UBE Express to Offer Free Rides Around Araneta Center for 3 Weekends

Wazzup Pilipinas! Starting August 18, UBE Express will offer free rides to the public going around Araneta Center via its articulated bus for three straight weekends. Starting August 18, UBE Express will offer free rides to the public going around Araneta Center via its articulated bus for three straight weekends. The articulated buses will pick up and drop off passengers at the Araneta Center Bus Station, the Smart Araneta Coliseum Green Gate, the Ali Mall on General McArthur Avenue and the Manhattan Heights on General Romulo Avenue on August 18, 19, 25, 26 and September 1, 2 and 3. The scheduled dispatches are at 8 am, 10 am, 12 noon, 3 pm, 5 pm and 7 pm. These trips are a prelude to the upcoming launch of UBE Express’ premium point-to-point route that will run from Araneta Center to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport terminals 1, 2, 3 and 4, and back, which will be launched on September 3. UBE Express’ articulated buses are 61-feet tall and can accommodate up to 156 passengers. Meanwhile, Araneta Center’s environment-friendly e-shuttle services will remain in operation all days of the week from 12 noon to 9 p.m. The service, which picks up and drops off passengers at the Gateway Mall and Ali Mall, is a unique and free offering of Araneta Center to its shoppers and senior citizen visitors. At 35 hectares, the Araneta Center is one of the biggest mixed-use commercial hubs in the country. Visit www.aranetacenter.net for more details or follow our social media accounts: @aranetacenter on Facebook and Twitter and @thearanetacenter on Instagram.

DOST-SEI Boosts Scholarship Programs

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) revealed recent developments regarding its scholarship programs, which include an increase in the number of slots being offered and a higher monthly stipend rate for all its scholars.

DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Peña and DOST-SEI Director Josette Biyo made the announcement in a press conference held last July 18 at the Philippine International Convention Center in Manila. 

The event coincides with the celebration of the 2018 National Science and Technology Week (NSTW), which Biyo considers an opportune time to drum up the public’s interest in DOST’s scholarship program.

DOST-SEI recently posted the names of 8,994 new qualifiers for its undergraduate scholarships, the biggest batch since the program started in 1958. 

Biyo hopes to further increase the number of scholars being supported in by DOST-SEI from 20,618 in 2016 to a target number of 33,256 scholars for 2019.

Scholars will also benefit from the increased monthly stipend of 7,000 pesos per month from the previous amounts of 5,000 to 6,000 pesos. 

This is in addition to the 40,000 pesos per year tuition and other school fees subsidy, 10,000 pesos per year book allowance, one-time 1,000-peso uniform allowance; one-time 1,000-peso graduation allowance, one economy-class round trip fare per year for those studying outside their home province, and group insurance. 

“Through the new benefits in our scholarship program, we hope to get more scholars and graduates who will eventually work in S&T for the country,” de la Peña said.

Biyo acknowledged top scholar-graduates, Ruben James Rosal and John Kenneth Malilay, who joined the panel to share their experiences as DOST scholars. “The testimonies of our scholars are always the best proof of the effectiveness of our programs,” she said.

Interested Grade 12 students are encouraged to submit their applications for the 2019 DOST-SEI Undergraduate Science and Technology Scholarship until August 31, 2018. Examination will be on October 21, 2018. 

Incoming 3^rd year college students taking identified S&T programs are likewise invited to apply in the Junior Level Science Scholarship (JLSS) program. JLSS application ends on September 14, 2018. Examination is scheduled on October 20, 2018. For details, you may log on to www.sei.dost.gov.ph or email seischolarships@gmail.com.

Short Film on T'boli Tops CCP's Gawad Alternatibo

Wazzup Pilipinas!

A film about a T’boli dancer, who experiences a sudden turn of events in her pursuit of a good life for her family, bagged first prize in the Short Feature category and Best Regional Entry at the 30th Gawad CCP Para sa Alternatibong Pelikula at Video awards night held last August 6 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Tanghalang Manuel Conde.

Rufyla, Coleen Tanco‘s capstone project under the digital filmmaking program of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) School of Design and Arts (SDA) bested more than a hundred entries in the said category. The young filmmaker hails from Koronadal City, South Cotabato.

“Rufyla started when our house helper left us in her pursuit to get married to a foreigner. She is a 23-year-old girl who desired for a good life even if it took her to a red-light district in Manila. She believes that only a wealthy man can save her from poverty. As luck would have it, she nailed it,” the Benilde alumna explained when asked what inspired her to make her thesis film.

“I hope the film will create and build a language that helps delineate what it means to be living in a remote area in the southern part of the Philippines. I also hope that the film will root for the indigenous people and make everyone aware not to treat the Filipino culture like a worthless material,” Tanco added after learning about her twin victories.

In addition, other Benilde entries E and Ang Kabit ni Papa won honorable mention in the Experimental category. Directed by Benilde film alumnus, and now humanities and literature professor Jose Mojica, E zeroes in on a man who wakes up in an unfamiliar room and sees a mirror for the first time. By looking at himself, he discovers sexuality and sin.

Meanwhile, Ang Kabit ni Papa by Benilde film student Robin Estargo is an experimental drama which focuses on a boy’s recollection of memories of his father who works abroad. The film explores confined rooms and empty spaces, with an unending fear of being discovered for telling the uneasiness in this what-could-have-been relationship.

“Since I was born, my father has always traveled abroad to work with no other choice. We rarely see each other in a year, and whenever we do, we rarely talk. It is this separation that makes us move away from each other inch by inch through time, that there is this fear that our relationship in the future would be non-existent,” Estargo revealed.

“Through time, I have met friends who have Overseas Filipino Worker parents as well, with some having more unfortunate conditions than mine. This separation results to doubt, sparking conflict in the family, as the child does not know the distant lifestyle of the parent, and vice versa,” the young filmmaker concluded.

Rufyla is the first in BenildeFilm’s 10-year history to win the grand prize in the Gawad Alternatibo. The department came close to accomplishing the feat in 2018 when Benilde films dominated the 29th Gawad by bagging four of five awards, with the first prize going to Sa Saiyang Isla of Christian Candelaria from the University of the Philippines Film Institute.

Last year, Benildean filmmakers also shone in the Gawad Alternatibo’s Short Feature category. Alfonso Silva bagged second place for his short film Proxy. Andrea Arias and Mia Rosero placed third for their entry Auntwo Susan. Tim Rone Villanueva and Vince Sevillano got honorable mention awards for Santa Nena! and Ma’am La, respectively.

Rufyla is also among the short films that will compete at FACINE 25: The 25th Annual Filipino International Cine Festival from October 18 to 21 in San Francisco, California.
Established in 1987, Gawad Alternatibo is considered the longest-running independent film festival and competition of its kind in the ASEAN region. A few years ago, it became one of the major components of the annual Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival.

https://youtu.be/KQEdfMRBn8U