Every OrSem is marked with the anticipation of a new O-Film. Unbeknownst to the average Atenean, however, the O-Film dates back to the mid-2000s and there is still an ongoing debate about which O-Film stands out the most from the roster.

Transitioning into a new school environment is difficult. But nothing eases stress or fear better than a laugh, some good advice, and the reassurance that others are going through the same motions as you are. All of these are wrapped in a bundle of jokes, endearing characters, and campus traditions shown on a silver screen, through
the O-Film.

The Orientation Seminar (OrSem) marks the beginning of every Ateneo freshman’s journey. On these two days, the OrSem Committee and the upperclassmen must introduce and welcome them into the Atenean community. Meanwhile, the Loyola Film Circle (LFC) prepares their part in the initiation: The OrSem Film, or the O-Film for short. Each year, the LFC Production Core must come up with this comedic short film to give the incoming freshmen at the OrSem a taste of the experiences they can expect in the Ateneo.

From drafting the screenplay, to the struggles of shooting, and finally to a successful premiere, the work that goes into these films is done with dedication. However, like any other production crew, the LFC faces many struggles during the filming process. Expectations continue to increase for the LFC every year. Crewmembers constantly strive to further improve the O-Films—and themselves in the process– for it has become the staple of the freshman initiation. Those behind the scenes strive to make sure they don’t disappoint.

Time lapse

The O-Film’s origins have become obscured by time. Even this year’s O-Film director, Cloie Hilomen, mentions how the responsibility for making the O-Film only fell to the LFC “around [the] mid 2000s.” But of course, even then, the essential aspects of the film’s production had already come into being.

Every O-Film is created to spoof a popular film that the members of the LFC decide on, which is usually a comedy. According to Miguel Feria, co-director of the 2013 O-Film Katipunan Jump Street, the script is written months in advance and the shooting is carried out during the intersession semester.

Regarding his own O-Film, he says, “We spent one to two months working on the script, [and] April was when we shot it.” The way the films are created allows the crew to make recognizable references and spoofs yet at the same time unleash their creativity in shooting their films.

The recent O-Films have followed this direction with a lot of success. Hilomen makes mention of some O-Films that have grown on her. “My favorites—personal lang—would have to be Scott Pilgrim-Santos, and also Katipunan Jump Street. Those are my top faves of the O-Films I’ve seen.”

John Peter Chua, assistant director for this year’s O-Film, says that in this year’s edition however, they lacked time and had a number of production problems. “Kulang ng oras. [T]he script was given late. Pero when you compare [Katipunan School of Rock] to this year’s O-film, I guess nagi-improve na siya,” says Chua. While there are a few issues with this year’s O-Film, only time will tell how this year’s edition will fare amongst OrSem’s ever-increasing collection of O-Films.

Jump cut

To bring a film to life, the LFC members go through a systematic process that allows each creative staff to contribute input. According to Chua, it starts with a story decided on by the scriptwriters and officers of the organization. It is then written into script form, and given to the production head. After, the production head creates a “vision” or an interpretation of how they wish to convey the story to their viewers.

This vision becomes what the director and assistant director must instill in the minds of the cast and crew, The director of photography will then make sure the vision is “aesthetically pleasing” or clean-cut and error free. The footage goes to the editor who produces the final cut for the film.

This process does not always run smoothly, however. Problems with scheduling, communication, and personal affairs can arise. Hilomen notes, “The weather [was a problem] kasi it was raining a lot, so we couldn’t film.” There were also challenges in terms of the crew’s dynamic. “You have to feel your way with other people, because you have to know them first. You can’t just automatically [click],” Hilomen shares.

According to Chua, he himself joined the production a little too late. Because of this, him and his co-workers’ expectations initially clashed. Fortunately, they overcame their differences as time passed on. “Pero yun, sa latter part, [doon] naging [maganda] yung shooting [namin] (It was during the latter part that our shoot began to look good),” he says. “We were all on the same page.”

The film is then presented to the OrSem committee, to get the initial reactions of the viewers. And finally, it is presented to the target audience: The freshmen. Hilomen exclaims that this was a proud moment for her, especially after hearing positive feedback from the audience.

“I was really proud, because they found it funny. My friends would tell me about their freshmen relatives or friends who say, ‘Oh the O-Film was really good,’” Hilomen shares. Feria says, “It’s very surreal when you’re in the Irwin Theatre, and there’s a thousand people laughing at the jokes you made and laughing at stuff you didn’t think was funny.”

The epilogue

Both the successes and difficulties that arose during the making of an O-Film contribute to the improvement of LFC members for their future films. While one cannot truly replicate the glory of the past O-Films, a lot can be learned from them.

Chua believes that the 2011 O-Film, Katipunan Jump Street, stood out the most in terms of aesthetic, vision, script, and overall production design. He justifies this by explaining how everything was planned and done deliberately for the film. “Hindi lang yung ‘Uy, may gamit dyan. Ilagay natin sa scene’ (It wasn’t just like ‘hey, there’s something here. Let’s add it to the scene’),” he says. “No, they literally had to put a desk [and a cabinet] in the Zen Garden just to [simulate] AISIS, the student website.”

Although Scott Pilgrim-Santos was her personal favorite, Hilomen agrees with Chua and adds that she took some inspiration from Katipunan Jump Street and borrowed certain ideas for Sibol War. “I think for this O-Film, we took more elements from Katipunan Jump Street. We really liked it,” she says. “I also think it’s because of the humor in Katipunan Jump Street. It did its job. It not only introduces the Ateneo to the freshmen, but it entertains, which is one of the movie’s [objectives], and I really love it.”

The future of the O-Film looks sunny with all the experiences from producing this year’s iteration. “This year’s O-Film is like a stepping-stone,” says Chua. “It’s not the best that we can do yet [as an organization] kasi we are yet to bloom [as the] filmmakers and film practitioners that we ought to be.”

Chua makes a rather relevant reference to this year’s OrSem theme, “Sibol,” which in Tagalog means, “to bloom.” Both he and Hilomen are excited to see the talents of the new applicants entering the organization this year. With a little improvement and their relentless passion, the LFC just might blossom with numerous great O-Films in the coming years.