GORGY RULA
Ka-meeting ko si Lorna Tolentino nang nakarating sa amin ang balitang pumanaw na ang mahusay na direktor na si Mike de Leon noong Huwebes, August 28, 2025.
Nagulat ang aktres sa balita.
Read: Acclaimed director Mike de Leon dies
Naalala ni Lorna na nakatrabaho niya si Direk Mike sa pelikulang Hindi Nahahati ang Langit (1985) kung saan nakasama niya sina Christopher de Leon, Dina Bonnevie, at Edu Manzano.
Hindi makakalimutan ni Lorna ang experience niya kay Direk Mike dahil kilala raw talagang may kahigpitan ito.
Marami ang takot sa kanya, pati ang production staff, kaya hindi ganoon kadaling katrabaho ang namayapang direktor.
Pero nakikita sa mga obra ni Direk Mike ang pagiging perfectionist.
Patunay riyan ang mga obra niyang Itim (1976), Kung Mangarap Ka’t Magising (1977), Kakabakaba Ka Ba? (1980), Kisapmata (1981), Batch ‘81 (1982), Sister Stella L (1984), Bayaning 3rd World (1999), at Citizen Jake (2018).
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DIREK MIKE WAS CLOSE TO LORNA'S ELDEST SON
Nalaman naming malapit pala kay Direk Mike ang panganay na anak ni Lorna na si Rap Fernandez.
May komunikasyon sila dahil sa archiving na isa sa pinagkakaabalahan ni Rap.
“Ginawan ako ni Direk Mike ng DVD ng lahat ng pelikula ng lolo ko, si Gregorio Fernandez,” kuwento ni Rap sa PEP Troika.
“Naging kaibigan ko siya through yung right hand niya, si Cesar Hernando, kapatid ni Mario Hernando. Pumanaw na rin siya.”
Kasali si Rap sa Citizen Jake, ang huling pelikulang natapos ni Direk Mike.
Naging regular daw ang komunikasyon nila, na ang huling palitan nila ng text ay noong Mayo ng taong ito. Hindi na raw ito sumasagot nang tine-text niya.
Narinig daw niyang may sakit ang direktor.
Noong nagbakasyon sila sa Baguio kamakailan lang ay gusto pa raw niyang dalawin ang namayapang direktor, pero hindi na raw ito sumasagot sa kanyang text.
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JERRY OLEA
Bumuhos naman ang tributes mula sa mga nakatrabaho at kasamahan sa industriya ni Direk Mike de Leon kasunod ng kanyang pagpanaw.
JOEL TORRE
Facebook post today ni Joel Torre, na gumanap bilang Jose Rizal sa Bayaning 3rd World, at idinirek din ni Mike de Leon sa Bilanggo sa Dilim:
“What Mike De Leon Knows.
“What an Honor to Work with the Great Mike De Leon
“A Greater Honor when you called me ‘My Dear Friend Joel.’
“When you called me to have a Picture taken with you in the Hospital, he knows.
“When I visited You in your house and you cried and I hugged you, he knows.
“When I went to Baguio to visit you a day after your 78th Birthday we talked about everything and anything from Films to Family to Friendship to Gallows Humor, to Your Swan Song Movie, he knew.
“When I embraced you for the last time and softly said to you ‘I Love You Mike’
“I know he knows.
“Farewell and Thank you My Dear Friend Mike, for the Friendship and Bond that Goes Beyond.
“Rest in God’s Peace my Genius Friend.”
BIBETH ORTEZA
Salaysay ni Bibeth Orteza sa Facebook ngayong Biyernes: “Fainting on cue, for Mike de Leon
“Summer of 1977. On the night the ice cream parlor scene in Kung Mangarap Ka’t Magising was to be shot, Mike was antsy.
“Pancho Escaler and I asked him why so, and he said he had an argument with his dad, LVN top honcho Manuel de Leon, earlier that day.
“I suggested that he pack up that evening’s schedule, but he refused, saying he didn’t want his dad to feel he was affected by their earlier conversation.
“So when cinematographer Pancho went back to supervising the lighting set up, I whispered to our director: ‘I can faint on cue.’ He asked, ‘How?’
