Using the folklore of the Philippines and the manananggal, this 2023 short film comes in at around thirteen minutes and was directed by Kristine Gerolaga.
It follows Gemma (Hanna Lorica) who, as we meet her, is in her room and is clearly pregnant. She takes a covering from a cross and prays for help but it falls, the figure of Christ breaking and bleeding – though when she looks again the blood is gone.
She calls her cousin Sophia (voiced by Kristine Gerolaga) as she looks at abortions (she will, of course, have been too far gone) but State law requires permission from her parents. Memories come of her mother (Ina Dahilig) and father (Rhandy Torres) lecturing her on promiscuity but also suggesting that the unkempt house down the road contained a woman (Maria Lingbanan) who is rumoured to be a manananggal, they called her mosquito lady.
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| the manananggal |
She has looked at the legend of the manananggal online – we see a thing that says if she is touched by sunlight whilst disconnected from her legs she’ll die – and we also get memories of them saying that Sophia had been attacked by her and nearly died (and that the creature tried to get Gemma whilst her mother carried her). Nevertheless, desperate, Gemma leaves her house and heads to the house down the street…
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| ripped wings |
What occurs in their interaction is for you to discover through the short but I wanted to mention the blood graffiti that begs for forgiveness, by her wings that have been ripped off and stuck to the wall (presumably self-inflicted). I thought that was an interesting touch that I would really have enjoyed learning more about. However, this is a great little short and worth your time.
The imdb page is here.
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