“Two decades have passed since the enactment of Republic Act No. 9167, the law that directs the FDCP to establish a film archive, but the permanent facility for film preservation with sufficient storage space and proper equipment has yet to materialize,” said Estrada, referring to SB 1033 which is pushing for the creation of the National Film Archive of the Philippines .
“This bill aims to address this problem by creating NFAP, which will ensure the protection and preservation of Filipino films that are part of our historical and cultural heritage,” he added. Estrada also revealed that about 65 percent of the country’s film archives have either been lost or destroyed based on the data from the FDCP.
“Whatever remains unarchived are exposed to daily damage and deterioration. It is also estimated that out of more than 8,000 movies shot on film, only around 2,000 have surviving copies,” he said. Estrada said SB 1032, or the proposed World-Class Filmmakers’ Incentives Act, “aims to promote and support the production of high quality and globally competitive Filipino films through the provision of incentives and tax exemptions,” while SB 2250 “proposes the institutionalization of a physical and online festival for new quality genre films and a free screening of classic movies every September.