''Ploning'' is a 2008

Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

romantic Romantic may refer to: Genres and eras * The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries ** Romantic music, of that era ** Romantic poetry, of that era ** Romanticism in science, of that e ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

based on a popular

Cuyonon Cuyonon is a regional Bisayan language spoken on the coast of Palawan and the Cuyo Islands in the Philippines.

song of the same title about a girl's hidden feelings. It starred actress

Judy Ann Santos Judy Anne Lumagui Santos (born May 11, 1978) is a Filipino actress and film producer. Prolific in film and television in the Philippines since the early 1990s, she is known for her comedic and dramatic roles in independent films and blockb ...

and was directed by Dante Nico Garcia, who won Best Director at the 2008

Asian Festival of First Films The Asian Festival of First Films () (AFFF) was an annual film festival held in Singapore from 2005 to 2009 to celebrate and provide a platform for emerging filmmakers. It was also part of the Asian Film Market. History The Asian Festival of Fi ...

. Filming was done in the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...

of Cuyo in

Palawan Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng 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 ...

, Garcia's hometown. The film was the official entry of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress# ...

at the

81st Academy Awards The 81st Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2008 and took place on February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 ...

. The movie was distributed by

GMA Pictures GMA Pictures, formerly Cinemax Studios and GMA Films, is a film and television production company in the Philippines, established by GMA Network in 1995. Its films include ''Jose Rizal'', '' Muro Ami'', and '' Deathrow''. Filmography Histor ...

Plot

In the present, a mysterious

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northe ...

ese fisherman, Muo Sei, lands in the town of Cuyo,

beside the sea where he immediately looks for someone named "Ploning". In a flashback to some years ago, Ploning is known as a hardworking and thoughtful woman who, despite her age and beauty, decided not to marry. She had loved a man named Tomas fourteen years ago who left for a better life in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...

leaving her heartbroken and pining for his return. Despite this, Ploning continues her roles as a dutiful daughter to the town patriarch Susing and to Tomas' grieving mother Intang, a compassionate friend to outsider Alma, and a caretaker of the invalid Juaning, whose son Digo she has taken under her care as well. Ploning however, decides to leave their peaceful life to look for Tomas in Manila. Digo, overcome by grief, seeks help in the town guest, the nurse Celeste, whom they learn also had a lover named Tomas back in

. Due to her deep devotion, Ploning rejects the notion that this Tomas and her Tomas are the same person. On the day Ploning disappears, rain falls on Cuyo who has been suffering a dry season. Muo Sei is later revealed to be Digo, and the townspeople who are leading the town are the people Ploning helped back then.

Cast

* Cedric Amit *

Mylene Dizon Mylene Dizon (; born September 6, 1974) is a Filipino actress and model. Dizon has established herself as one of the most renowned actresses in Philippine cinema with an astounding 30 films and nearly 50 television roles to her credit, as wel ...

* Bodjong Fernandez *

Gina Pareño Gina Pareño (; born Geraldine Acthley; October 20, 1947) is a Filipina actress. Early life Pareño was born to a German American father and a Filipina mother. Career She started her career in the 1960s as an extra in several films and then lat ...

Eugene Domingo Eugena Roxas Domingo (born July 23, 1971), popularly known as Eugene Domingo, is a Filipino actress, comedienne and host. She has performed in lead and supporting roles in various genres of the Philippine film industry. She is popularly known as ...

Production

The filming of ''Ploning'' was entirely done on the

of Cuyo in

. It was directed by Dante Nico Garcia, who incidentally, is a native of the town. According to him, the film is based on his childhood memories of the town. When he wrote the screenplay for the film with Benjamin Lingan, he decided to use his native tongue,

Cuyonon Cuyonon is a regional Bisayan language spoken on the coast of Palawan and the Cuyo Islands in the Philippines.

. He had stated that the inspiration for the character

played in the film is based on a Cuyonon

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

about a girl's hidden feelings, originally sung by a male but was first recorded by a female. This led him to think of a story of a woman singing the song while remembering her lover. (

Tagalog Tagalog may refer to: Language * Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines ** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language ** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language * Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Tagal ...

