New book Are You Still Watching? from the Ateneo Press offers an intimate look into the world of Philippine television and film
The entertainment industry is an often wild and sometimes wondrous arena. A lot goes on behind the movie and television magic. A new release from the Ateneo University Press, Are You Still Watching? Dispatches and Essays on Filipino Cinema and TV by Don Jaucian, provides in-depth film journalism that plucks people from behind the screen and brings them closer to the reader, allowing them to see the tenderness of their humanity as well as the intricacies of the industry as it grapples with the digital years and the streaming era.
From fly-on-the-wall accounts of a rom-com’s premiere night to an intimate reportage of an encounter with a National Artist for Film, Are You Still Watching? is both expansive and intimate in its approach to its subject. Jaucian’s writing is immersive and engrossing; he’s not just stating facts and figures, he’s leading the reader into the world of film and television, offering a unique and analytical perspective into its machinations. He takes great care in spotlighting the compelling voices of those who have dedicated their lives to its development, from filmmakers and actors to film workers. The book showcases a journey through the trends and preoccupations of Filipino film and television in the 2010s, piercing through the shining lights of the screen to uncover little-known truths and difficult realities.
For journalist and film critic, Lé Baltar, the author breathes life into film reportage: “Jaucian’s writing style — which migrates between profiles, reviews, Q&As, and reportage, varying in length as in thought — is accessible, deft, and never unruly.” This sentiment is further emphasized by screenwriter and producer, Moira Lang, who states that “Jaucian’s unhurried, unadorned prose is a welcome counterpoint to the often frantic, sometimes toxic, and always maddening world that he writes this love letter to. Philippine moviemaking is choking under the pressure of the new order in entertainment delivery; Are You Still Watching? points to what could well be the antidote—adherence to data, sober analysis, and an inordinate love for cinema.”
A must-read for film enthusiasts and anyone interested in Philippine cinema, Are You Still Watching? is an informative and insightful exploration of the entertainment industry, one that will surely inspire you to support local television and films.
About the Author
Don Jaucian is the author of Brief Histories, a nonfiction prose finalist in the 41st National Book Awards. He was the founding editor-in-chief of CNN Philippines Life and served as editor for Exploding Galaxies. He is currently the Philippine consultant for the Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy.
Are You Still Watching? Dispatches and Essays on Filipino Cinema and TV by Don Jaucian is published by the Ateneo de Manila University Press under the Bughaw imprint. The book retails at PHP 625 and is available at the Ateneo University Press Bookshop in Bellarmine Hall, and the Press’s official Lazada and Shopee stores.
