Information obtained from Inquirer,
Philstar, Wikipedia, PEP, and Daddy in the City; Photos courtesy of Jun Arvin
Corpuz Gudoy, La Milagrosa Festival and Alaric Yanos (Provincial Government of
Ilocos Norte)
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Now, a
fiber-glass statue representing Superstar Nora Aunor's most iconic role,
"Elsa," from the CNN Asia-Pacific Screen Awards' Best Asia-Pacific
Film of All Time, "Himala," is to be unveiled on May 10th at the
Paoay Sand Dunes in Ilocos Norte. This is in time for the La Milagrosa
Festival, an annual provincial celebration honoring La Virgen Milagrosa, the
Patron Saint of Ilocos Norte. A free concert dubbed as "Himala sa
Buhangin" will feature singer Bamboo. Nora herself is expected to grace
the event.
Visual artist Leo Gerardo "Gerry"
Leonardo is the one responsible for the Elsa sculpture. He is a special
education teacher for visual arts at the Philippine High School for the Arts,
of which he is also an alumnus. He is best known around Manila for his
large-scale sculptures including the famous Balanghai in Taguig city.
The statue shows Nora Aunor (as Elsa) kneeling, in
her famous praying posture.
So, why Elsa? Why Nora Aunor?
Ilocos Norte governor Imee Marcos is spearheading
the event. As everybody knows, she was the Director-General of the Experimental
Cinema of the Philippines which produced "Himala." Hence, it is
expected that "Himala," generally regarded as the greatest Filipino
film of all time, is very close to her heart. After over three decades, the
Nora Aunor movie continues to receive acclaim even outside the country.
Several local and foreign films have been shot in
Paoay (or have featured the province) - "Mad Max" (1979),
"Panday" series (1980, 1981, 1982, 1984), "Temptation
Island" (1980 and 2011), "Stryker" (1983) "Silip"
(1985), "Born on the Fourth of July" (1989), "Emir"
(2010)", and "Thelma" (2011) - but the most popular and
certainly, the most significant is "Himala," which was written by
multi-awarded scriptwriter Ricky Lee and directed by National Artist Ishmael
Bernal.
The governor has succeeded in making the Paoay Sand
Dunes a tourist attraction despite its being dry and nothing but sand. A few
years ago, she had announced that she would offer incentives to film producers
who would shoot in Ilocos Norte.
Unarguably, Nora Aunor has the most impressive body
of work among all artists from different media. She is, in fact, a true
multi-media superstar. She has conquered them: music, radio, television,
movies, stage, and print.
Therefore, honoring Nora Aunor and her most iconic
film character is just a fitting tribute to her legendary artistry spanning
five decades. Her statue is not meant to be idolized like a sacred monument;
instead, it will commemorate the global excellence of "Himala" and
perhaps, Nora's excellence as an artist.
Really, we should give them, the artists, a statue,
a building, or even a street name now, so that they may bask in the glory. Now,
while they still can. Don't you think?
