IN HEAVEN THEY SING KARAOKE
In Heaven They Sing Karaoke is the story of an undocumented Filipino living in Australia. Desperate for the love of his life Dulce, he asks his best friend to marry her bringing her to Australia on a spouse Visa. The best man at his lover's wedding, he hustles becoming a drug dealer and passing the point of no return.
For the last two years, my mission has been to reflect the unseen realities for diasporic Filipino (and other neighbouring Asian communities) in Melbourne. This work is personal, traumatic but also essential. What does it mean to be Filipino? What does it mean to be Australian? These are questions that I confront head-on. I know there are people out there who are just like me who are searching also. I love this story because it's proudly Filipino and Australian, but doesn't take the easy path to be either...
When I saw Lino Brocka's Maynila in the claws of light at the 2013 Melbourne International Film Festival, I was deeply moved. Growing up I'd seen the screwball comedies of Dolphy, amongst Filipino melodramas at my Lolo (Grandfathers) house on VHS, but being in the cinema was different. At the time a young filmmaker, I had no idea how much influence this would on me. Two years later I'd be filming my VCA Master's graduation film in the red light district of Manila with Andrew Leavold (The Search For Weng Weng) producing. I'd start to find my voice here. My vision is the diasporic extension of the new wave Filipino cinema. I'm influenced by the Filipino melodrama's, I love B-cinema, but I also understand that to reference a style is all in vain if there is no substance. In Heaven They Sing Karaoke is deeply personal (like many of my films) because it uses both cinematic history and personal history to ask the question 'What is the Filipino?' I know my mother married my father to get out of poverty and to possibly escape a fate like our hero's in Lino Brocka's Maynila, but what is the next chapter? I make films because of a creative impulse and no matter how far I run away, I always end up referencing my Pinoy identity. I find solace in knowing the Filipino new wave cinema of Lav Diaz, Khavn De La Cruz, Raya Martin and others also use cinematic language in unique ways to tell stories. These stories of our past can influence the future, and I’m looking forward towards the future generations.
Status: Post -production
85 mins / 2022 / Philippines / Australia
Produced by Carlo Valenzona, Felino Dolloso & Matthew Victor Pastor
Written & Directed by Matthew Victor Pastor
Associate Producers Evangeline Lee, Daniel Schultheis, Selina Zhang & Dulce Aguilar
Music by Andrew Tran (Fergus Cronkite)
Starring: Felino Dolloso, Lilibeth Munar, Alfred Nicdao & Celina Yuen
In Heaven They Sing Karaoke is deeply linked to the themes that are happening in society. It's about the migrants who are currently stuck in a society that doesn't value them. Its about isolation, our characters living in fear from the real virus of prejudice in our society. It's a heartbreaking account of how these situations occur.
Filipino American writer & founder of FACINE Mauro Feria Tumbocon Jr has said:
"There are really very few diasporic Filipino's working actively as filmmakers - my estimate would be most are in the US - and it is important to note that there is one in Australia currently making his name, Matthew Victor Pastor."