"And So It Begins" Not for Nostalgia But for Inspiration

After collaborating on A Thousand Cuts, a documentary centered on a news site’s battle for truth and democracy, Maria Ressa and Ramona Diaz come together in And So It Begins. This documentary follows the campaign trail leading to the 2022 Philippine presidential elections. It shows how a grassroots movement emerges to protect truth and democracy from growing threats. 

At a block screening in Makati held by Assumption College HS batch 79, a Q and A was held. Director, writer and producer Ramona Diaz and journalist Maria Ressa fervently answered questions about their views on the film, on social media and on political landscape. 

Aside from the campaign trail, the documentary presented real life scenes with Ressa at a time when her news site was facing closure from the SEC due to the numerous cases filed against them. At first, Diaz wanted to cover Ressa for a different reason. She points out, “I was really interested in the intersection of the drug war and disinformation.” Not knowing that her coverage would get more interesting, she shares, “It was just us following Maria, and then she became breaking news because she kept getting arrested.” 

Captured in the film was the phone call Ressa received when she was informed that she was the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. The 2021 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded in recognition of her “efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.”

Ressa says, “I thought that there was a very good possibility that I would have to go to jail... If you didn’t stand up at the time when it mattered, then you aren’t who you say you are.” What helped her to keep going are the support she got from different people. She adds, “There were so many good people here and all around the world. You can see, when inspiration happens, it spreads.” 

Diaz talks about the challenges the documentary faces in the country: that of not being shown in big cinemas despite the demand and the PG rating. However, she recalls at the Sundance Film Festival screening where then Vice President of the Philippines Leni Robredo attended: “It was a wonderful screening, sold out, standing ovation for Maria and Leni.”

After having been shown in a lot of festivals worldwide, bringing it home to the Philippines is still integral. Diaz shares, “This is a special privileged audience, because basically, you’re seeing your lived experience on screen.” 

And So It Begins pointed out that social media played a crucial role in the 2022 elections. Ressa gave some insight that the biggest problem we are facing is the impact of technology. In her Nobel lecture, she mentioned it as a behavioral modification system, saying, “If lies spread six times faster in 2018, and if you lace it with fear, anger and hate, it spreads faster. If that is our incentive structure, it changes who we are.” This shared reality we live in is a tool that we can use. She emphasizes, “So don’t believe everything you see on social media.” 

Ressa also advises the younger generation to demand for better technology: “Be careful of the tech, don’t use it to write, because learning to write, is a whole thing you need to do. Editing chat GPT is very different from writing or the creation of it.” We have a chance to create a new world, this is the goal. 

We all know how the 2022 elections ended, the victor was Team Unity of President Bongbong Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte. But how does Director Diaz want the viewers to see And So It Begins? She comments, “I’m not prescriptive on how you feel about the film after. I cannot control that, right?” Although she says this about her intention, “I ended on hope. Do something. I don’t want this to be just all about nostalgia. It has to be about the future always.”

Text by Bambi Camus