Auraeus Solito, also known as Kanakan-Balintagos, is a Filipino filmmaker and indigenous peoples rights advocate who comes from a lineage of shaman-kings from the
Palaw'an tribe. He was one of the first to be born outside of his tribal land of South
Palawan
Palawan (, ), officially the Province of Palawan (; ), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of . The capital and largest c ...
. He was born in Manila and, after graduating from the
Philippine Science High School, studied theater at the
University of the Philippines
The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...
, where he received a degree in Theater Arts. One of the leading independent filmmakers in the Philippines, he was chosen as part of in ''Take 100, The Future of Film'' in 2010. This book, published by
Phaidon Press, New York, is a survey featuring 100 emerging film directors from around the world who have been selected by 10 internationally prominent film festival directors.
His first feature film, ''Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros'' (''The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros'') won 15 international awards including 3 awards at the
Berlinale (The Teddy award, International Jury Prize at the Kinderfest and Special Mention from the Children's Jury of the Kinderfest). It is also the first Philippine film nominated for Best Foreign Film at the
Independent Spirit Awards
The Independent Spirit Awards, originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards, and later as the Film Independent Spirit Awards, are awards presented annually in Santa Monica, California, to independent filmmakers. Founded in ...
in the US, and has been shown in more than 50 film festivals around the world.
''Tuli'' (''Circumcision''), his second feature film, won Best Picture and Best Director at the Digital Competition at the 2005
CineManila film festival; won the NETPAC Jury Prize at the Berlinale, International Forum for New Cinema and the Best International Feature Film at
Outfest in Los Angeles. Solito is the first Filipino to make it to the
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023.
The festival has acted ...
in Park City, Utah, USA, two years in a row (with ''The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros'' and ''Tuli''). His films have been screened in other major festivals around the world including
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
,
Busan
Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
,
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
and
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...
.
Solito completed a screenplay development program at the
Binger Filmlab in Amsterdam.
His film ''Busong'' (''Palawan Fate'') was selected at the Cannes Directors' Fortnight in 2011, and it was awarded Best Director, Best Sound Design, and Best Original Music Score at
Cinemalaya 2011. His film ''Busong'' was also shown at the 2012 National Geographic All Roads Film Festival in Washington, D.C., where it was awarded Grand Prize, the Merata Mita "Best of Stories" Award.
In 2013 he adopted his tribal-spirit name Kanakan-Balintagos after his uncle, who is a shaman in Palawan, dreamt about him. He said in an interview, "In his dream, he saw me in the middle of a sandbar holding a camera that turned into a blowgun. I became a kanakan … a hunter. Suddenly, great waves appeared from both sides of the sandbar, but I remained unharmed, untouched."
In 2014 his film ''Esprit de Corps'', based on the play he wrote when he was seventeen, won three awards at the
Cinema One Originals Film Festival, including Best Director.
In 2015 he was awarded 1st Prize in the prestigious
Palanca Awards
The Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, popularly known as the Palanca Memorial Awards, are a set of literary awards for Philippine writers. Usually referred to as the "Pulitzer Prize of the Philippines," it is the country's highest ...
, Filipino Division, Dulang Ganap Ang Haba (Full Length Play in Filipino), for his literary work ''Mga Buhay na Apoy''.
In 2017, he was one of the recipients of the
Outstanding Manilan Award.
Also in 2018, he stated that he has returned to using Kanakan-Balintagos for all of his professional work.
Filmography
Full features
* 2005: ''
Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros'' (''The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros)''
* 2005: ''Tuli (Circumcision)''
* 2007: ''
Pisay''
* 2009: ''
BoY''
* 2011: ''Busong'' (''Palawan Fate'')
* 2012: ''Baybayin'' (''The Palawan Script'')
* 2014: ''Esprit de Corps''
Full feature documentary
* 2002: ''Basal Banar'' (''The Sacred Ritual of Truth'')
Short films
* 1995: ''Ang Maikling Buhay ng Apoy, Act 2, Scene 2: Suring at ang Kuk-ok'' (''The Brief Lifespan of Fire, Act 2, Scene 2: Suring and the Kuk-ok'')
* 1998: ''Impeng Negro'' (''Black Nuisance'')
* 2011: ''
60 Seconds of Solitude in Year Zero'' (segment)
Reception
The films of Auraeus Solito are extensively discussed in Katrin de Guia's book ''Kapwa: The Self in the Other, Worldviews and Lifestyles of Filipino Culture-Bearers''.
Canadian film scholar Adam Szymanski has positioned Kanakan Balintagos' films within the context of Fourth Cinema and emphasized their affinity with Indigenous political movements which are animated by traditional conceptualizations of healing.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Solito, Auraeus
Filipino film directors
Filipino screenwriters
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)