Filipino National Artists in Theater

and Film
 Learning Objectives
 To be able to recognize who are the
Filipino National Artists in Theater and
Film and to become familiar with some
of their great plays and movies
 To learn about the history of theater
and film in the Philippines
Key Understanding
 Students will get to know about the works of
Filipino National Artists in Theater and Film
and the history of its growth in the country.
Key Question
 Who were the key people who played a
significant role in the history and
development of theater and film in the
Philippines?
 Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
1. Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero
He is the pride of Ermita, Manila
and the Ateneo community who
published and produced 41 plays as
a playwright, a teacher, an actor, and
a director. His plays were known
for their humor, love, moral
dilemmas and the use of local
idioms and colloquialisms ― Wanted:
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A Chaperon, Half an Hour in a
Convent, Three Rats, and Basketball
Fight! were just some of them.
Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
2. Lamberto V. Avellana
A native of Bontoc, Mountain
Province, he was a post-war stage and
film director. His 1939 film Sakay was
the first Filipino hero movie. In
1956, his movie Anak Dalita was
adjudged Best Film in the Asia Pacific
Film Festival. A year after in 1957, his
motion picture Badjao became a
timeless classic for its depiction of the
culture of the Badjao ethnic tribe.
 Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
3. Daisy Avellana
She is the country’s top post-war
stage actress and theater director.
She was the pride of Roxas City,
Capiz and, together with her
husband Lamberto Avellana, they
were known as the Vivien Leigh
and Laurence Olivier of the
Philippines. Her portrayal of
Candida in Nick Joaquin’s Portrait of
Image Credit: http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/files/2013/05/t0518daisy-sidebar_2.jpg a Filipino Artist is considered one of
the best in Filipino stage acting.
Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
4. Honorata Atang de la
Rama
The pride of Tondo, Manila
and the Philippines’ “queen
of zarzuela and vaudeville”,
her Dalagang Bukid is the
epitome of all Filipino
zarzuelas. As a singer, she
popularized native folk songs
and kundimans.
 Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
5. Rolando S. Tinio
He was a poet, essayist, critic,
actor, dramatist, and teacher
who hailed from Tondo,
Manila. Considered to be the
“father of Taglish poetry”, he
also translated into Tagalog
the drama plays of
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Shakespeare, Sophocles,
Chekhov, and Ibsen.
Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
6. Severino Montano
This playwright, actor, and
director from Laoag, Ilocos
Norte made 50 plays in his
lifetime such as The Love of
Leonor Rivera, Gabriela Silang, and
The Merry Wives of Manila . In
1953, he founded the Arena
Theater, officially the
Philippines’ first formal venue
for theatrical performances.
 Filipino National Artists in Theater
and Film
7. Salvador F. Bernal
A native of Dagupan,
Pangasinan, he is unparalleled
as the Philippines’ “father of
theatrical stage and set design”.
In his more than 300
productions, he was known for
his use of local and indigenous
materials like the abaca,
Image Credit: http://su.edu.ph/images/article/30-14/bernal-1-1406278128.jpg
bamboo, rattan, etc.
 Culminating Activity
Reaction/Opinion Paper Project
Choose from any of these two topics and write a reaction
paper about it.
1. Which Filipino actors/actresses deserve to be National
Artists some day? Explain and justify your answers.
2. What is the best Filipino stage play or movie that you have
ever seen? Critique the elements of the play or movie
(acting, directing, theme, etc.) which make it excellent in
your point of view.