Manila 1945: The Rest of the Story

“It is by remembering the lessons we’ve learned from the past and applying them to the present that we can prepare for the future.” A quote from Manila 1945: The Rest of the Story, and possibly the key answer to anyone who’s still wondering why it is relevant to study history today.

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Photo grabbed from Spyron-AV Manila’s Facebook page

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On June 6, 2015, Philippine Primer attended the special screening of this award-winning World War II documentary at the U-View Room of Fully Booked Bonifacio High Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

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The audience, captivated by the film (Photo grabbed from Spyron-AV Manila’s Facebook page)

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Manila 1945: The Rest of the Story tackles what the war has done to us as a people and poses questions about patriotism, love of countrymen and survival. It ties together the past and the present by combining modern animation sequences, special effects and score that appeal to younger audiences with World War II sound clips, footage and photographs as well as recent interviews from veterans and survivors. The events in Manila before, during and immediately after the Second World War are made easier to understand, without compromising the complexity of the situations that the Filipino citizens, civilians, government and military officials alike had to deal with at the time.

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Prof. Xiao Chua and Dr. Ricardo T. Jose, sharing their thoughts about the film.

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Viewers of this screening—students, professors, and even some family members of both local and foreign World War II veterans, were treated to a Q&A session with director Bani Logrono and historians Prof. Xiao Chua from De La Salle University and Dr. Ricardo T. Jose from the University of the Philippines. They answered questions not just about the film but the Second World War in general. They also recommended other films, websites and printed material that can help anyone who would like to learn more about pre- and post-war Manila.

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Article and photos by Ida Irigo