“Crossing over to the bar where Christopher de Leon, Danny Javier, Boboy Garovillo and I were supposed to be seated, I gestured to Mike how I could stand on tiptoe with one foot, and from there, glide down to the floor as if I’d really fainted.
“Mike first wanted to make sure I wouldn’t get hurt, and when I assured him I knew what I was doing, he whispered: ‘Just don’t get hurt, OK? And also, do your fainting bit before the scene starts, so we don’t have to pay the extras in the background.’
“I nodded. When Mike went ‘Motor!’ that was my cue. I ‘fainted,’ sliding down all the way to the floor.
“Shooting didn’t push through; Mike sent every one home except for Pancho, his secretary Marietta Sta. Juana and me, so that I could ‘rest.’”
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ELORA ESPANO
"Kuwentong MDL" ni Elora Españo ngayon ding Biyernes (published as is):
“Isa ako sa mga mapalad na nakasama pa sa kanyang comeback film Citizen Jake.
“Halos isang buwan din kaming tumira sa bagyo. Nagkaron sabi sabi na makakansela ang shoot, nagpalit ng AD, may mga bumaba, nagbago ang script, minulto sa accomodation, may natagpuang tunay na bangkay sa bangin, nagdance party sa Spade, nag craft beer, nasakay sa maling van, nanigas sa floor, nasabihang Olga Natividad, nag painom si direk. Roller Coaster talaga itong shoot na ito.
“Pero kakatwang isipin na nasaksihan namin ang isang henyo sa pagpepelikula na isa palang simpleng tao na tahimik ang buhay sa Baguio. Mahal na mahal niya ang kanyang aso si Max at para bang nakakailang henerasyon siya ng Belgian Malenois/ German Shepherd na Max din ang pangalan. Alagang alaga siya ng mga kapit bahay niya, laging sinisilip ang matanda.
“Kahit na akala ng marami ay matanda na siya na siya ay recluse, hindi siya ganun. Involve na involve siya, curious siya sa estado ng mga kasama niya.
“Estado ng industriya. Estado ng bansa. Natuto pa nga mag facebook para masabi niya saloobin niya sa ‘bagong henerasyon.’
“Gusto niyang kumonek sa ‘bagong henerasyon,’ hindi lang para mangaral kundi mag iwan ng aral at mapaunlad ang sarili para patuloy na makapag kwento pang muli.
“Kaya niya ginawa ang Unfinished love letter niya sa Philippine Cinema, nakasama pa ako sa shoot nila sa Pasig City Theater kaso di na talaga natapos ang pelikula dahil sa pandemya.
“After the pandemic, this was around late 2023, nakita kita sa Rob Mag, nag hi ako at laking gulat ko ng naalala pa niya ako. Tinanong niya kung marunong akong mag ilocano, may gusto siyang gawin pa.
“Sabi ko ‘kayang kayang mag aral.’ Yun na pala yung huli.
“Rest in Power direk Mike!
“Kami na ang papadayon…”
LUIS ALANDY
Facebook post ni Luis Alandy, na kasama rin sa cast ng Citizen Jake: "Maligayang paglalakbay mahal kong direktor! Salamat sa oportunidad na maging aktor mo, sa mga aral at higit sa lahat sa pagkakaibigan. Maraming salamat sa obra nyo direk Mike! Hanggang sa muli. Paalam, direk Mike."
VINCE TANADA
Pagpupugay ni Atty. Vince Tañada sa Facebook ngayong Agosto 29, Biyernes: “KAKABAKABA ako noong nalaman kong nawala ka ng isang KISAPMATA.
“Ngayon ay magsusuot ako ng ITIM at MANGANGARAP ako’t MAGIGISING na nar’yan ka pa rin at gagawa ng maraming obra. Sapagkat ikaw ang BAYANI ng THIRD WORLD cinema.
“Nagmamahal,
“CITIZEN X”
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NCCA PAYS TRIBUTE TO MIKE DE LEON
Facebook post ng National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) ngayong Biyernes:
“In Memoriam
“Mike de Leon
“Director, Cinematographer, Scriptwriter, and Film Producer (May 24, 1947-August 28, 2025)
“The National Commission for Culture and the Arts joins the nation in mourning the passing of Mike de Leon, a visionary filmmaker whose uncompromising artistry reshaped Philippine cinema.
