Arnold Cao

The film, set in the 1980s, is centred upon a young student, from 1982 as a freshman and ending in 1986. The background is the last years of Martial Law in the Philippines where the Marcos dictatorship was at its peak.

Badong, an established painter, comes home and returns to his old studio. He has a piece in mind that requires a specific model to pose nude. He wants Mimosa, his former nude model and ex live-in partner. Years ago, Mimosa left him for another man.

An ode to Rogelio Sikat’s classic Filipino short story “Impeng Negro,” about a boy who is both Filipino and Black.