Video Out

Yellow Peril - Ati Ati Han

It is June 12, 1986, a hot and sweaty day in Lineta Park, Manila. The tape is a closeup recording of an impromptu celebration over the fall of Marcos. Scantily dressed men with body paint form the drum corps in a loose circle around men in grass skirts, costumes and loin cloths. Some of them are painted blue, some appear cross-dressed in contemporary Western makeup. It is an odd pagen/late 20th century high energy ritual. They dance provocatively to the rythm of drums, They jostle with each other and for the camera. It is fun and they are happy.