Fil-Canadian’s short film ‘I am iba’ depicts identity struggle

Dave in ‘I am iba’ short film. CONTRIBUTED

In Tenth Grade, Dave (surname withheld for his safety) came out as gay to a group of friends, who then told other people. Dave’s secret was out.

“It stinks because I am not trying to impress anyone,” Dave who was 15 years old at the time and uses they/them pronouns, told CBC News. “I’m just trying to discover who I am.”

Today, Dave hosts a web series sharing the message of self-love in the new short film I am iba. Not “bakla” (queer in Tagalog), but “iba,” or “different.”

The encourages people who struggle with self-acceptance and self-love to realize that even if they don’t love themselves right now, someone else does.

Dave’s story of acceptance and identity is the final piece in a four-part video series by Winnipeg filmmaker Joanne Roberts and her team of Kris Regacho, Toby Zheng and Alexander Decebal-Cuza.

Winnipeg filmmaker Joanne Roberts. CONTRIBUTED

In 2020, she won the prestigious Emerging Filmmakers Pitch Competition at Gimli Film Festival and has since been regularly releasing works in various mediums that challenge and dismantle societal norms.

Since starting the series, Roberts has been hired as a community journalist with CBC Manitoba’s Pathways program, a five-month-long paid journalism training program.

You can see the other films in the series at these CBC links:

VIDEOS

Is beauty skin deep? Filipina-Canadian filmmaker explores skin shadeism within her culture

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I’m learning to love my body despite my family’s criticism

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Stuck in the middle: Filipina-Canadian actress explores sense of displacement after coming to Canada