What Lies Behind the Scenes

Charles Kirby Manuyag

Films communicate ideas and stories to viewers. That is one fact that best describes films for me.

Often, they shed light on protagonists which grants him/her the idolization of the viewers. With the existence of protagonists comes the existence of the opposite — antagonists, the villains. Viewers often hate them as antagonists oppose their love of the protagonist. This is what films do to communicate their intent of communicating stories. If one was to be a politician and had the need to garner support from the citizens, wouldn't film be an effective use to garner such? Oneself may be the protagonist and fellow candidates may be the antagonists. Film can do such and behind the scenes are the hidden truths of one's character.

During the past elections and the present, politicians often use their social media to communicate stories of their campaigns and advocacies. Television commercials also give them the ability to show skits convincing citizens why they are the rightful people to be in position. As technology develops and the media entertainment industry grows bigger, the use of film is now more commonly adapted for politicians to use the platform of showing their good images. Aside from that, they now also use these platforms to show disapproval of opposing candidates.

Recently, a movie studio named VinCentiments released a short film entitled, "The Exorcism of Lenlen Rose". The short film has garnered a million views with comments stating support for presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr. or also known as “Bongbong Marcos”. The short film presented someone named “Lenlen” as the main subject being talked about, more likely perceived as a puppet. Stating such, viewers assumed that even though the director of the film stated that it is not solely meant for political purposes, the content of the film tells otherwise as it is intended to oppose a political candidate who is currently running for a position. The short film received lots of mixed reactions concerned with political engagements. Along with such, troll accounts had also been engaged with the post, contributing to disinformation.

Apparently, with the use of these platforms of politicians also arises disinformation. As what I have observed for the past few months, communicating stories through films, these stories are differently interpreted by viewers. For such a reason, fake news and disinformation are still prevalent; more people are misguided with their beliefs. With improper use of these platforms comes more victims of fake news. It is sad that many believe in only one side of the story for they are also victims of negative campaigning and are manipulated for their votes that could've had a larger count if they knew the shadows behind the scenes.

"Social media seemed to be a top weapon of choice for campaign disinformation, complementing old-school negative propaganda on the ground," said Ms. Maria Ressa, a winner of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize. While films and social media are effectively used for promoting campaigns and advocates, it is one's responsibility to know the behind the scenes of these campaigns and advocacies. As responsible citizens, we should know all the sides of the story that there is to it to not be a victim of voting manipulation and disinformation. We should assess the true intent of someone behind the film or social media and if the protagonist is a person who promotes positive campaigning along with their intent. Because with all honesty, fact-checking, indeed, is a must behind these stated advocacies and platforms through credible and verified news outlets.

The hidden truth will always prevail for those who intelligently analyze the meaning behind something. There will never be one side of the story but more and more sides of the story left to prevail. Sadly, some of us have still been constantly falling for disinformation and only look forward to catching a glimpse on one side of the story. There is still a long way to go for those of us who constantly fall to manipulation.

With the upcoming Philippine elections, a single vote matters. This single vote may depict the state of the Filipino citizens for the next six years. It is essentially important that voters would be able to vote for the candidate who promotes positive campaigning and presents all there is to their stories of campaign. A right candidate does not wish to cover their hidden lies and uncover everything that they had to, even their discrepancies and lacking skills and abilities. Similarly, with a right candidate must come the right mindset of a voter as well. As responsible citizens, we must rightfully know the truth and assess a political candidate behind his portrayed character. We must assess their image behind the scenes and know all the hidden truth that should prevail before they occupy the seat and power.

YOU MATTER JUST LIKE HOW YOUR VOTE MATTERS.