#MMFF2016 Oro

The 8th entry for the 2016 Metro Manila Film Festival, "Oro" stars Irma Adlawan, Mercedes Cabral, and Joem Bascon, directed by Alvin Yapan and produced by Feliz Film Productions. 

By asking for Linda’s hand in marriage, Elmer, a small-scale miner, plans to finally establish a life of his own; separate from Kapitana, his long-time employer-benefactor who buys the gold he mines. Linda works as an elementary teacher, while Elmer barely finished high school. Pregnant with their child, Linda keeps this a secret from Elmer, fearing that this would only pressure him to marry her.  

Just when Elmer and Linda are about to reveal their plans and secrets to each other, their small mining community is disturbed by the arrival of an armed group, Patrol Kalikasan, masquerading as environmentalists. The loyalty of Elmer and the small mining community to Kapitana will be tested as they could not produce a permit to mine, even though they have been working the mines since World War II, with no effects of environmental degradation. As Kapitana scrambles to secure a permit to protect her community from the harassment of the armed group, Elmer and the rest of the community struggle to eke out a living, as Patrol Kalikasan settles down in their community, and takes over the mining operations.  

The film is about the lives of simple folk caught between the crossfire of Kapitana accused of political patronage, and Patrol Kalikasan using the environment as a front for their own political and economic interests on the small mining community. As the provincial government and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) fight over the jurisdiction over small-scale mining operations, Elmer and Linda suffer the devastating consequences of the legacy of violence and corruption of the country’s turbulent political and ideological history.

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