Black Sky
This film is about a woman's body in constant transition.
About how our bodies are reconfigured through pain - the kind that only we know about.
About how pain determines our identity as a woman - menstruation, childbirth, perimenopause, menopause.
About how we navigate the world with our new identities - even the ones we don't completely understand.
This film is about my body in constant transition.
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Jen J. BalberonaDirector
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Jen J. BalberonaWriter
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Bakunawa ProductionsProducer
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Allan BalberonaSound and Editing
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Project Type:Documentary, Experimental, Short
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Runtime:9 minutes 9 seconds
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Completion Date:March 23, 2018
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Country of Origin:Philippines
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Country of Filming:Philippines
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Shooting Format:Digital
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Black & White and Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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Festival De Cine Paz MindanaoZamboanga
Philippines
December 3, 2019
Philippine
Special Jury Prize -
Cinema Rehiyon 12Naga City, Camarines Sur
Philippines
February 25, 2019
Philippine
Official Selection -
Gawad Urian Awards Nominee for Best Short Film 2020Manila
Philippines -
Festival International Signes de Nuit 2020Paris
France
October 1, 2020
International
Official Selection -
Pista ng Pelikulang PilipinoManila
Philippines
October 31, 2020
Philippine
Official Selection _ Regional Shorts
Jen J. Balberona (1975) Graduated from University of Santo Tomas with a Bachelor's Degree of Fine Arts major in Advertising. She is a filmmaker, producer, and co-founder of Bakunawa Productions, an independent creative production house based in the Philippines.
Her first short, SIGBIN, showcased her signature style of interspersing still images and video into her works. It screened at the 2017 International Short Film Festival in Oberhausen, Germany as part of The One Minute film series "Nightmares of the Sun" curated by Khavn Dela Cruz.
Currently, she’s filming her first documentary regarding women’s right in the Philippines all through Duterte’s rule.
To quote Magnolia Miller, women’s health advocate and founder of The Perimenopause Blog,
"It is a frightening thing to feel so totally out of control of your body and your emotions. It causes no end of despair for many women.”
Through this film, I wanted to share my own experience of how I’m (still) coming to terms with my own body as it undergoes changes - both welcome and unwelcome - as I go through perimenopause.
And for other women going through perimenopause to know that they are (1) perfectly normal and (2) they are not alone. It’s just our bodies communicating that a better version of our self is coming.