There are two Filipino films entered in the 2026-2027 International category. The official Filipino entry is Filipiñana. But the entry from Australia, First Light, also takes place in Philippines and is in the Filipino language. One of the major themes of both films is the disregard the rich and powerful have for poor and working class people. First Light is the more appealing of the two films because its protagonist is more interesting, and it deals with spiritual matters.
Written and directed by James J. Robinson, First Light stars Ruby Ruiz as Sister Yolanda, an elderly nun who is as kind as one could wish for. She visits the poor and the rich, and she spends part of the day at a hospital, aiding anyone who needs help. She mentors a young novice, Sister Arlene (Kare Adea). When Arlene decides not to become a nun, she apologizes to Yolanda for wasting her time. But Yolanda explains that that she didn’t mentor Arlene to become a nun, but to help her find out who she wants to be.
Yolanda is completely devoted to Catholicism. But from the beginning, it is clear that something is wrong. Yolanda and her fellow nuns live is a dilapidated building that is dark and filled with leaks. When Yolanda visits the church run by Father Claridad (Soliman Cruz), it is richly ornamented and filled with light.
Yolanda’s beliefs are challenged as a result of an unexpected incident. One of the families she visits regularly is that of the wealthiest family in the region, that of Linda Dela Cruz, whose mother is being kept alive thanks to an expensive ventilator. Linda’s husband has the contract to build a major paved highway. One day, while at the hospital, Yolanda is asked to rush over to give last rites to a construction worker, Angelo (BJ Forbes), who was injured while working on the highway. Angelo asks Yolanda why the doctors who were treating him stopped coming. Suddenly, Angelo’s father, Cesar (Emmanuel Santos), bursts into the room, having just learned that his son has been badly injured. A security guard for the construction project, who is in the hospital room, calls for help and they haul Cesar away. After Angelo dies, Yolanda realizes that something is not right about this story, although it takes her a while to figure what really happened. Yolanda tries to give advice to Cesar, but in the end it is Cesar who helps Yolanda spiritually as she confronts the end of her own life.
First Light is an excellent film that deals not only with spiritual doubts, but with corruption, colonialism and the questionable changes brought about by tradition giving way to modern values.
