‘Filipinana’ Director Rafael Manuel on ‘White Lotus’ Comparisons, Jia Zhangke’s Influence and Making Violence Relatable

‘Filipinana’ Director Rafael Manuel on ‘White Lotus’ Comparisons, Jia Zhangke’s Influence and Making Violence Relatable

Rafael Manuel spent seven or eight years developing “Filipinana,” his debut feature about a teenage girl working at an elite Manila country club — years before HBO’s “The White Lotus” turned the luxury resort satire into prestige television gold. “I get the comparisons, of course, because ‘White Lotus’ is one of the biggest series ever […]

Berlin Hidden Gem: How ‘Filipiñana’ Director Rafael Manuel Turned a Golf Course Into a Portrait of Power and Complicity

The Filipino filmmaker's debut feature uses striking formalism — from its 4:3 aspect ratio to amplified sound design — to expose the brutal inequalities lurking beneath a Philippine country club's manicured calm.

“Rafael Manuel’s 𝐹𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑝𝑖𝑛̃𝑎𝑛𝑎: Beneath the Manicured Surface” by Nirris Nagendrarajah

All entries on SUNDANCE 2026 [SUNDANCE 2026] “Rafael Manuel’s Filipiñana: Beneath the Manicured Surface” by Nirris Nagendrarajah Rafael Manuel (director), Filipiñana, 2026. 100 min. A successful short does not necessarily yield a successful feature. One may add too little, exposing the material as slight, or too much, dissipating the concentrated force that made the shorter […]