Mikhail Red’s “Birdshot” will be available on popular streaming platform Netflix starting March 26.
The globally critically-acclaimed film garnered international attention as the Best Film in the Asian Future Tokyo Film Fest 2016 and as the Oscar selection for the Philippines in 2017. It was also hailed by Variety magazine critic Richard Kuipers as “wonderfully directed and performed” and a “… a compelling study in the loss of innocence while offering potent commentary on the state of things in the Philippines.” Kuipers made special mention of lead actress Mary Joy Apostol for her magnetic screen presence that enabled her to hold her own in the company of reliable pros Arnold Reyes and John Arcilla. “Birdshot” will be the first Philippine content to be released locally on Netflix.
“[The film] ‘Birdshot’ is a mesmerizing thriller that’s beautifully shot and since its debut, the movie has been widely recognized by critics, and we are confident that it will equally resonate with the more than 117 million Netflix members globally,” said Robert Roy, VP of Content Acquisition at Netflix.
Director Mikhail Red is very excited about his film’s inclusion in the Netflix lineup of offerings. “I’ve always been a fan and subscriber of the streaming service. Having a film on their platform is just a dream come true for me as a filmmaker and storyteller. It’s such a profound feeling, having your stories and imagination come to life and be shared with millions of streaming subscribers across the globe. I hope this also helps open doors for other Filipino filmmakers.”
TBA Studios Executive Producers Fernando Ortigas and Eduardo Rocha shared that “a film of the caliber of ‘Birdshot’ deserves to be viewed by the global audience. We are honored that Netflix chose our film to be part of their library. We are in the third Golden Age of Philippine Cinema while celebrating our film industry’s centennial year. Now more than ever, Filipino movies deserve to be seen by the world. A platform such as Netflix can help us accomplish that. Hopefully, Netflix will continue to tap more independent producers to be their content providers.”
Joe Caliro, Globe Head of Creative Marketing and Multimedia Business, also shares that “As Globe was instrumental in getting ‘Birdshot’ on Netflix, we are now inspired to strengthen more partnerships with content producers and come up with more exciting world-class projects. This kind of recognition just brings in a whole level of inspiration and another validation of the talent of the Filipino.“
Globe Studios Head Quark Henares sums it all up with this: “[Having] ‘Birdshot’ on Netflix is a coup for both the service and Philippine cinema. I’m counting the days until I get to see ‘Birdshot’ as the featured film on my Netflix page!”
Local audiences were able to catch “Birdshot” in the Cinemalaya film festival and at the Globe-supported Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino.
