A certain teacher in a certain classic TV spin-off from a certain classic musical theatre film once said that ‘fame costs and right here is where you start paying’.
In the new Canadian documentary A WILL TO DREAM, the cost of fame, in a deliberate sense, is to teacher Luther Perez, who created the Quezon City Performing Arts studio in the Philippines. He was a man who had the chance to work in the USA and successfully got a Green Card, but sacrificed it so he could teach local and impoverished children the chance to get rhythm and follow their dreams of dance performance.
The studio has had its’ fair share of challenges, given that in 2018 the site it was founded on was targeted for demolition, causing Luther to have to seek alternate places and venues so that the young students could continue to develop their talents.
The documentary focuses as much on the importance of what a good teacher can do and we see an insight into the lives of the students and their families who have found a sense of belonging through their own sense of destiny and legacy, but this is not a chocolate box, lets-put-on-a-show scenario.
Luther represents a sense of the worldly and wise as he reminds people that it is crucial to make use of whatever time you have whenever you have it and that you shouldn’t complain about your lot in life if you haven’t taken those opportunities.
Directed by Patrick Alcedo, who is a specialist on Philippine traditional dances as well as a documentary film-maker, A WILL TO DREAM does attempt to give the viewer insight into the challenges that can emerge from unexpected left-turns like teenage pregnancy and a lack of funding. It also gives an emotional heart that helps viewers to connect with the context and meaning behind why people are keen to pursue a dance-based career.
The Los Angeles International Film Festival (LAIFF) runs from 16th – 21st November 2021. For information and tickets etc, please go to:
www.laiff.org
A Will to Dream…. I was just one of the three who started the whole project with the support of the QCPA foundation and some government funding for this special project for the underpriveleged! I do not want to claim the whole credit for it! FYI….having said that, thank you for featuring the docu in your review!
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