Tumatawa Umiiyak (2023)

"A young boy's afternoon walk with his grandfather in search of flowers brings him to the more upscale part of the city that frowns upon them."

Tumatawa, Umiiyak is an animated short about a man's recollections of a bygone afternoon involving him and his grandfather as they traverse their old neighborhood into other parts of the city in order to pick flowers for school. Along the way, they play games with each other to pass time and bear the afternoon heat. From the narrow streets of the baranggay, they arrive at the nearby business district where high-rise buildings stood and the seemingly out-of-place cemetery lies. It is a cemetery for the rich – with vast greenery and a peaceful atmosphere in contrast to the bustle of the streets outside. The film is a meditation on the first blossoming of class consciousness on a young mind and the pivotal effects these memories have on shaping who we are now.

Che TagyamonDirector