I chanced upon De La Salle Bacolod alumnus Lawrence Fajardo at the Christmas party of internationally acclaimed director Brillante Ma. Mendoza.
Lawrence is a film artist who has collaborated with Brillante in some of his movies.
Fajardo’s wife, Krisna, is Mendoza’s Supervising Producer in many of his projects, the latest of which is “Chameleon,” a foray into the lives of Filipino transgender entertainers in Japan in the 80s and 90s.
At the party, Law had a litany of his not-so-happy experiences in showbiz but those are separate stories.
At the moment, he is pushing for a National Artist for Film recognition for his mentor, the late Peque Gallaga (“Oro, Plata, Mata” “Scorpio Nights” etc.).
“Siya ang nagturo sa akin ng filmmaking. Malaki ang utang na loob ko sa kanya. Ang dami nang mga naging National Artist na kasabay niya pero hindi pa niya nasusungkit ito (He was the one who taught me filmmaking. I owe a lot to him. He had many contemporaries in the arts who have gained the National Artist award but he hadn’t hooked it),” explained Fajardo.
“Ang alam ko, may mga nagno-nominate sa kanya pero laging hindi nakakalusot (I know he has been nominated many times but all unsuccessful),” lamented Lawrence.
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