Batóbalani

The story

In a remote area where faith is worn like a second skin, young Maria witnesses the fragile threads holding her family together. Her mother, Cynthia, clings to devotion as if prayer could mend every wound, while her father, Asyong—their supposed haligi ng tahanan—staggers through each day drowned in liquor and rage. As Maria grows, the sheen of religiosity around her begins to crack, revealing a world where holiness and hypocrisy walk hand-in-hand. Caught between innocence and awakening, she is forced to confront the dark truths that blur the boundaries between faith and fear, love and torment, life and the shadows that pursue it.

• #moral dilemma
• #poetry
• #religion
• #transcreation
• #ethics
• #indie slasher
• #violence against women
• #provocative
• #macabre
• #psychological thriller
• #independent film