Through video, students retell Battle of Tres de Abril story
Students of two universities recently got to learn about the 1898 Battle of Tres de Abril in Spanish-time Cebu when they produced a video that retells the story of the victorious event.
Palm Grass Hotel, with Hong Kong-based video creator Prospero Laput of Asia-Pacific Focus Features, led workshops on motion graphics and video creation participated in by selected students of the University of the Philippines Cebu and University of San Carlos.
The workshops last March 3 and 4 at Palm Grass Hotel produced two videos on the Tres de Abril Uprising.
A product of a half-day workshop, the first video, “Padayon, Sizts! (#KilatLove4Cebu)”, is written, directed and acted by UP and USC students, and is a modern retelling of what happened in the uprising 120 years ago.
Shot in interesting places in Cebu City, the second video, “Suroy-Saysay (A Tres de Abril heritage walk)”, is a light but probing conversation with Leon Kilat book author Emil Justimbaste regarding the heroes and events of the 1898 Cebu Revolution.
The videos were released last April 3, during Palm Grass Hotel’s grand opening anniversary with the theme “Sayaw, Singgit, Saulog sa Unang Tuig Sa Palm Grass”, which is also the 120th year of the Battle of Tres de Abril.
Palm Grass facilitated the remembrance of the historic Tres de Abril uprising by hosting and leading the community, especially the youth, in creative ways to relive this nearly forgotten period in Cebu history.
The participating students immersed in activities like location shooting at areas where the battle happened and at streets named after Cebu Katipunan leaders such as Leon Kilat, C. Padilla and Luis Flores Streets.
“We are trying to bring and relate bits of history to things that are very Cebuano like street walks, tartanilya rides, puso-making, and arnis,” Laput explained.
UP Mass Communications student Decelle Marie Suarez thanks Palm Grass The Cebu Heritage Hotel “for the opportunity to be a part of the Tres De Abril shoot celebrating the historic battle of the Cebuano Katipuneros under General Leon Kilat. With the recent issues and the headlines, it’s essential to look back on our Cebuano heritage now more than ever.”
USC Fine Arts student, Francis Duane Branzuela said, “We have lots of things to learn from this activity. From being an actor for yesterday’s film shooting at Palm Grass Hotel, to being a production crew member for today’s documentary video shooting at Tres de Abril St. to Colon Bridge, it’s just an awesome opportunity for me.”
Palm Grass Hotel named its floors, suite rooms, signature dishes and drinks to honor the sacrifices of the 1898 Cebu freedom-fighters and to inspire today’s generation of their legacy.