PEOPLE: Jay Abello

"Jewel, there's an Ilonggo film at Cinemalaya called Namets!"
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah.What does it mean?"
"Well, "namets" usually refers to women who are "yummy" to men. So, I would think that the film is about an Ilongga hooker."


Okay. I can sense a few raised eyebrows. But, please allow me to defend myself.


The first time I've heard the word "namets" was in high school, back in Bacolod City. And, yes, that was how my male classmates would call a girl who's very appealing to them. You just don't describe food as "namets", it should be "namit". Secondly, it's being screened at Cinemalaya, the most prestigious independent film festival in the country. Knowing that most indies are dark and gritty, assuming that the film was tackling a depressing yet real issue was not far-fetched. 


And, boy, was I wrong! Very wrong.


If you're one of those lucky people who have seen the film, you'd know that it's not your typical Pinoy indie. Shot entirely around Negros, Namets! is about two childhood sweethearts who have to get reacquainted and rediscover their love for each other with the help of - you guess it - food. The beautiful photography not only makes you salivate at the delectable dishes and run to the nearest restaurant, it also entices the viewer to experience the Negros island. From instructions on how to eat an inasal to a boy saving his chicken, as a true-blue Ilongga, it was a treat for me to see my heritage being portrayed accurately and genuinely. This little delight beats the crap out of our typical studio romantic-comedies. 


Asking people to watch the film seems not enough. I needed to personally tell the director how proud I am of the film and the people behind it. And, here begins my acquaintance with the film's director, Jay Abello. 


Eleven years ago, after training under director Erik Matti in the Negros Summer Workshop, Jay Abello went to Manila to work as a property master for Matti's movie Ekis starring Rica Peralejo and Mark Anthony Fernandez. Since then, he never looked back. He became a writer, then director of photography, producer and director. He tackled them all.  "One of the most exciting parts of my career was writing screenplays with Erik Matti, Richard Somes and Mark Querubin. Having my name on the credits as co-writer or story was pretty exciting. We wrote the story of Balahibong Pusa for Yam Laranas, screenplay for Sa Huling Paghihintay and Dos Ekis.  It was the first time I felt I was a big part of a movie that was actually being made", said Jay on his growing career.


In spite of having an active career doing studio films, Jay religously joined Cinemalaya until he got a grant in 2007 with his entry Ligaw Liham (Namets! was his 2008 entry). The film starred Karylle and Jay says, "it's a tribute to writing letters by hand."


He also added, "We never got financing for Ligaw Liham, it was family, very few friends who helped in the funding and a lot of artist friends putting in work for the love of the art and the belief in me and the project. When we make a film, we always start with the story.Of course, we stop ourselves from writing epics knowing full well that we can never get it financed. When we write a story, we try to do it without restraint.  However, during pre-production, the screenplay sometimes adjusts - but not in story, just the logistics and the staging part - to fit the budget."


"Doing a film is very expensive unless someone finances the project. So, when I do an indie, it means I will either put out money or ask favors from a lot of people (a cost to me because those favors have to be paid in some form in the future). It is a debt. If you do not believe in the story or project 150%, then forget doing an indie.  Every process in making a film is so exciting because you are commandeering a ship to the deep ocean. Everyone's behind you and you're all there floating together, holding on to each other and helping one another getting across and back home.  And the reward is when you're film gets screened in front of an audience and you hear a laugh, a sigh or someone crying or giggling and you know that they understood your film - that is priceless. Then you know you're really home."

To pursue your passion, you must make sacrifices. In the case of filmmaking, Jay explains, "It's not a 9 to 5 job. Sometimes you work more than 24 hours. Sometimes you work on the weekends. Sometimes you work on a movie that takes you away from your home for weeks or months. So it also takes a toll on your relationships. And then you're always dealing with a lot of artists so that can also be a huge challenge-- because artists have very diverse and very extreme personalities, it's like dealing with rock stars in a band."


Since big studios would not risk financing what Jay calls, personal films, he continues to make them and gets inspiration from the burgeoning indie film industry of the country. He affirms, "It's very inspiring. There are so many filmmakers working on their films now. Every week, you hear of someone shooting his film and that's very inspiring.  It feels like the indie film industry is so alive now.  Of course, it's still in it's infancy stage wherein a lot of the marketing and distribution part is still being mulled over and studied and improved by all indie filmmakers.  We are all trying to work on that and move forward so it's pretty hopeful to say the least."