THE STORY BEHIND

THE MANILA FILM CENTER

Manila Film Center, an impressive building designed to look like the Greek Parthenon, and
was about to be the Cannes Film Festival main rival back in 1982. Unfortunately, it never
got there and, instead, turned into a tomb for 169 people working the construction of this
building.

Former First Lady, Imelda Marcos had an ambitions, and never fail to get what she wants, so
goes the saying “What the First Lady wants, the First Lady gets”. Her desire to create the
Manila Film Center sprang from her desire for Manila to compete with Cannes as a world
film capital. At the cost of $25 million dollars, Imelda approved plans for the Manila Film
Center to be built to host an international film festival. Opening night was set for January 18,
1982. The project was grandiose and expensive; the building on Manila Bay was designed to
look like the Greek Parthenon of Athens. Construction on the Manila Film Center began
just three months before the Manila International Film Festival was due to be held. In order
to make this deadline, Former First Lady Imelda Marcos brought around 4,000 construction
workers to rotate amongst three shifts throughout the day, making sure the project is
working and progressing around the clock. Normally, working in the lobby alone takes 6
weeks of labor, however, Imelda Marcos ordered the workers to complete the work under
72 hours. For the first few weeks, construction has been progressing fast because of the
tight rotation. In a matter of month, the building had already reached the 4 th floor of
construction. Despite all signs pointing to imminent disaster, Imelda Marcos paid no heed,
and was only focused on getting her film center no matter the cost, and that cost would soon
come.

 At approximately 3 a.m. on November 17th 1981, the upper scaffold collapsed and sent
workers falling into quick drying cement. What happened was in the rush to complete this
building on time, the laborers were forced to pour quick drying cement on each floor
without waiting for each layer to dry, and ultimately, too much was poured, weakening the
structural integrity of the building, with that very same quick drying cement being what
entombed these workers.

Imelda was contacted about the incident, but despite that, she and her allies were more pre-
occupied, more worried with the public scandal that will erupt over this. Therefore, while
the workers were desperately fighting for their life, Imelda Marcos and her allies ordered a
media blackout, this meant that first responders weren’t allowed to help these workers for
nine hours straight, resulting to 168 workers dying in the quick drying cement. Despite this
horrifying incident occurring, Imelda Marcos was adamant to finishing this project as much
as possible, and the event still continued.
MANILA FILM CENTER (NOW)

FIGURE2 GREEK PARTHENON