Language is the soul of a culture: ANU Philippines Institute hosts its first film screening with Alvin Yapan

The ANU Philippines Institutes had the honour of hosting filmmaker, novelist, and educator Associate Professor Alvin Yapan last week.

Together with our Canberra-based Filipino community, academics, students, public sector representatives, and distinguished members of the diplomatic community, we viewed the film 'Hulagway' by Alvin Yapan. The film followed the journey of Consuelo and Robert against the backdrop of the changing ecosystem in the grasslands of Isabela, where endemic grasses are being displaced by invasive foreign species, and ends on the beaches of Palawan once inhabited by mythological crabs. As a poetic and lyrical rumination on the beauty of words, this film shows how language is indeed the soul of a culture.

The film screening was followed by a lively and engaged discussion about the dying Indigenous languages in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia. Alvin also shared anecdotes about the behind-the-scenes filmmaking process and the cultural importance and significance of capturing dying languages and traditions on film for the generations to come.

We would like to thank Alvin for coming all the way to Canberra to share his work with us and Dr. Merlinda Bobis for facilitating the discussion.