Ignacio de Loyola: The Sound of Transformation
"Ignacio de Loyola" is a local rendition of the life of the patron saint of the Jesuits and soldiers. Directed by Paolo Dy and produced by Jesuit Communications Philippines, it is proudly Filipino and to add to that, it is the first ever Filipino film to be shown in the Vatican.
The story revolves around the transformation of Ignacio (who is portrayed by Andre Muñoz) from a wealthy, courageous, and to an extent, selfish captain, into a homeless servant devoting his life to poverty and service to Christ. He was a very persevering person, because he had nearly faced death three times in his life, as his practices were considered by the tribune to be unorthodox and going against the rules of the church, but he didn’t let these trials define who he was and he wanted to fight for what he really believed in. In the end, being the leader that he is, he was able to influence a lot of people and establish one of the most influential religious orders of the church--The Society of Jesus.
Watching this movie was a really nice experience not just for me, but for the entire Ateneo Blue Eagles as well, as we were given the chance to watch the movie in a one-time premiere show in SM Baguio along with other Jesuits and followers of St. Ignatius. Being in a cinema, we were blessed with beautiful acoustics, which enhanced our listening experience.
This, to me, is a vital key in making a play or a movie more emotionally captivating, because when your emotions are in sync with the music breezing through the background, it makes the experience even better. Some people might think that sound may not be that important when it comes to the film, but really, sound is as important as the visual aspects of the movie. Being a low-cost movie, it wasn’t really given the liberty to enhance its visual effects, therefore it stuck to what was tangible and that was the soundtrack of the movie.
This is where Ryan Caybyab’s part in the movie comes in crucial. He was in charge of writing and composing the score of the film. I think that he did a pretty good job in incorporating the music with the movie. The scene of the dance of Catalina and Ignacio was my favorite part of the movie, because it was really captivating and I really felt the emotion and the magic in scene. One trivia about this scene is that it was mostly the Spanish guitar used in the music, as they were doing a Spanish dance.
To put things into conclusion, the movie was able to utilize the low budget, and they stuck with what was tangible--the production was able to maximize it.
*Article written by Ferdinand C. Ravena III, edited and published by Ramon Nario.
Photo from:
https://www.facebook.com/ignaciomovie