Slamdance Film Festival 2020 – To Calm the Pig Inside
I never heard any stories on how to calm the winds of the typhoon, nor how to prevent a storm surge.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Joanna Vasquez Arong
Watch To Calm the Pig Inside on Argo
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
After spending weeks line producing on a film production on the devastation super typhoon Haiyan wreaked around the Philippines in 2013-2014, I felt there was another layer to the stories which hadn’t been shared yet. Locals recounted to me their reflections, disappointments, dreams and even the jokes they shared with each other in order to cope with the trauma. And through time, they continued to express their growing frustration towards the government response to their plight.
At first, since I am from a neighboring island, I thought it was not my story to tell. I then decided to approach this story more as a personal film essay, interweaving my own experience with the stories I heard from the community at large. To Calm the Pig Inside became a contemplation on how people cope with both personal and collective pain.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
To be able to empathise more with victims of calamities. And to see how some people can become victims a second time, through the politics and corruption behind the system. From what I've read, although perhaps more prevalent in developing countries, similar scenarios of incompetence and corruption have occurred even in developed countries.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The film is a reflective essay pondering on trauma that's passed on from both family schisms as well as from calamities. How does one heal from personal trauma and how does a community cope and likewise heal from collective trauma.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The film had more elements initially including poems written by survivors of the devastating typhoon. These slowly started being taken out, and the personal experiences of the filmmaker were injected, to make it a more personal film.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Many could feel they were in the typhoon itself. And many understood that this is not a journalistic piece, and appreciated the personal perspective and insight into the filmmaker's own life.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
There were a few from the city where the devastation happened, who wondered why the film was not in their local language and why more details were not given, and I had to explain that this was not a journalistic film and it was a personal experience and therefore I decided to tell the story from my own local language.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I hope to garner more interest in the film, and hopefully, find sales and distribution for the film so that it can travel and reach a wider audience.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Sales agents, buyers and distributors to help release the film in more platforms.
Film festival directors to screen the film in other festivals apart from Slamdance.
Journalists in order to spread the word more about my film, which is universally relevant with the many calamities happening all over the world.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I hope To Calm the Pig Inside will open the conversation on how to improve the response system towards natural calamities and any preventative measures that can be taken.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Why is there a disconnect between government and the people affected by calamities at times?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Besides from To Calm the Pig Inside, Joanna also filmed her first two narrative shorts named Sol and Gabby tackling how children deal with the aftermath of an earthquake and a typhoon. Joanna is also set to direct her first feature narrative, The Sigbin, exploring the relationship of an assassin and his daughter he only recently discovers.
Interview: January 2020
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
To Calm the Pig Inside
I never heard any stories on how to calm the winds of the typhoon, nor how to prevent a storm surge.
Length: 18:30
Director: Joanna Vasquez Arong
Producer: Joanna Vasquez Arong
Writer: Joanna Vasquez Arong
About the writer, director and producer:
JOANNA started filmmaking in Beijing where she shot her first feature documentary, Neo-Lounge, recounting intimate stories of foreigners who went to China searching to break from their past. Her short films, To Calm the Pig Inside, Sol and Gabby were developed after spending time in post calamity areas in the Philippines. She presently is set to direct her first feature narrative, The Sigbin, named after a mythological creature known to be loyal to its master.
Looking for: sales agents, distributors, buyers
Facebook: Joanna Vasquez Arong, To Calm the Pig Inside
Instagram: @ronganna
Hashtags used: #tocalmthepiginside
Other: IMDb
Funders: predominantly self-funded with some sponsors | Support from National Commission for Culture and the Arts (Philippines)
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Slamdance Film Festival, Park City, UT - 25 & 28 January 2020