Day 6

It was a shock when I received a text that Mary Grace’s father passed away the day before we were meant to film her family. She couldn’t directly bring herself to tell me what happened and I only learnt of the news through Ms Grace from YF. I didn’t want to burden her being filmed and I was really in awe when she opened herself up despite the misfortune that has befallen her family. When I got to the apartment complex (They call it permanent housing in Tondo), her father’s wake was set up in a small tent in front of their building. Her siblings were asleep having stayed awake all night taking turns looking after their father’s wake and serving coffee and food to the guests. She stayed up longer in order to show me around their building where their house is located.

As a contingency plan, I decided to show portrait shots instead of the surrounding area, hoping that I could show the place where Mary Grace has spent most of her life and somehow reflect a bit of the life she lives. It was important for me, to include Mary Grace’s story into the film – she was that glimmer of hope in the story, a young, ambitious girl who’s growing up with a bright future ahead of her. She was amongst the lucky ones who received the education she needed to earn a possible career, despite the harsh past she experienced whilst growing up. She was a strong testament to the fact that given the opportunity, some people living in poverty will work hard in order to improve their lives and those around them. Mary Grace had a simple dream – to gift her parents a house and a car.

Day 5

Today is my last day in Aroma. Manila skies have become considerably grey. I woke extra early in order to catch Nanay Aida selling pagpag in the morning. Apparently, pagpag sells really fast and would be gone before lunch time. Due to the hot weather and pagpag sitting in rubbish bags all night ’til the next morning, its lifespan doesn’t last very long and is preferred to be eaten around lunch time.

Nanay Aida’s shop is a small shack, which doubles as her and grandchildren’s house. It’s very small and has no electricity, bare open front and back when the shop is open. Today, her daughter is helping her cook pagpag. She earns P300 a day selling pagpag, enough to feed her family throughout the day.

 

“I usually give discounts to my neighbours. Sometimes, they ask me to lower the price. It’s because most of them don’t have money.”

 

 

Day 4

There was a lot of progress in the last couple of days with the permit. I went to the Manila Barangay Bureau the other day around lunch time and although the experience was a surreal one (They asked me to type in the name of the bureau director on my letter of intent using an old typewriter amongst other things!) the higher ups OK’d my application for the permit. Yesterday, I went to Aroma, Tondo thinking that everything was all set and ready to go but apparently I still had to report to the Barangay Secretary to approve the permit. Heavy rain suddenly poured down, the first in the last few weeks, which prevented me from doing any filming at all. I hoped that today was going to be a good day and it went more than good. I reckon I filmed 50% of the film today.

We filmed in a smaller pagpagan today. We were lucky to still have managed to catch a couple at the recycling centre. They were shy at first but got used to our presence quite quickly. I learnt a lot from the people I interviewed today, beyond the theme of pagpag both the political, economical, and personal stories surrounding the issue. Pagpag isn’t just a piece of leftover meat, it goes beyond the rubbish, the food waste, the people who are unfortunate to have only pagpag on their table… Although a whole new world was opened to me because of this film, there were even more questions left unanswered, dilemmas to be deliberated, and voices wanting to be heard.

“Pagpag… pagkain ng mahirap!” (Pagpag… food for the poor!)

“Kapag bumili ka ng pagpag, dapat alam mo kung paano lutuin yan.” (When you buy pagpag, you have to be sure that you know how to cook it.)

    

Day 3

Manila is a city of contrast. A bustling metropolitan of 12 million people, Philippine’s capital is a melting pot of differing cultures and people from varying walks of life.

It’s no wonder that a few miles from Tondo are affluent suburbs and villages, high-rise condominiums, five star hotels, skyscrapers, and shopping centres. To make use of my limited time in the Philippines wisely, I have decided to film around the nicer parts of Manila so that in a way I can also provide the different side of the subject matter, the other side that most Filipinos who watched Bagong Silang wishes that I would show instead of the poverty. In a way, this is a good chance to show the bigger picture, although showing the bigger picture doesn’t necessarily mean showing a better picture.

First off was along Espana, a major highway which is close to one of the most prestigious universities in Manila. My cousin and I decided to film around 4pm when summer heat has started to cool out and found the streets beginning to come alive with people and street food vendors.

Afterwards, we were off to Mall of Asia, the biggest mall in the Philippines where I was hoping to catch the sunrise and film a stop-motion of an aerial view of the city.