) Shooting of the film was done in various locales of the town. This includes the pier, the waiting place of Ploning; and Intigan beach. The basketball court, meanwhile, provided for a setting for the first meeting between Digo and Celeste, while Emilod was the location for the ''esposada'' (bridal shower), which took three nights to shoot. A cemetery was purposely built for the film and the locals decided to preserve it as a tourist attraction. The film was produced by Panoramamanila Pictures Co., which, despite its fledgeling status, tried its best to authenticate the production of the film.

Cashew The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus '' Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf c ...

nut brittle, the town's delicacy, as well as the harvesting of

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quanti ...

in an ''asinan'' was showcased in the film. Cuyo's Pagdayao Festival, an Ati-atihan-like celebration usually celebrated on August 27, was also featured as the town fiesta.

Cast

The cast of ''Ploning'' is played by veteran actors as well as newcomers to show business. Veteran actress

got the title role. Compared to her other roles, which are very dramatic (particularly that of Mara in ''

Mara Clara ''Mara Clara'' is a Philippine drama television series on ABS-CBN, which aired from August 17, 1992 to February 14, 1997, replacing ''Sebya, Mahal Kita'' and was replaced by '' Esperanza''. The series stars Judy Ann Santos and Gladys Reyes. It w ...

''), her character in the film is seen as mellow and reserved. Numerous

comedienne A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audience d ...

s are also cast in the film, such as

(as Intang),

(as Juaning), Ces Quesada (as Nieves), and Tessie Tomas (as Seling), whose dramatic performances seem weird in contrast to Santos'. The role of Celeste is supposed to have been given to

Iza Calzado Maria Izadora Ussher Calzado-Wintle (born August 12, 1982), known professionally as Iza Calzado (), is a Filipino actress, television host, dancer and model. She is dubbed as the "''Goddess of Horror Films''" by local media for her acting prowe ...

but Mylene Dizon took the role instead when scheduling conflicts between the film and ''

Joaquin Bordado ''Joaquin Bordado'' is a 2008 Philippine television drama action series broadcast by GMA Network. The series is based on a Philippine comic book serial by Carlo J. Caparas with the same title. Directed by Mac Alejandre and Argel Joseph, it sta ...

'' were not resolved. Other cast members include newcomers Lukas Agustin (as Siloy), Ogoy Agustin (as Veiling), Cedric Amit (as Digo), and Bodjong Fernandez (as Mou Sei) as well as established actors Ketchup Eusebio (as Badocdoc), Ronnie Lazaro (as Old Veiling), Jojit Lorenzo (as Basit), Tony Mabesa (as Susing), Spanky Manikan (as Tsuy), Crispin Piñeda (as Toting),

Meryl Soriano Mary Rosalind Soriano Revillame (born December 9, 1982), known professionally as Meryll Soriano, is a multi-awarded actress in the Philippines. Career Meryll Soriano started acting as a child star during the early 90s appearing in "The Maricel ...

(as Alma), Beth Tamayo (as Divina), and Joel Torre (as Mayor Siloy).

Inspiration

The inspiration for the film came from the

"Ploning". A fragment is shown below:

Release

''Ploning'' premiered in limited release from April 30 to May 6, 2008 with

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

subtitles in the

before going to wider release and subsequent worldwide screenings with

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

subtitles. The film was shown during the 6th

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

Cinema International Film Festival on July 5, 2008, as part of a showcase which featured Filipino films such as ''

Himala ''Himala'' (English: ''Miracle'') is a 1982 Filipino film directed by Ishmael Bernal and produced by the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines. It stars Nora Aunor as a young woman living in the province who claims to have seen a Marian app ...

'' and '' Kubrador''. It was then seen in the

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

Asian Independent Film Festival on November 16 and 21 and the 39th International Film Festival of

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

on November 28 and 30, 2008. Before 2008 ended, ''Ploning'' premiered at the Asian Festival of First Films in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

on December 9, where it received a Best Director award and a Best Screenplay/Script nomination. In the United States, ''Ploning'' was shown during the 20th

Palm Springs International Film Festival Palm Springs International Film Festival (sometimes stylized shortly as PSIFF) is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. Originally promoted by Mayor Sonny Bono and then sponsored by Nortel,here for Table of Contents it started in 1989 ...

held in

Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by lan ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

on January 12 and 13, 2009, with lead star

and director Dante Nico Garcia in attendance. It was part of the For Your Consideration program at the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center in Rafael,

, where it was screened on January 18, 2009 with director Garcia in attendance. It was then seen at the 10th Newport Beach Film Festival in

Newport Beach Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island draws v ...

on April 26, 2009.

