BEING 2 COOL with Petersen Vargas

It was a warm January night when we got out of UP Cine Adarna theater after the Thursday screening of the film 2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten. The coming-of-age film starred Khalil Ramos, Jameson Blake and Ethan Salvador. Penned by Jason Paul Laxamana, the film was helmed by Petersen Vargas in his full length feature film debut. The coming-of-age film follows Felix Salonga, a friendless, eccentric overachiever in his second year of high school who's life changed after meeting the Snyder Brothers, Magnus (Ethan Salvador) and Maxim (Jameson Blake) Film-Am transferees to his school. The film was part of the 2016 Cinema One Originals film festival where it won Best Film. “Sentimentality and sociopathy strike a delicate balance in the exquisitely rendered romance involving two brothers and a nerd. Lit, written, acted, and directed with equal parts lushness and restraint, cinema one originals 2016’s best film is sexy, serene, and memorable" - that was the jury citation for the film as it won the highly coveted Best Film Award, alongside the honor for Best Cinematography and Best Supporting Actor for Jameson Blake. (Check out my own review of the film here )

Director Petersen Vargas after the screening of his full lenght feature debut
at the Cine Adarna, UP Film Center, UP Diliman last January 2017.

Petersen Vargas started making short films and music videos (one of my favorite is his MV for BP Valenzuela's Steady) before he won the Cinemamalaya 2015 Best Direction award for his short film Lisyun Qng Geografia. Vargas was cited for his “effective harnessing of the technical elements of filmmaking in telling a simple story” of a boy who finds an old map that triggers him to retrace the places that are special to him and his high school best friend. And last year, he made his full length feature debut in the 2016 Cinema One Originals Film Festival entry with 2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten. He's actually one of my favorite film directors of all time because of his film 2 Cool. And I am an avid follower of his web series Hanging Out (produced by Team MAG) which has recently finished it's first season. After the screening, me and some students got a chance to have a short talk with director Petersen and ask him about his film.

Me: How many days did you shoot the film?

Petersen: Mga 8 shooting days. 

Me: From a scale of 1 to 10, how hard was the whole process of completing the film?

Petersen: 100! (laughs)

Me: Wow. That hard?

Petersen: Hindi. Mahirap talaga gumawa ng pelikula, kahit anong pelikula pa siya. (No. It's really hard to make a film, whatever type of film it is)

Me: But when you saw the final product of your work, what's the first thing that popped in your mind?

Petersen: Ah, dissatisfied (laughs) I think lagi ka na lang madi-dissatisfied sa end product. Pero I guess dahil parang may deadline... kailangang matapos. (I think you will always get dissatisfied with your end product. But I guess it's because you have a deadline... you just wanted to finish it)

Me: Back to the movie itself, I noticed that the color blue seems like a primary motif in the film as there were a lot of scenes where it is present. Was it just coincidence or was that part of your design?

Petersen: Hmmm... Hindi ko alam (I don't know). I guess I just like the color blue. (laughs) Wala naman siyang masyadong importance. (It doesn't really have so much importance) But I mean, we carefully choose naman the things that we put there.

Me: What can you tell those aspiring filmmakers that doesn't know where to actually start achieving their dreams of creating their own films?

Petersen: Wow. Right. Ano lang, learn to love film. Kasi di ka magtatagal maging filmmaker kung hindi mo love yung film. Yun, nood ka lang. Tapos after mong manood ng napadaraming films, I'm sure you'll find it in your heart to start making one. (Just learn to love film. Because you won't last as a filmmaker if you don't love films. Just keep on watching. Then, after watching so many films, I'm sure you'll find it in your heart to start making one)

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Below are some photos of Director Petersen Vargas that I took after watching their screenings of the film (Hey, you're now my favorite director of all time)👌 ) ) . To date, I have already watched 2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten six times before it's nationwide theatrical release. And yes, I am still looking forward in seeing it in cinemas this March 15, 2017.

Director Petersen Vargas with the cast and crew of the film
during their Premiere Night at Cinema 1 of Trinoma last year, November 17, 2016.

From L-R: Khalil Ramos, Director Petersen Vargas, Jameson Blake, me and Producer Alemberg Ang
during the Cinema One Original's re-run at the Cine Adarna, UP Film Center, UP Diliman last January  2017.

A big crowd lines up outside the Cine Adarna, UP Film Center, UP Diliman
as they wait for the screening of the film 2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten last January 2017.

From L-R : Jameson Blake, Producer Alemberg Ang, Director Petersen Vargas and Khalil Ramos
during their Q&A session after the screening.

Director Petersen Vargas with Jameson Blake, Khalil Ramos and Producer Alemberg Ang
as they pose at the marquee outside the Cine Adarna, UP Film Center.

Director Petersen Vargas with Khalil Ramos during their Q&A Session
after the screening of their film for the 5th Freedom Film Festival
of the De La Salle University last February 2017.

Director Petersen Vargas and Khalil Ramos posing with the organizers of the 5th Freedom Film Festival.

So don't forget to watch 2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten starring Khalil Ramos, Ethan Salvador and Jameson Blake, written Jason Paul Laxamana and directed by by Petersen Vargas. In cinemas nationwide this March 15, 2017, distributed by Star Cinema.