Shot on Super-8, the feature debut by visual artist Shireen Seno shows authentic-looking images of a family on the Philippine island of Mindoro in the middle of the last century. The 'big boy' from the title is Julio, a boy who is pulled from both ends every day in order to stretch him. His growth has to provide evidence of the effect of a growth serum that his parents sell.
In the aftermath of World War II, the family finds a parachute with American goods, such as cans of food. In the former US colony, the discovery leads to an obsession with the American Dream - the dream of a different and better life.
Seno shows that the idea of typically close-knit family life in the Philippines is a myth. And the memories she portrays of a Filipino past are not only nostalgic, but also about the violence often hidden just below the surface.
- Director
- Shireen Seno
- Premiere
- International premiere
- Country of production
- Philippines
- Year
- 2012
- Festival Edition
- IFFR 2013
- Length
- 89'
- Medium
- DCP
- Language
- Tagalog
- Producers
- John Torres, Ronald Arguelles
- Production Company
- ABS-CBN Creative Programs Inc.
- Sales
- ABS-CBN Creative Programs Inc.
- Screenplay
- Shireen Seno
- Cinematography
- Gym Lumbera, Shireen Seno
- Editor
- Shireen Seno, John Torres
- Production Design
- Niki de los Reyes Torres
- Sound Design
- Teresa Barrozo, Manuel Nicolas Alvero
- Cast
- Pam Miras, Teresa Barrozo