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

s and

VCD Video CD (abbreviated as VCD, and also known as Compact Disc Digital Video) is a home video format and the first format for distributing films on standard optical discs. The format was widely adopted in Southeast Asia, Central Asia and the ...

s of the film were released during the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

season by GMA Records and Home Video. These contain the film as well as bonus features such as the trailer and behind the scenes productions. There are

subtitles but no English subtitles.

Reception

The Cinema Evaluation Board (CEB) graded ''Ploning'' with an "A" evaluation, entitling it to a 100% tax rebate on its earnings. (

) Meanwhile, the

Movie and Television Review and Classification Board The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board ( fil, Lupon sa Rebyu at Klasipikasyon ng Pelikula at Telebisyon; abbreviated as MTRCB) is a Philippine government agency under the Office of the President of the Philippines that is respon ...

(MTRCB) gave it a "General Patronage" rating. After it was officially selected for the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

, it was reported that the

Philippine government The Government of the Philippines ( fil, Pamahalaan ng Pilipinas) has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and de ...

had given one million

pesos The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named "dollar ...

(twenty thousand

US dollars The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

) in support of the film. Various

celebrities Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

were also noted to have supported the film. The film gained critical praise after Dante Nico Garcia won the Best Director award while he and Benjamin Lingan were nominated for the Best Screenplay award during the Asian Festival of First Film Awards in

, the film's star, was involved in a minor controversy when her home network,

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Philippine commercial broadcast network that serves as the flagship property of ABS-CBN Corporation, a company under L ...

, refused to promote ''Ploning'' and instead chose to promote the film '' When Love Begins''. This led to disputes between her manager, Alfie Lorenzo, and the network though both parties have since reconciled. In August 2008, she returned to Cuyo to grace the screenings and was awarded as the town's "adopted daughter". ''Plonings road to the Oscars ended when the Top 9 shortlisted entries (later narrowed to the Final 5) for the Best Foreign Language Film category was announced but the team behind ''Ploning'' remained positive and appreciative of the experience. On January 18, 2009,

aired the primetime television special ''Pangarap ni Ploning'' (''Dream of Ploning''), which chronicled the fundraising events mounted to finance the lobbying efforts for the film's Oscar bid. Then, on February 22, 2009, lead star Judy Ann Santos and director Dante Nico Garcia launched the Ploning Foundation to help future filmmakers raise funds for the promotion of the chosen Philippine entry similar to what they did for ''Ploning''.

