Ninoy Aquino as seen through the lens of Vince Tañada
How can you tell the story of former Sen. Benigno S. Aquino Jr. without the Marcoses?
The question was intended for Vince Tañada, writer and director of the film Ako Si Ninoy.
The last time Vince and I saw each other was pre-pandemic days. Between 2020 and the present, a lot of things happened, including his producing films that gave Filipinos a glimpse of the historic past.
I had the opportunity to visit Vince at his residence several days ago and we had the pleasure of exchanging stories. We also talked about his films Katips and Ako Si Ninoy.
Vince, who is the founder of Philippine Stagers Foundation (Philstagers), disclosed that Ako Si Ninoy was a stage play he did in 2009. He was commissioned by the Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Foundation to do a play about Ninoy, which he presented through a musical.
Vince recalled former Pres. Cory Aquino made a request to not just write things about the Aquinos but also about the Filipinos. It prompted him to veer away from doing a biopic or a bioplay.
“It was actually a mixture of the past and the present. I have 11 modern-day heroes (characters) who believe in the principles of Ninoy and I incorporated them into the story,” he said. “Ayokong tingnan si Ninoy bilang bayani kundi isang prinsipyo o modelo na dapat nating tularan and through these 11 modern-day heroes — the doctor, teacher, OFW, student and senior citizen, among others — (they) reflect the life of Ninoy because we need to be able to relate to that concept that’s already gone, namatay na.”
The stories of the 11 fictional characters in the film, he added, were all based on facts and were researched by historians. He also sought the assistance of Rebecca Quijano, the lone witness to the assassination of Ninoy, to closely capture in the film what transpired during the tragic incident.
The film, Vince clarified, had no intention of creating any tension. “Hindi nakikipag-away ang pelikula. Wala kaming Marcos (character).”
I directly asked him how can he tell the story of Ninoy without the Marcoses, to which Vince replied, “Everybody was asking me that kaya lamang natapos na tayo doon sa lahat ng dokumentaryo. Gusto ko na muna ihiwalay si Ninoy.”
Curious minds couldn’t help but wonder whether Vince’s films were intentionally shown alongside that of director Darryl Yap’s films or merely coincidental.
“P’wedeng nagkataon, p’wedeng sinadyang isabay. It’s also possible that I intentionally did it or it was them who deliberately picked the same playdates as that of my two films. (It was) way back in 2016 when I finished writing Katips and then, I made it into a film (in 2021),” he shared. “At sinadya kong isabay sa Maid in Malacañang kasi nararamdaman ko na china-challenge tayo ng Maid in Malacañang at kailangan nito ng kasabay para mabigyan ng option ang tao kung ano ang dapat nilang panoorin.”
He felt victorious over the result of Katips. Vince said many would send him letters telling how the film changed their views while others said that through the film, he was able to fight for the families of desaparecidos.
With Ako Si Ninoy, Vince said he decided to adapt the play into a film after a number of memes about Ninoy trended on Twitter. “Si Ninoy daw ang mastermind ng Plaza Miranda bombing. Si Ninoy daw ang leader ng CPP-NPA, among other things. That prompted me to have a screen adaptation of the play and I really intended for its playdate to coincide with the EDSA People Power anniversary. I was the first to announce the playdate. Hindi ko sinabayan si Darryl kung anuman ang playdate niya, hindi ko siya hinintay.”
Aside from his being an actor, director, writer and producer, Vince is also a lawyer. He’s been using his earnings for the past 20 years from his legal practice in producing films and staging musical plays.
“I’ve been writing for 30 years now. I did theater in New York and I also worked as a stage manager in the US. But my mom literally forced me to come back and finish my legal education and as an obedient son, I came back.” said Vince, a member of the prominent political Tañada clan.
“The day after I passed the bar exam, I told my parents that I really have to follow my passion and that’s when I established Philstagers. Well, they said that it’s not financially rewarding but I’ve been telling them it’s all right for me to be poor in material wealth but I don’t want to be poor in spirit,” narrated Vince, whose mom was initially opposed to his idea of seriously working in film and theater but eventually became an instant fan.
Vince is also a professor at San Beda teaching Labor Law and Humanities.
“I’ve been teaching since 1997. Siguro, Tito Boy, jaded na ko bilang artist. I have transcended from being an artist to becoming an educator and that is also the reason why I am actually using theater as a powerful tool to educate our young people,” he concluded.
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