A RESTORED version of the 1984 political drama “Sister Stella L.,” which depicts a nun’s political awakening during the Marcos dictatorship, will premiere in Manila on Sept. 20, a day before the 54th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law.
UST Rector Fr. Richard Ang, O.P. is set to attend the screening at the Manila Metropolitan Theater, part of the Film Development Council of the Philippines’ (FDCP) celebration of Philippine Film Industry Month.
This year’s celebration carries the theme “Pelikula: Ginintuang Ikalawa — Philippine Cinema’s Second Golden Age,” marking the 50th anniversary of the period regarded as the second golden age of Philippine cinema.
Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Mike de Leon, “Sister Stella L.” stars Vilma Santos as a Catholic nun who becomes increasingly involved in the struggles of workers and victims of state violence during the dictatorship of the late Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
Sister Stella L. begins as largely detached from political issues but changes after witnessing the exploitation of workers and state violence.
Another nun, Sister Stella B., played by Laurice Guillen, serves as her mentor as she comes to understand the relationship between religious life and political engagement.
Released in 1984, less than a year after the assassination of opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr., the film examines dictatorship, state repression and the consequences of political silence.
“Sister Stella L.” won Best Picture at the Film Academy of the Philippines awards in 1985 and took home 10 trophies at the Gawad Urian Awards that year.
The film was also screened at the Venice Film Festival in 1984.
Its newly restored 4K director’s cut was screened this year at Il Cinema Ritrovato, a film festival in Bologna, Italy devoted to restored and rediscovered cinema.
The title character was inspired in part by the late Good Shepherd nun Sr. Mary Pilar Verzosa, a human rights and pro-life advocate who was detained during Martial Law alongside screenwriter Jose “Pete” Lacaba. Verzosa later recalled that Lacaba had told her that her experiences inspired his writing of the character.
