With Oscar hopes, Lav Diaz’s ‘Magellan’ embarks on tough campaign

September 3 ------ Lav Diaz’s historical epic “Magellan” has been officially named as the Philippines’ entry to the 2026 Oscars, where it will vie for a nomination in the Best International Feature Film category. The announcement was made by the Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP) during the launch of the Philippine Film Industry Month (PFIM) on Monday at the Shangri-La Plaza.

The nearly three-hour film, which premiered at the Cannes International Film Festival last May, offers a portrait of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in the final months of his life, leading up to his death on the island of Mactan in 1521. Starring the award-winning Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal in the title role, the film was partly shot in the country, particularly in Sampaloc, Quezon, as well as in Spain and Portugal.

At the PFIM opening event, Diaz — joined by local producer Black Cap Productions, headed by Paul Soriano — seemingly drew a parallel between Magellan’s voyage 500 years ago and the long, grueling process of making the film, which almost cost him his life.

“Ang haba ng nilakbay ng ‘Magellan,’ from 1521 to now… Ang haba na rin ng pagdurusa ng ating bayan. Ang hirap ipaliwanag paano natapos ito, ang hirap gawin ng ‘Magellan,’ napakahirap, muntik pa ako namatay,” revealed the director, who underwent treatment and recovered from tuberculosis during the shoot. But despite the hardship, he managed to cling to his artistic vision for the film. “That’s the magic of cinema, after going through the mud, struggling… at some point, hindi mo na alam yung ginagawa mo, andun ka sa kamalayang iniingatan mo para matapos mo yung tinatawag mong vision. “For me, ‘Magellan’ is that. We go back to the past so that our nation can take a step forward,” he said.

The Venice Golden Lion-winning director acknowledged that the voyage to the Academy Awards meant navigating through a challenging campaign. The Philippines has been submitting Oscar entries for decades, but no Filipino film has ever advanced to the list of nominees. “Ang Oscars kasi butas ng karayom yan. The methodology is we have to campaign,” Diaz said. But hopes are alive as “Magellan” has been acquired for international distribution. “Good thing, we have distribution in North America,” he said, referring to their North American distributor Janus Films, best-known for handling arthouse and prestigious cinema.

Diaz’s reputation on the festival circuit is also seen as an advantage. Add to that the presence of a Hollywood star in his film. “Malaking plus si Gael, of course. Kilala siyang actor all over the world,” he said of foreign reviews that touted “Magellan” as his most exportable film. For the film’s Filipino producer, on the other hand, it’s an “absolute honor” to represent the country. “We’re grateful, we’re humbled that the film has been selected for the next Oscars,” Soriano said. “I’m extremely happy for direk Lav. Like he said, he risked his life to make this film, and the blessing is that we’re here today. We’re very excited and we’re thankful for the trust that we have been given.”

Source: philstar.com