''The Bit Player'' () is a 2013 Philippine

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film co-produced and directed by

Jeffrey Jeturian Jeffrey Jeturian (born November 4, 1959) is a Filipino director and production designer for both television and film. Jeturian won the Gawad Urian Best Director Award in 2007 for the film ''The Bet Collector, Kubrador''. He studied Broadcasting C ...

from a story and screenplay he co-written with

Antoinette Jadaone Antoinette Hilario Jadaone (born April 3, 1984), popularly known as ''Tonet Jadaone'', is a Filipino filmmaker and podcast host. She is best known for directing '' That Thing Called Tadhana'' (2014), ''Love You to the Stars and Back'' (2017), '' ...

and

Zig Dulay Zig Madamba Dulay (born January 2, 1987) is a Filipino independent filmmaker, TV director, producer, screen writer, film editor and cinematographer. He is known for directing and writing several acclaimed Indie films such as '' The Bit Player' ...

. The film stars

Vilma Santos Rosa Vilma Tuazon Santos-Recto (born November 3, 1953) is a Filipino actress and politician. In a career spanning over seven decades, she is recognized for her versatility in acting across various genres of film and television in the Philippine ...

as Loida Malabanan, who spends her days dreaming of her big break while working with the country's best small-screen actors. It also features the appearances of various actors and actresses including

Marian Rivera Marian Rivera Gràcia-Dantes (; born 12 August 1984) is a Filipinos, Filipino actress, television host, model and entrepreneur. She is known for her portrayals of Hero, heroines and roles in Romance film, romantic dramas. Her accolades includ ...

Richard Yap Richard Edison Uy Yap (born May 18, 1967) is a Filipino actor and recording artist. He is best known for portraying Richard "Sir Chief" Lim in '' Be Careful with My Heart'' and "Papa Chen" in '' My Binondo Girl''. And from 2022 to 2024, he por ...

Piolo Pascual Piolo Jose Nonato Pascual (, born January 12, 1977) is a Filipino actor, model, singer, television host, comedian and film producer. Pascual began a career in 1993 after landing a bit role in the film ''The Vizconde Massacre Story (God Help ...

Eula Valdez Maria Julia Amorsolo Valdes (born December 11, 1968), professionally known as Eula Valdez (), is a Filipino actress and singer, best known for her prominent role as Amor Powers in the original version of ''Pangako Sa 'Yo'' (2000) and as Janice ...

Cherry Pie Picache Cherry Pie Sison Picache (born May 27, 1970) is a Filipino actress. Known primarily for her versatile work across independent films, blockbusters and television productions, she has received numerous accolades, including two Durban Internati ...

, and

Cherie Gil Evangeline Rose Gil Eigenmann (; June 21, 1963 – August 5, 2022), known professionally as Cherie Gil (), was a Filipino actress. With a career spanning nearly 50 years, she was dubbed the "''La Primera Contravida''" ("The Prime Villain") " ( ...

. Produced by Cinemalaya Foundation and Quantum Films, with

Star Cinema ABS-CBN Film Productions, Inc., trade name, doing business as Star Cinema and also known as ABS-CBN Films (since 2018), is a Philippines, Philippine film studio, film, television production company, production and distribution (marketing), di ...

handling its distribution, the film was released on July 27, 2013, as one of the competing entries under the "Directors Showcase" category for the

9th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival The 9th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival was successfully held from July 26 to August 4, 2013, in Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila ( ), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; ), is the cap ...

and then, topped the box office in all four venues of said festival. It was later released in mainstream cinemas on August 14, as part of the film studio's 20th founding anniversary. The film had its international premiere at the 38th Toronto International Film Festival, set from September 5 to 15, under the "Contemporary World Cinema" section. It also showed at the 2013

San Diego Asian Film Festival The San Diego Asian Film Festival (SDAFF) is an annual film festival in San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, ...

Plot

The film follows a seemingly usual day in the life of Loida Malabanan (

) as she embarks on yet another shooting day of a soap opera as an

extra Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...

. As the shoot goes on, we get a glimpse of the truth in the ruling system of the production as well as the exploitation of the

marginalized Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. In the EU context, the Euro ...

laborers A laborer ( or labourer) is a person who works in manual labor typed within the construction industry. There is a generic factory laborer which is defined separately as a factory worker. Laborers are in a working class of wage-earners in whic ...

like her.

Cast

as Loida Malabanan *Fatima Centeno as Production Assistant *Marlon Rivera as Director *

Vincent de Jesus Vincent Abenojar De Jesus (born June 10, 1968) is a Filipino composer, librettist, musical scorer, and musical director for theater, television, and film. He is also a writer, lyricist, actor, singer, and educator. He attended the University of t ...

as Assistant Director *Ruby Ruiz as Josie *Tart Carlos as Venus *Hazel Faith Dela Cruz as Olga *

as Herself / Belinda *

as Himself / Brando *

as Herself / Doña Beatrix *

Pilar Pilapil Pilar Delilah Veloso Pilapil-Penas (born October 12, 1950) is a Filipino actress and beauty pageant titleholder. She was crowned as Binibining Pilipinas Universe 1967. She represented the Philippines at the Miss Universe 1967 pageant but was ...

as Ms. Amanda / Doña Esmeralda *

Tom Rodriguez Bartolome Alberto Mott (born October 1, 1987), known professionally as Tom Rodriguez (), is a Filipino actor who started and rose his career after leaving the reality TV show '' Pinoy Big Brother: Double Up''. As of 2025, he is currently an excl ...

as Himself / Rafael *

as Herself *

as Herself / Ma'am Amelia *

as Himself / Sir Richard *

Terence Baylon Terence Dale Niño Baylon (born April 26, 1984) is a Filipino actor and model. He started making movies and commercials at the age of 7. When he was 4 years old, he joined ''Eat Bulaga!'' search for ''Little Mr. Pogi''. Although he did not win t ...

as Police 1

Reception

Critical reception

Richard Kuipers, writing for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', described the written screenplay by Jeffrey Jeturian, Antoinette Jadaone, and Zig Dulay as "wise and witty" and "hits the right mix of humor and compassion from the outset". Kuipers also praised director Jeturian and his team for making the film with the best results and cinematographer Lee Briones for its photography that balances between comedy and drama for Vilma Santos' character and her background.

Accolades

(Directors Showcase) **Special Jury Prize **Audience Choice ** NETPAC Award **Best Actress –

**Best Supporting Actress – Ruby Ruiz **Best Screenplay **Nominated–Best Film Gawad Tanglaw Awards 2014 **Best Actress - (Vilma Santos) 13th Dhaka International Film Festival **Best Actress - (Vilma Santos) 2015 New York Festivals **Best Feature Film - Bronze

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bit Player 2013 films 2013 comedy-drama films Philippine independent films Star Cinema films 2013 independent films Philippine comedy-drama films Star Cinema drama films Films directed by Jeffrey Jeturian Films produced by Charo Santos-Concio Films with screenplays by Antoinette Jadaone Films with screenplays by Zig Dulay Films shot in Batangas Films shot in Metro Manila