Filmmaker says QCinema changed his movie’s rating without ‘due process’

Filmmaker Khavn De La Cruz on Monday slammed the management of the Quezon City International Film Festival (QCinema) for supposedly changing the rating of his film "Balangiga: Howling Wilderness," from general patronage to R13, without "due process."

In a Facebook post, De La Cruz said, "Never thought I'd say this: Mabuti pa ang MTRCB, malinaw ang proseso. Hindi ka magigising na lang isang araw at nagbago na bigla ang rating mong General Patronage to R13. Nasaan po ang due process?"

De La Cruz told GMA News Online that their camp was not formally informed of QCinema's decision.

In his Facebook post, he said that instead of an official communication between their camp and the QCinema staff, they just received an "fyi" on Facebook after the change was made.

"Procedures should not be imposed selectively. R13 kung R13 but not right to just wake up to an fyi. What do you do with an fyi?" the filmmaker said. "So those two 'yung problema: lack of due process—we feel singled out—and arbitrariness and unfairness of rating."

"We asked what warranted the R13 ng biglaan? Slaughter of animals daw," he added.

De La Cruz said he immediately tried to get in touch with QCinema upon learning the news. After not receiving a response, he voiced his sentiments on social media.

"I want answers and when I did not get that after messaging the people concerned who brushed off my question over absence of procedure, nangalampag ako on Facebook," De La Cruz said.

"True enough, nagsabing makikipag-usap after social media backlash of some sort. My point is pwede naman pala mag-usap, bakit kami hindi kinausap before we posted publicly?" he added.

'Prerogative'

Reached for comment, QCinema put out a statement: "After a meeting with the Balangiga: Howling Wilderness filmmakers, QCinema is upholding its prerogative to maintain its recommended rating of R-13 during its festival screenings," it said.

It did not respond to a question about De La Cruz's allegation of a lack of due process.

The film, about the Balangiga Massacre of 1901, tells the story of eight-year-old Kulas, who leaves town with his grandfather and their carabao to escape the American military's onslaught. He finds an infant amid a sea of corpses and together, the two boys struggle to survive the American occupation.

— BM, GMA News