Considering how big Mall of Asia was, it was a trek trying to look for the Food Court. When we got there, the place was full and there weren’t any seats left to sit down so we can film discreetly. The good thing with taking my cousin with me and using a DSLR was that people assumed right away that we were either just photography enthusiasts or students and were hardly reprimanded by security guards. I say hardly because we did get followed around by a guard by the end of the shoot in the food court.

We also went around the mall where the restaurants are and all the same, they were packed some with really long queues.

Day 2

A zigzag road; slopes leading to the ups and downs of daily struggles; filmmaking is a journey with no straight path.

Woke up extra early today, excited knowing that I was finally filming. Despite not having a permit, we decided to go ahead and see what the day would hold for us. We have Ate Remy to take care of us and our contact in the dumpsite was more than happy to participate in the film. I just hope that everything would go along as planned but knowing filmmaking, almost most of the time, plans do not go as you wish it would go. Today would be no exception.

We arrived at the entrance of Aroma, Tondo. Ate Remy helped us cross the road (it was a major highway where trucks are the main vehicles passing through it) and went straight to the caretaker’s house, who we met yesterday. We greeted her sister who was sitting with her baby by their front door and she smiled back, acknowledging our arrival. I asked where her sister was and she said that she might be inside the tambakan (dumpsite). Ate Remy called out to me and I followed her. The caretaker was inside talking to another woman in red, who was apparently sorting out the pagpag that morning. When the caretaker asked her if we could film her, the woman said no, reasoning that she had no time for such things. The caretaker, now seemingly equally annoyed as the woman, turned to Ate Remy and said that the woman doesn’t want to be filmed. The caretaker walked away and that would be the last time we’ll see her that day.

Ate Remy said that we can just film the dumpsite for now and find the caretaker when she’s less busy. Meanwhile, behind me and Ate Remy was the caretaker’s neighbour watching us with great interest. She asked us what we were doing and I briefly explained to her about the film project. She smiled. Then she started telling us more about pagpag, how she used to work as a scavenger, how she came to Manila, being married once before and now with another man younger than her. She told me how she first came to Manila, having recruited as a house helper to the rich families. One of them was a child star, now a TV actress, and gossiped about the actress’ mother who had numerous affairs and children out of wedlock. She talked about how her hard work has helped her build herself and children a small house and recounted the several pieces of appliances, gold, and jewellery she would come across while scavenging at the dumpsite. Now, she sells clothes from the dumpsite – washing them and then selling them at local bazaars and in Divisoria (a very known shopping district in Manila). When I asked her if I could interview her further, she quiets down and simply said no. I asked again but she still refused. She didn’t want to be filmed, afraid that her relatives in the province might see her life and she wasn’t especially proud living in Tondo, near a dumpsite.

We decided to wait for the caretaker to come back (she apparently went out of the dumpsite with the rubbish truck) and look for other pagpagan around the place. We found another one, just a few minutes walk away from the first. The owner, who was sat near a sari-sari store (a small shop which sells a lot of products in smaller packaging and therefore cheaper in price) asked who I was and after a brief explanation of the film and also showing my old student ID to verify that I wasn’t working for a local TV channel, he agreed to have the pagpagan filmed and just ask the workers if they wanted to be interviewed. While I was setting up the camera and the tripod, a barangay pulis, someone who patrols the area and works for the barangay came around and started shouting at us to stop what we were doing. Ate Remy, tried to explain to her what we were doing but she was adamant that no cameras were rolling around her area. We need a permit before she lets that happen. I packed up again and said I’ll come back again with a permit. She sat by the pagpagan the entire time we walked away. We didn’t get to film any shots.

As the sun was beginning to creep up and the caretaker was still nowhere in sight, Ate Remy offered to us that we stayed in her house and wait. It was a small ground floor room, divided by thin walls of plywood into a living room, a dining and two other smaller rooms. One of the many things I learned while filming Bagong Silang was that most people living in poverty won’t have framed pictures of their family on their walls. I looked around Ate Remy’s house and only found photographs of when she was younger, and two smaller frames for each of her children. No family picture. So I offered to take their family photo and she eagerly agreed telling me to wait for a bit while she readies herself. Realising that it may take awhile (she mentioned about make-up) my cousin (my production assistant that day) and I went outside to film some establishing shots of the area. Filming for a while, I realised how much Aroma’s livelihood depends on rubbish. There were several recycling centres around Ate Remy’s house, plastics drying in clotheslines, mounds of plastic cups in a corner, people driving tri-bikes full of recyclable materials. Some of the streets were flooded under the sweltering summer heat.