“Born into the legendary LVN Pictures family, de Leon forged his own path with works that remain cornerstones of our cultural heritage. His debut Itim (1976) signaled the arrival of a filmmaker of rare sensitivity, while Kung Mangarap Ka’t Magising (1977) offered a lyrical meditation on love and memory.
“He went on to direct some of the most enduring films of our time—Kakabakaba Ka Ba? (1980), Kisapmata (1981), Batch ’81 (1982), and Sister Stella L. (1984) — each a courageous and unflinching portrayal of Filipino life under authoritarianism and social unrest.
“De Leon’s works were recognized both at home and abroad, cementing his place among the most important auteurs of the Philippines and Asia. Beyond his films, he was a staunch guardian of our cinematic legacy, leading restorations of classic Filipino films.
“Mike de Leon’s legacy is not only in the honors he received, but in the conscience he gave to cinema — a mirror of truth, memory, and nationhood. His light endures through the films he leaves behind.”
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NOEL FERRER
NICK DEOCAMPO
Noong Hunyo 6 ikinuwento ni Direk Nick Deocampo sa Facebook ang "A DATE WITH MIKE DE LEON."
Aniya: “I found a perfect date to celebrate my birthday last Wednesday. I was with film director Mike de Leon, known for his reclusive and temperamental nature.
“But there I was with him, enjoying every minute I had conversing with him. No wine, no greasy foods, not even a flower was shared. We just had a scintillating moment discussing his movies.
“I asked for a two-hour interview in preparation for a book I was writing on him but we clocked at two hours and forty-two minutes in our taped conversation. He never tired and did not ask for a break.
“It was I who asked for a time to have a sip of water. Two essays have already been written from an earlier interview I had with him at Mowelfund.
“The first, surprisingly, will come out in French first and not locally included. It will appear in a book of my essays that will be translated into that language.
“A common friend, Vincent-Paul Boncour of Carlotta Films based in Paris will publish my essays on contemporary Filipino cinema.
“I spent time discussing mostly Bayaning Third World, my personal favorite among his films and which I consider to be his most original work.
“It is one that stands in a class unto itself, one that’s apart from the conventional movies dominating local movie production. What makes it an astounding cinematic feat is the film’s use of signs.
“For what is cinema composed of, ontologically, but of visual and aural signs? It is the only Filipino film, I argue, made in mainstream industry that pursues intentionally a sign-driven narrative causing nonlinearity in its structure.
“It takes fragmentation as its aesthetic structuring principle, defying the drama-driven, plot-obsessed, conventional melodrama that is ubiquitous in local screens.
“Being sign-driven, this allows his film to progress by chasing the significance of the sign.
“Consider the many signs of Rizal pursued in the film — from matchsticks to monuments, funeral parlors to a bust of Rizal which is literally smashed on the floor, breaking into pulverized pieces.
“There goes the concept of heroism, too, broken and shattered. A lot may have missed his visual language but it is in this most unconventional of films that Mike ventures into the epistemological in cinema to bring out what is ‘cinematic,’ one that has eluded many local films, with few exceptions belonging to his generation of filmmakers like Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal and the ones that came before like Gerardo de Leon and Lamberto Avellana — although they still are tied to the dramatic, literary, narratology.
“By working on the significance of the signs in generating meaning, Mike’s films provide a wealth of cinematic accomplishments cutting through a swathe of themes that we value as nation, identity, patriotism, etc. making palpable what otherwise are abstract concepts.
“Courageously, too, Mike has seen the terrors of his time and has his movies to show for the courage he took to withstand the horrors of the past.”
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Ngayong araw ay nagpaalam si Direk Nick kay Direk Mike sa pamamagitan pa rin ng Facebook post.
Aniya: "It is hard to say goodbye to someone who has endeared himself to his admirers with his films.
"It was raining hard yesterday when I first knew about Mike de Leon’s passing, as if the heavens too were mourning.
"Mike was a gifted artist with a Midas touch turning every film he made into a unique cinematic experience. I am glad I met him and knew a little more of the legend.
"But while he has left the physical world, his films remain and he will always be remembered."