Ibong Adarna (Adarna Bird). 1941. Philippines. Written and directed by Vicente Salumbides. With Mila Del Sol, Fred Cortes, Ester Magalona. DCP. Courtesy ABS-CBN Sagip Pelikula. In Filipino; English subtitles. 124 min.
One of the few prewar LVN Pictures movies to survive, Ibong Adarna was released in October 1941, just two months before Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor and its invasion of the Philippines. A costume drama involving the legend of the magical Adarna bird, whose singing scenes are said to have been hand-tinted in color, this popular genre film was later remade by studio favorite Manuel Conde, whose Genghis Khan was featured in an edition of MoMA’s To Save and Project preservation festival.
Ibong Adarna (Adarna Bird) will be preceded by a compilation of color scenes from 1950s Filipino movies. Filmmaker Mike De Leon has created this brief but hypnotic compilation of ANSCO color sequences from now-lost 1950s Filipino musicals and costume dramas produced by LVN Pictures, his grandmother Doña Sisang’s movie studio. 8 min.
Program 132 min.
Please note, little survives of the film library of LVN studios, and what does survive is generally in poor condition. We nonetheless present these rare films so that New York audiences can experience them for the first time.