Introducing Mr. Oliver Exmundo

Written by Lestari Hairul

Photograph by Vince Cheong
 
   

Chatting with Mr. Exmundo

    After the film festival was screened, we sat with the owner of the Cinematheque for a very short interview. Mr Oliver Exmundo of Cinema Exmundo (a.k.a  UPV Cinematheque) grew up in Canada and had his formal training in traditional 2D animation at Sheraton College. Having worked on the visual effects of several big name films like The Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers; Return of the King; King Kong, Avatar, John Carter and the recently completed Man of Steel, Mr Exmundo is currently back in his native Philippines for a short sabbatical. His parents’ alma mater is UPV and the Cinematheque was built as part of one of the school’s centennial year projects. The building is currently still in the process of refurbishing and according to Mr Exmundo, more film props will be placed around the gallery and lobby area (including, but not limited to a life-sized replica of a frozen Han Solo and Hannibal Lecter’s iconic prison mask from the Silence of the Lambs) to make it a film museum. As it stands now, several film posters from Hollywood’s Classic Era decorate the lobby area and they are a good representation of the type of screenings that Cinema Exmundo will be holding in the future. The UPV will also be using the facilities as part of the curriculum, with programs based around local films; independent films; student-made films and film festivals.

   When asked to comment about the Monash-UPV film festival, Mr Exmundo praised the screenings and the level of discussion that followed. He was particularly happy that the Cinematheque was filled to full capacity further commenting that the students seemed “pretty inspired by the work, you could tell”. He expressed the hope that we would visit again for future screenings and in fact, if our schedule goes well this week, we will be dropping by again for a special screening of The Wizard of Oz. Watch this space! 

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Lestari just completed her first year and is determined to make her second year even more exciting and interesting. Lestari also likes reading, writing and 'rithmetic.