DOXA: ASWANG

May 6 - 16

In modern day Manila, citizens are dying every day, their deaths a consequence of President Rodrigo Duterte’s pledge to end drug trafficking in the Philippines at any cost. This remorseless promise has set off a wave of extrajudicial killings since Duterte’s election in 2016—more than 20,000 men, women and children were killed in Duterte’s first two years alone.

Alyx Ayn Arumpac’s film reframes the horrors of Duterte’s war on drugs through the myth of the Aswang—a shapeshifter common in Filipino folklore that preys on humans, brutally and senselessly. The film brings the creature to life, surveying the carnage left in its wake: a worker sweeps blood down the street; a six-year-old boy fends for himself while his mother sits in jail; funeral homes fill with corpses. Traveling through neighborhoods and revealing the cruelty and corruption of drug enforcement police, Aswang explores the devastating toll the drug war has taken in Manila. To those who have lost their loved ones and suffered under Duterte’s bloodshed, the Aswang is everywhere.

Year: 2019
Runtime: 85 minutes
Language: Filipino
Country: Philippines
Director: Alyx Ayn Arumpac

About DOXA

Mission:

To support a better understanding of the complexity of our times through engaging the public in documentary media as an art form.

DOXA is committed to:

• Cultivating curiosity and critical thought
• Promoting the intersection of actuality and artistic expression
• Fostering a local and international community interested in non-fiction media

Mandate:

DOXA is presented by The Documentary Media Society, a Vancouver based non-profit, charitable society (incorporated in 1998) devoted to presenting independent and innovative documentaries to Vancouver audiences. The society exists to educate the public about documentary film as an art form through DOXA Documentary Film Festival, a curated and juried festival comprised of public screenings, panel discussions, public forums and educational programs.

The Documentary Media Society is a founding member tenant of the 110 Arts Co-op which manages The Post at 750 office and studio facilities.

The Documentary Media Society is located on the traditional and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. 

DOXA (pronounced dox'-ah) is a greek word meaning common belief or popular opinion. 

Audience Partner

• SFU David Lam Centre