We went back in to the house and found Ate Remy and her children ready to be photographed. After taking her family’s photograph, the other neighbourhood kids began hovering around Ate Remy’s house, so she called them and in they went. Some were shy while some readily posed with their peace signs and big grins. I wish I could end today’s story with something so positive as this, but in reality, after waiting for a couple of hours and checking on the caretaker, we never did see her. I realised that today was gone and there was nothing we can do.

On our way out, we came across a pagpag vendor. A very old woman sitting on her shop/house with her grandson, on her table sits 3 bags of pagpag and a styrofoam box with a iced lollies inside. After a brief introduction, I asked her if she would like to take part in the film. She said yes but should come back again, preferably in a morning. I did a few shots of her shop when Ate Remt quickly told me to hide my camera. Another barangay pulis was walking around.

At the entrance we decided to film a bit more. Ate Remy reminded me to get the permit, to not be too worried as she knows that I will get it. She said I should be granted with a permit, I wasn’t doing anything wrong after all.

Day 1

I wasn’t sure what to expect today. I woke up this morning knowing that the wheels have turned and collaborating with Young Focus, an NGO in Tondo working to help alleviate poverty through education, is a positive step in making this film. My meeting with them yesterday was a wonderful event and reassuring in a lot of ways. I spoke with Kuya Paul, the founder of Young Focus and Ate Grace, one of their coordinators and their willingness to support me and the project was what I believed set everything in motion. In a matter of one afternoon, Ate Grace has already found me a link within the community – Ate Remy, one of the mothers of the students they sponsor who lives in Tondo and works as a healthcare assistant in the Barangay (local council). Today, Ate Grace toured us around the YF building and explained to us more about their work. The building, a 4-storey safe haven for its sponsored students have all the amenities of what a modern private school would have  complete with multi-purpose rooms, computer rooms, a counselling room, and a rooftop auditorium. The sponsored children can freely enter the building (the front door uses fingerprint recognition) and use it for studying and extra-curricular activities. They also provide one-on-one counselling for the students as most come from difficult backgrounds. What makes YF different from other NGOs, I guess, is that apart from the financial sponsorships which help the students immensely in receiving education and hopefully in the long run help them leave the life of poverty, is the fact that YF nourishes the students’ psychological and emotional well-being as well. They build them up and encourage to believe in themselves so that when they leave YF, they don’t only have a diploma to show for but also a sound and confident belief in a hope for their future.

While waiting for Kuya Manuel, my sister and I met one of the YF students, Mary Grace, a bright 21-year old, who’s finishing her college degree in a year. We asked her about pagpag and she openly shared her childhood, when her family was still living in the temporary housing in Tondo and how she used to work in a pagpagan where most rubbish are sorted for recycling and where pagpag can be found. She recounted of her experience in working at the pagpagan, earning enough for helping her family and for her schooling while also taking home some pagpag for the family’s meal of the day. Her standard of living is much better now compared to before when she was a child and was just very grateful for the chance to make something out of her life. She’s going to be a teacher after this school year.

When we asked her if pagpag is still prevalent in Tondo. She said not as much as before but people still eat pagpag. Will it be all right if the two of us go to the pagpagan she used to work at? She shook her head sideways. It would be very dangerous if it was just going to be us. She pointed at our filming equipments and said that it is especially dangerous for us as we will be targeted by pickpockets and muggers. She excused herself when one of her friends showed up. She went to YF today to earn extra income. While it was still the summer holidays, she wanted to earn some money for when she goes back to college by working at the jewellery workshop. She would earn P60/ hour that day. She waved a goodbye and in came Kuya Manuel. He will take us to temporary housing today and also pay a visit to the local barangay.

Kuya Manuel is a ball of inspiring energy. He has become a driving force within the Tondo community and has been featured in local and international media. His life story began in Smokey Mountain, working at a young age as a scavenger, pulling himself out of poverty, becoming a missionary, and sending all his children to college. He used to live in the temporary housing, a defunct Marcos housing project which now houses thousands of families in Tondo. He was full of life and our short journey to the barangay hall was packed with his stories about his grandchildren, Isko Moreno, moving from temporary housing to permanent housing, his career with YF, and the oncoming election. We parked at the side of the road and the traffic enforcer smiled at Kuya Manuel. He knew him.

