Fil-Am student bags two awards at UCLA film festival

A Filipino-American graduating student of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) won two awards at the university-sponsored "UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television’s Film Festival."

 

Jerell Rosales bagged the Director’s Spotlight and Best Editing awards for his thesis movie “Born to Dance This Way.”

 

Rosales, the writer, director and producer of the film, will premiere his movie at the Director’s Guild of America in Hollywood, California on June 14 at 7:00 p.m.  

TRAILER: Born to Dance This Way from Jerell Rosales on Vimeo.

The Directors’ Showcase is the film festival’s closing ceremony, attended by big names in the film industry.

Inspired by his buddy  

Rosales’ movie is about a guy named Joo Si, a fierce and fabulous but overweight dancer. The story follows his adventures as he tries his luck as a backup dancer for the sexy female pop singing sensation, the 4Play Ladies.  

 

In an e-mail interview with GMA News Online on Wednesday, Rosales said his inspiration in his latest film was his buddy, also the lead actor in his “Born to Dance this Way” movie.  

“I actually was inspired by and wrote this film around my dear friend Russell Argenal who actually plays Joo Si in the movie,” the UCLA television and film student said, adding that they used to be in the same dance group together at Cal State Fullerton's PASAbilities Hip-Hop Dance Team.

 

“We actually used to dance together in the same team, but nobody can dance like Russell, he just has that 'X' factor that people are just drawn to... Russell just makes you want to dance like nobody is watching and that inspired me to make this film,” said Rosales, who will be graduating this year with a Magna Cum Laude distinction.

 

Rosales said the film itself is "not inspired by Lady Gaga's song at all and I actually didn't have a title for a while. It wasn't until I was on my third or fourth draft of the screenplay that I happened to be listening to the radio and then 'Born This Way' played." "I was listening to it and realized that the themes in the song were similar, so I decided to place it as a temporary title but I just ended up sticking with it ever since. When I heard the song, what was similar to the story was that Joo Si is someone who instead of dwelling on his flaws that he can't change, he just owned it," Rosales explained. "So what if he's fat? So what if he dances fiercer than Beyonce? So what if he's a guy trying to be a dancer for a female pop group? You know what? He was just born to dance this way -- and that's how the title came about," he added.

 

What’s ‘Pinoy’ in the movie

 

Rosales said: “Filipinos are just so talented, and they have to fight to really get their time to share their shine to the world; we're talented fighters,” he said, citing that a number of talented Fil-Ams found fame in competing to reality television talent contests.

 

“I think Filipinos have this natural trait to shine and this film is definitely another platform where we get to shine,” he added.

 

Apart from being a director, Jerell is also a producer, screenwriter and graphic designer. He is currently an intern at a film company called Chernin Entertainment.

 

Pinoy roots

 

Rosales said his mother was from Capaz, Tarlac while his father was from Manila. His parents migrated to the States where his father joined the US Air Force.

 

Although born in the US, he loves Filipino food. “I grew up eating Filipino food trained by my mom, grandma and dad. My favorites are ginataan, sisig, tinola, kare-kare, and Greenwich Pizza.”

 

Rosales hopes to have his movie premiere in the Philippines someday.

 

“My family and I go back to visit every few years or so. I would love to premiere in the Philippines as soon as I find a festival or organization that would like to premiere it!” he said.

 

Asked about his advice for students who would like to pursue filmmaking, he said: “Hold strong in your faith, do your best in everything that you do… dream big and don't be afraid to take a leap of faith and go for it!” - VVP, GMA News