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This Pinoy ‘Bandersnatch’-style film about underage drinking lets you choose what happens to the characters

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Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Carlos Dala, Gillian Vicencio, and Luis Ruiz star in ‘Smashed,’ an interactive film about alcohol education. Smashed Philippines" src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/entertainment/10/06/20211006-smashed.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>Carlos Dala, Gillian Vicencio, and Luis Ruiz star in ‘Smashed,’ an interactive film about alcohol education. <em>Smashed Philippines</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA — An interactive film that allows viewers to “converse” with characters and choose their paths aims to educate students about underage drinking, as part of a recently launched campaign now rolling out in schools nationwide.</p><p>“Smashed” follows three teenage friends Jella (Gillian Vicencio), Miko (Carlos Dala), and PJ (Luis Ruiz), who turn to alcohol as they navigate their personal struggles.</p><p>The film, which branches out depending on the viewer’s decisions, is available on the <a href="https://online.smashedproject.org/philippines/">official website of Smashed Philippines</a>, the local version of the global alcohol education program.</p><p>Smashed Philippines is the result of a partnership between Collingwood Learning, a theater company which originated the campaign in the UK in 2004, and the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), its local implementor.</p><p>To describe “Smashed,” the film, project manager Gold Villar-Lim drew a comparison with “Bandersnatch,” the popular interactive Netflix title.</p><p>“It’s not linear. May questionnaires in between. We’re highlighting decision-making and allowing young people to pick,” she said during the campaign’s recent press launch.</p><p>The storyline, as well as the interactive structure, is “universal” across the 30 countries where the educational campaign has so far been launched.</p><p>“The challenge — the fun — is, as the person who adapted it, was to put it into Filipino context,” writer J-mee Katanyag said.</p><p>The goal, she said, was to make the Philippine version “relatable” to the local audience, especially the age group the content is meant for, from the characters’ language to the locations.</p><div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/PETATheaterCenter/posts/1783782975116662" data-width="auto"> </div><p>Director Randolph Longjas said the format allows for a more involved viewing experience. He surmised that students who watch “Smashed,” beyond clicking on the options, would also process how they would decide if faced with similar predicaments in real life.</p><p>Referring to situations where students are among their peers and have access to alcohol, the filmmaker said: “Walang thought process na nangyayari. There’s just the pressure and then you get the shot and then you drink it.</p><p>“This video helps our kids to have that stage of processing, regardless of what actions ang gagawin nila. Ang importante, there’s a vital platform that helps them process.”</p><p>Aside from the effects of alcohol misuse, “Smash” also unpacks what leads underage youth to drinking, according to Katanyag.</p><p>“It’s not just about the consequences. The film is trying to tackle causes of it. Maaaring manifestation o symptoms lang ang pag-inom, pero ‘yung sanhi, ‘yung mismong sakit, iba-iba. At iyon ang lalabas sa kuwento.</p><p>“The causes may be peer pressure, pressure from school, pressure from family, issue sa household. Mari-realize natin na it’s not only a problem in the home, but in the society. Sa Pilipinas, sa tindahan, puwede ka bumili ng alak,” she said.</p><div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/PETATheaterCenter/posts/1787502251411401" data-width="auto"> </div><p>These factors are tackled comprehensively in the localized curriculum of Smashed Philippines, which has started rolling out in 120 schools, catering to some 40,000 students, in Manila, Pasig, and Quezon City.</p><p>The group partnered with the Department of Education to integrate the program in the existing alcohol education curriculum for grades 5 to 12, according to Smashed Philippines program director Melvin Lee.</p><p>PETA’s curriculum committee has also been carrying out workshops for teachers virtually, covering implementation and evaluation, among others.</p><p>For the team behind Smashed Philippines, the success of the program would lie in its lasting impact on teenagers, to become more discerning in their decisions that directly affect their health and welfare.</p><p>“Ang panagawan ng palabas ay sana, magkaroon ng espasyo sa sarili, sa school, sa bahay, at sa ating community, kung saan maaaring ma-empower ang kabataan to make the right choices in their lives,” Katanyag said.</p>

An interactive film that allows viewers to “converse” with characters and choose their paths aims to educate students about underage drinking, as part of a recently launched campaign now rolling out in schools nationwide.

This Pinoy ‘Bandersnatch’-style film about underage drinking lets you choose what happens to the characters

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This Pinoy ‘Bandersnatch’-style film about underage drinking lets you choose what happens to the characters

Miguel Dumaual,

ABS-CBN News

Published Oct 06, 2021 08:02 PM PHT

Read More:

Smashed Philippines

PETA

Philippine Educational Theater Association

Bandersnatch

alcohol

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