Balikbayan (Homebound) – 2004 | Video | Exp | 2:41 mins (excerpt)
Directors: Riza Manalo, Larilyn Sanchez (co-director)
This video is about a migrant worker who sends her mother back home bringing a taste of a ‘better life’ at all cost.
“Homebound is a humorous, engaging, and ironic short film told from the perspective of a letter sent home by an overseas worker through the family matriarch traveling alone, along with a variety of imported goods and explicit instructions on how the care package is to be divided among their extended family. Sanchez and Manalo create a simple, yet affectionate and culturally intimate film on obligation, family, ingenuity, and resourcefulness.”
– filmref.com/2017/program-8-who-do-you-love
Homebound has won three International awards for best experimental film.
2005 ‘Homebound’ Best Short Film – National Geographic ASEAN Film Festival, USA
2004 ‘Homebound’ Best Experimental Film – San Diego Asian American Film Festival, USA
2004 ‘Homebound’ Best Short Film – Cine Manila International Film Festival, Philippines