Kuya Manuel was very positive about our meeting with the barangay officials. We were after all with Ate Remy, who works for the barangay. When we arrived at the hall, the place was packed with parents and boys, seated in a line of monobloc chairs, facing the offices of the barangay. During summer while school is out, boys usually from the age of 9 – 12 years get circumcised and the barangay this year is providing a free circumcision clinic. We found the barangay captain by the entrance and Kuya Manuel introduced us to him. With the crowd surrounding us, it was a challenge to get heard. I introduced myself, explained to him about my film and YFs involvement. The captain just stared at me. He wasn’t smiling or giving anything away. Something was up. He ushered us into a small room where the CCTV monitors were and I began again to explain more about the film. Kuya Manuel must have heard a tinge of worry in my voice and swept in with another explanation of the film project with added humour. The captain wasn’t still fully convinced. If it were just him, he would let us film with no worries but apparently, the Mayor wasn’t too happy with a recent report of Tondo by a local TV channel. He said he’ll call his secretary and we can find out from him our next step. The conversation with the secretary wasn’t getting any better. He was more direct and told us to go to the Barangay Bureau and ask for a permit. I mentioned that the captain was all right for us to film. The secretary still wanted us to get a permit. Is the permit just for formality? He answered no. Actually, if he was going to be brutally honest, he doesn’t think we’ll get the permit, especially since election is nearing and the politicians are very careful of what comes out of the media.

Now, all I could think while going out of the office is that this film is crumbling. I’ve applied for a permit before in Navotas and even as a student, I wasn’t granted one. I remember visiting the Mayor’s office several times, waiting for hours to get a few minutes time with the Mayor. I was told that he was busy and that the decision was final. It didn’t stop me and the crew from filming anyway although we lost a few of our contacts out of fear that they’ll lose their jobs if they cooperate with us. Now that I was on my own , it would be much harder to film. We had plenty of time to film before as well, a luxury I can’t afford this time around. Kuya Manuel and Ate Remy were very encouraging and somehow eased me up a little. Ate Remy said that getting a permit shouldn’t be a problem. I believed her and we went on to our next itinerary for today.

Visiting the pagpagan. Unfortunately, Kuya Manuel had to go ahead of us as he still needs to find some of the students in the temporary housing site for their graduation photos. Ate Remy, who lives in temporary housing herself knows the area and could go into one alleyway and come out another without any problems. She led us to the first pagpagan, a small squared shelter with concrete floors and no walls. The pagpag have been long gone as they start very early in the morning and only remnants of pieces of rice and leftover foods left on the floor, soon to be washed away. The man we spoke to very gently, with a big polite on his face, refused us an interview as pagpag was his only source of income and being caught out by the owner of the pagpagan would mean losing his livelihood. We would need to speak to the head of the ‘co-operative’ if we can film him first. If they say yes, he will agree to being filmed. We went another block to look for the owner but apparently he left already. So, Ate Remy took us to another pagpagan, a huge recycling centre wherein truckloads of rubbish from the affluent part of Manila are offloaded. It was owned by a priest and its caretaker, a friend of Ate Remy openly welcomed us into her house, just in front of the hills of rubbish piles. She ok’d us to film and even gave us a short interview. I only brought the most basics of my camera equipment, no tripod or recorder, just my DSLR camera – a rule I learnt from filming before not to surprise the interviewee with the film paraphernalia. I explained to the caretaker what the film was about and only proceeded with the initial interview once I was confident she understood the project. So, I filmed the two boys working for her sorting out the recyclables and leftover foods from a mall food court. I tried to ask a few questions but both would freeze once the camera is focused on them. The caretaker was more at ease during the interview and even happily shared a story about her daughter when they were out eating dinner in one of the fast food chains in Manila. Her daughter stopped eating midway, leaving her piece of fried chicken half-eaten and when she asked her why she wouldn’t eat her food, the daughter replied, “Our neighbours won’t have pagpag to eat if I eat it all.”

We bade our goodbyes and left everyone in high spirits. I asked the caretaker if we can film her and interview her again tomorrow. She agreed and advised us to come earlier, at 6.30 am so that we’ll see more pagpag. I was very happy to have found her and it was a success on our first day to secure such an important access. We left Tondo just about lunch time and since we can’t apply for a permit during the weekends, we’ll try to keep filming as discreet as possible tomorrow.