Revolution Selfie Explained

Revolution Selfie
Director:Steven de Castro
Producer:Steven de Castro
Narrator:Steven de Castro
Runtime:115 minutes
Country:Netherlands, Philippines, United States

Revolution Selfie: The Red Battalion (also known as Revolution Selfie: Pulang Bagani) is a 2017 documentary film that follows director Steven de Castro in travelling to the Philippines to meet with the New People's Army. The film is notable for being shot almost entirely from first-person point of view in part simulated video gameplay.[1]

Content

Revolution Selfie was presents a mix of documented material featuring interviews and storytelling. It was filmed with a GoPro action camera that the filmmaker is wearing. The filmmaker meets face-to-face with members of the New People's Army, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).

Between presenting interviews and images in a traditional documentary, the film borrows augmented reality techniques and adds adventure game design elements. De Castro philosophizes about filming as a means for the audience in picturing themselves as the star of their own movie.

De Castro said of his film, "Is it even possible to bridge the gap with people whose lives are entirely different from our own?"

Shot in the US, the Netherlands and the Philippines, it features music from singer-songwriter Danny Fabella, hiphop emcee Nejma Nefertiti, Pitoy San Jose, Potri Ranka Manis, and Ras Badjao.[2] [3]

Cast

Release

Revolution Selfie: The Red Battalion had its North American premiere at the 2018 International Film Festival Manhattan in New York City and won the Best Documentary category.[4] After screening at the 2019 Inwood Film Festival, the documentary was released on worker-owned streaming service Means TV.[5]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryProjectResult
2018 International Film Festival Manhattan Best DocumentaryRevolution Selfie [6]
2019Inwood Film Festival Best Feature Film Revolution Selfie [7]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Natalie . Selincourt . January 12, 2018 . The First Feature Documentary Shot On GoPro Heads For Theaters . Wish Machinery . en-US . November 18, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180204143632/https://www.wishmachinery.com/2018/01/ . February 4, 2018.
  2. News: Cabana . Ysh . June 14, 2019 . Film Review: Revolution Selfie (2017): Stories of peasant warriors under conditions of poverty . The Philippine Reporter . en-US . April 26, 2023.
  3. Web site: Lindsay . Le Anne . October 8, 2018 . Film Festival Coverage: 11th Annual Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival . April 26, 2023 .
  4. News: October 29, 2018 . Filipinos bag 11 awards at the International Film Festival Manhattan . April 26, 2023 .
  5. Web site: Revolution Selfie .
  6. News: Aguilar . Krissy . October 29, 2018 . Filipinos win big at Manhattan film fest . Inquirer.net . November 18, 2023 .
  7. Web site: 2019 Film Festival Winners . Inwood Film Festival . November 18, 2023 . live . https://archive.today/20231119034111/https://www.inwoodartworks.nyc/film-works/inwood-film-festival/2019-film-festival-winners/ . November 19, 2023.