Igniting the Flame of Resistance at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival
Featuring Hilda Koronel’s return to the limelight, SISA joins the prestigious 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival.
Words Donavil Angeles
Photos courtesy of SISA
November 03, 2025
Her silence was survival. Her madness, a weapon. Her mission: revenge.
This November, Jun Robles Lana’s ‘SISA’ weaves its way into the Official Competition of the 29th annual Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF, Pimedate Ööde Filmifestival), marking an important milestone in the global journey of Philippine cinema and the continued evolution of Filipino storytelling.
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, hosted in Tallinn, Estonia, was first held in 1997 and has since been accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations as an A-list film festival. Their objective is to showcase a variety of film collections from countries worldwide, offering international and local audiences alike a glimpse into the ambitious and exceptional contributions to world cinema.
SISA
Legendary actress Hilda Koronel, who has been on hiatus ever since moving to Los Angeles in 2012 and vanished from the screens, steps back into the spotlight as Sisa, Lana’s protagonist, who hides a revolutionary spirit under her guise of madness. Koronel, whose stellar performances in Lino Brocka’s ‘Insiang’ and ‘Maynila sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag’ and her upcoming role as Sisa, cement her status as one of the most revered performers of our time.
Meanwhile, acclaimed director Jun Robles Lana, who is celebrated for his ‘Bwakaw,’ ‘Barber’s Tales,’ and ‘Die Beautiful,’ blends his artistry and emotional precision into SISA to create what Film Programmer Milani Perera describes as “both a historical thriller and an urgent elegy.”
Set in the aftermath of the Philippine-American War in 1902, SISA is a film about both survival and resistance: of a woman left with nothing else but rage, and of other women like her, whose protests are ultimately silenced, rising to revolt. Koronel’s Sisa, who is both a mother and a spy, must walk the path of a ‘mad’ woman – labeled by those who try to dismiss and temper her fury.
“Beneath the rags and ramblings, Sisa hides a secret: she is a spy. A survivor. A mother robbed of everything but rage. Haunted by visions she cannot silence, she begins to lead a quiet revolt – gathering women who, like her, have been pushed to the margins. As betrayal coils around her, Sisa walks the line between memory and madness, asking what it takes to rise when the world has already buried you,” wrote Perera.
SISA’s world premiere would be held in Tallinn, Estonia, on November 20, with both Jun Robles Lana and Hilda Koronel in attendance.
The film was also created with the support of the Film Development Council of the Philippines and Film Philippines Office, and produced by The IdeaFirst Company, Octobertrain Films, Quantum Films, Cineko Productions, CMB Films, YayWati International, in association with Kidlat Entertainment.