Awards and nominations

* Official Entry of the

for

of the

. * Asian Festival of First Film Awards (Singapore) *: Best Director: Dante Nico Garcia — Win *: Best Screenplay/Script: Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan — ''Nominees'' * 7th Gawad Tanglaw *: Best Film — Win *: Best Director: Dante Nico Garcia — Win *: Best Actress: Judy Ann Santos — Win *: Best Screenplay: — Win *: Best Story: — Win *: Best Cinematography — Win *: Best Editing — Win * 6th ENPRESS Golden Screen Awards *: Best Motion Picture—Drama *: Best Direction: Dante Nico Garcia *: Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role—Drama: Judy Ann Santos *: Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role—Drama, Musical or Comedy: Mylene Dizon *: Breakthrough Performance by an Actor: Cedric Amit, Bojong Fernandez *: Best Original Screenplay: Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan *: Best Cinematography: Charlie Peralta *: Best Editing: Danny Añonuevo — Win *: Best Production Design: Raymund George Fernandez *: Best Sound: Mike Idioma — Win *: Best Musical Score: Jessie Lasaten * 11th Gawad Pasado Awards *: Pinakapasadong Pelikula (Best Film) — Win *: Pinakapasadong Direktor (Best Director): Dante Nico Garcia — Win *: Pinakapasadong Aktres (Best Actress): Judy Ann Santos — Win *: Pinakapasadong Katuwang na Aktres (Best Supporting Actress): Ces Quesada *: Pinakapasadong Katuwang na Aktres (Best Supporting Actress): Mylene Dizon *: Pinakapasadong Dulang Pampelikula (Best Screenplay): Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan — Win *: Pinakapasadong Istorya (Best Story): Dante Nico Garcia *: Pinakapasadong Sinematograpiya (Best Cinematography): Charlie Peralta — Win *: Pinakapasadong Editing (Best Editing): Danny Anonuevo *: Pinakapasadong Musika (Best Musical Score): Jessie Lasaten *: Pinakapasadong Tunog (Best Sound): Albert Michael Idioma *: Pinakapasadong Pelikula sa Pag-gamit ng Wika — Win * 25th PMPC Star Awards for Movies *: Movie of the Year *: Movie Director of the Year: Dante Nico Garcia *: New Movie Actor of the Year: Bojong Fernandez *: Original Movie Screenplay of the Year: Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan *: Movie Cinematographer of the Year: Charlie S. Peralta *: Movie Editor of the Year: Danny Añonuevo *: Movie Production Designer of the Year: Raymund Jorge Fernandez *: Movie Musical Scorer of the Year: Jessie Lasaten — Win *: Movie Sound Engineer of the Year: Mike Idioma * 32nd Gawad Urian Awards *: Best Actress: Judy Ann Santos *: Best Cinematography: Charlie S. Peralta *: Best Editing: Danny Añonuevo *: Best Production Design: Raymund Jorge Fernandez *: Best Music: Jessie Lasaten *: Best Sound: Mike Idioma * 57th FAMAS Awards *: Best Picture *: Best Director: Dante Nico Garcia *: Best Actress: Judy Ann Santos *: Best Supporting Actor: Boyong Fernandez *: Best Supporting Actress: Gina Pareño *: Best Story: Dante Nico Garcia *: Best Screenplay: Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan *: Best Cinematography: Charlie S. Peralta *: Best Art Direction: Raymond Fernandez *: Best Musical Score: Jesse Lasaten Win *: Best Sound: Albert Michael Idioma *: Best Editing: Danilo Añonuevo *: Best Visual Effects: Optima Digital Win * 3rd Gawad GENIO Awards *: Best Film *: Best Film Director: Dante Nico Garcia *: Best Film Actress: Judy Ann Santos *: Best Film Cinematographer: Charlie S. Peralta *: Best Film Editor: Danilo Añonuevo *: Best Film Musical Scorer: Jesse Lasaten Win *: Best Film Screenwriter: Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan *: Best Film Sound Engineer: Albert Michael Idioma *: Best Film Story: Dante Nico Garcia *: Best Film Visual Effects: Optima Digital * 27th FAP Luna Awards (nominations only; needs updating) *: Best Picture *: Best Actress: Judy Ann Santos *: Best Screenplay: Dante Nico Garcia & Benjamin Lingan *: Best Cinematography: Charlie S. Peralta *: Best Production Design: Raymond George Fernandez *: Best Musical Scoring: Jesse Lasaten *: Best Sound: Albert Michael Idioma

Soundtrack

The soundtrack used composes only of

Cuyonon Cuyonon is a regional Bisayan language spoken on the coast of Palawan and the Cuyo Islands in the Philippines.

s arranged and performed by the musical group SINIKA. # "Esmeralda" # "Pondo, Pondo" # "Konsomisyon" # "Ploning" (Song by: Pauline Kaye P. Gilongos)

Media release

The series was released onto DVD-format and VCD-format by

GMA Records GMA Music (formerly known as Infiniti Music and GMA Records) is a subsidiary of GMA Network Inc. and is engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of music and concerts. GMA Music is a member of PARI and has the distinction of havin ...

. The DVD contained the movie the full-length trailer of the movie. The DVD/VCD was released in 2008.

References

External links

* * {{Philippine submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film 2008 films 2008 comedy films Philippine folk songs Filipino-language films Films set in the 1980s Philippine independent films 2008 romantic drama films 2000s Tagalog-language films Taiwanese-language films 2000s thriller films Visayan-language films Visayan music