas or sulat in Filipino term on todays technology. I see the advantage and disadvantages of having a sulat. In the story, there are three episodes who make a kalatas for their loved ones. On the episode Ang Liham ng Isang OFW, it shows the distance between the OFW and its family. She always write a letter for her family, this is a kind of communication that she made because she has no time to go on internet and also her family in the Philippines doesnt have a computer and an internet connection. Sulat connects two people who is far from each other, this is a kind of communication that our generation today is missing at. Through email, our generations today find it convenient and flexible so the traditional way of sulat has been left to the past generation. In the episode Ang Liham ng Isang Guro and Ang Liham ni Pekto, it shows the status of sulat today. Sulat today is only like a diary which who you talk if you want something to say or share. It is also nowadays used only for formality. Our generations today really left the traditional way of making a letter yet it is most likely used for formality. The advantages of having a sulat is you have a hard copy or you can have a flashback for the memories of that letter. The disadvantage is the letter is not that fast to arrive to the receiver, in short email is better and more flexible. Sometimes, instead of having a letter we actually chat on facebook, skype or even call to the cell phones of our loved ones. In the movie, the message is as there are new generations our technology is constantly upgrading even that the new generations still hug our past traditions who is left away with the old generations. Technology is constantly upgrading but traditions will be traditions the new generations will still hug our traditions.

REACTION PAPER On the film Kalatas

Manzano, Kenneth D HUM18 / A50