Revisiting Heneral Luna: An Interview With Producer Ed Rocha
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The cast and crew of Heneral Luna (Photo courtesy of TBA Studios)
The film, Heneral Luna, completed in 2015, was based on Vivencio R. Jose’s book, The Rise and Fall of Antonio Luna. The film received rave reviews from critics, blogs, publications, and ordinary Filipino movie viewers. It was commended for being a timely eye-opener that mirrors the problems of society today. It broke box-office receipts for a historical film and was the country’s official entry in the Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars that year.
Ed Rocha, one of the producers of Heneral Luna was in town recently, and I had the opportunity to interview him via Zoom. Rocha studied at the American School in Manila, St. Mary’s College in Berkeley where he graduated cum laude, and Santa Clara University for his college years. He made his theatrical debut in Spain in 1959 in Sarzuela Molinos De Viento and at the Cultural Center of the Philippines in The Merry Widow in 1977.
In the Philippines, Rocha’s film debut was in Eddie Romero’s Ganito Kami Noon, Paano Kayo Ngayon for which he was nominated for the Gawad Urian award for Best Supporting Actor. He was again nominated for the same award in Bayaning Third World directed by Mike De Leon. With Fernando Ortigas, TBA Studios was formed to include Tuko Film Productions, Buchi Boy Entertainment, and Artikulo Uno Productions. This collaboration has produced critically acclaimed films like Birdshot, I’m Drunk, I Love You, Sunday Beauty Queen, Heneral Luna, and Goyo. Rocha has more than 20 films to his name.
Positively Filipino: Mr. Rocha, how did you get into filmmaking?
Ed Rocha: I always loved films. My father would bring home films to watch, and my mother loved it too. My baby book said I would make films. At 12 years old, I started shooting in Spain with 8mm reels. I love acting. I did stage work in school and directed Spanish and English theater. I had an obligation with my father and worked with him for 21 years, but I acted on the side.
PF: How did Heneral Luna come about?
ER: In 1995, Henry Francia and I wrote the script for Heneral Luna. We wanted to show a Filipino hero that was almost forgotten. I wanted to show the humanity and flaws in our heroes as they are human beings as we tend to glorify them…My father had told me that the biggest tragedy in the battle for independence was the assassination of Luna…We had to re-write the script several times as nobody wanted to buy the rights. Historical movies give the impression that they are boring and will not sell. Then Director Jerrold Tarog called me as he heard about the script. He put back the scenes we were asked to remove. He made a script that I loved to one I adored…I lost my son in an accident, and his friend brought the script to an old friend (Fernando Ortigas) who called and said he wanted to get involved in filmmaking. This is my son’s intervention from heaven. Had this friend of mine gotten the script three days before, he would have thrown it away. It arrived at the right moment when he had the money to invest.
Ed Rocha, Fernando Ortigas, John Arcilla and Annie Trillo-Ortigas during opening night
PF: How did you get Filipinos who are generally averse to historical films into the theaters?
ER: Heneral Luna was slated for a September 9, 2015 showing, but we were up against bigger Hollywood productions. From 100 theaters during its debut showing, screens dwindled to only 40 after two days. Even if people wanted to buy tickets in advance for the weekend screenings, the cinemas wouldn’t sell because there was no guarantee that the movie would still be playing by then. Our cast members and celebrity friends promoted the film on social media, and even those who had already seen the film, causing more cinemas to screen it. The word of mouth was passed on through Facebook and Twitter post after post. Heneral Luna earned around P300 million with a production capital of only P65 million.
PF: What kind of satisfaction did you receive after the screenings?
ER: To constantly hear applause and see standing ovations in different theaters at the end of the film as the credits roll, is for us a reward that’s beyond our wildest dreams. Many of us asked, “When was the last time we heard an audience applaud at the end of the film?” When I was driving, I would hear jeepney and tricycle drivers talk about Heneral Luna. I saw a pirated version of the film in buses. I was impressed that the film was crossing over and had politicized so many people. More people voted in the 2016 election than ever. It awoke a lot of political fervor and I am proud of that. Some of our lines were even quoted in the Supreme Court. One mother told John Arcilla, the actor who played Luna, “Thank you for winning our kids back from Marvel.”
Rocha discusses a shot with Heneral Luna director Jerrold Tarog (Photo courtesy of TBA Studios)
“Many of us asked, “When was the last time we heard an audience applaud at the end of the film?” ”
PF: What are some of the messages you wanted viewers to take away from the movie?
ER: We wanted the audience to focus on our country’s social problems. To find the solutions, we must open not only our history books, but our eyes, ears and hearts as well. We should call for solidarity and unity for Filipinos as a nation. What makes a Filipino is what he carries in his heart……Choose leaders like General Luna who sacrificed and fought for the Filipino people, who set aside personal interests for the sake of the country. We have to take a cold, hard look at the mirror. Heroes are human and we can be like them. Bayan or sarili? (The nation or yourself?)
PF: Have you been financially successful in all your films?
ER: Our policy is: The Filipino public deserves the best films and we should not speak down to them. We like to create intelligent entertainment, regardless of the genre, that will reverse the dumbing down of our local audiences. The business side of everything comes second to our creative vision.
PF: What advice can you give budding filmmakers?
ER: Don’t give up on the dream. Be patient and persevere. It took 18 years for Heneral Luna to get on the screen. Support Filipino films.
Rocha (second from right) with Jerrold Tarog (right) and John Arcilla (left) on the set. (Photo courtesy of TBA Studios)
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When I moved to San Francisco in 1982, I thought I had left behind all the ugliness of a society whose officials didn’t know how to lead the people but knew how to manipulate them. The government then took advantage of the masa’s poverty and lack of education and cajoled oligarchs who kowtowed to lucrative deals, and those who did not were punished with a suspension of privileges and/or a takeover of their businesses. The cultural, emotional and mental state of the nation was warped by the president’s greed and entrenching dynasty. Unless you preferred to be jailed, you left the country like I did. My children needed me and were more important than any political cause. When I viewed Heneral Luna, in San Francisco, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu -- the symbolisms and devious characters in Luna’s time, circa 1800, were still very much present and alive today. It validated my reasons for leaving in 1982. But the film also gave me hope on so many levels.
Two successful mestizo Filipino businessmen dared to put their money into awakening the consciousness of the Filipino people. The film had to be good; it had to be true; it had to be uplifting; it had to make the Filipino think and be proud, and Ed Rocha and his team accomplished these. The issues and ills of society are so painfully recollected in the film that you leave feeling “guilty” for not doing enough or for “abandoning the ship.” Viewers couldn’t stop talking about how the movie stirred a lot of patriotic emotions towards the Motherland, and wondered how they could help. You know you have made a good movie if you have touched the audience’s hearts and minds. Well done and thank you, Ed Rocha and company.
Perhaps Heneral Luna should be shown again later this year, when Filipinos are thinking whom to vote for in the 2022 elections.