Debuting its trailer and produced by Fusee, with Strawdogs Studio Production and Nathan Studios co-producing, it is set to bow at the 2023 Locarno Fest.

In Topakk, which he co-wrote with Jim Flores and Will Fredo, a man is struggling with PTSD. Discharged from the army, he finds himself in different conflict when drug peddler seeks his protection against a vigilante death squad.

Inspired by:

“In my films, I always want someone who is very flawed, very human. Not invincible at all. When it came to Miguel, I created him based on the people I met here in the Philippines. There are so many security guards who once wanted to be decorated soldiers. Now, they are just trying to survive.” Just like his protagonists, desperate to make ends meet and already used to violence.

“In the Philippines, we are living in gritty challenging environment. You always meet people with a mysterious past, which makes you wonder: ‘What happened to them?!’ They are all scarred. It could be war or some personal demons.”

While his country has been seeing conflict, including the infamous Philippine drug war, Somes wants to pay homage to “all soldiers of the world,” he says.

“We’ve had whole decade of wars. A whole lot of casualties, a whole lot of bloodshed. I wrote this script was because I was really questioning what’s happening to the world these days. War is everywhere – in Ukraine and here, in South Asian territories.”

He adds: “We tend to forget that when these soldiers come back home, part of their life has already changed. We have people in our country that need to be taken care of. They deserve our respect.”

“I always pay homage to women, also in my previous films. My female characters aren’t victims, they are not oppressed. They have bled and hurt, but they survived. And now, they fight. It’s personal for me, because I was raised by a single mother,” states Somes, who also gushes about his lead man.

“Arjo Atayde is one of the best dramatic actors. I told him we won’t have this usual ‘macho’ action hero. I wanted him to be someone who is strong on the inside, not necessarily on the outside,” he explains.  He asked me if he should bulk up. I said: ‘Just watch Travis Bickle in ‘Taxi Driver.’ This weight he is carrying? It will make you seem larger than life’.”

“Miguel doesn’t see himself as hero, he is not there to save the day. He can just promise her that if they go down, at least they are going to take someone with them. It sounds unforgiving and very cynical, but I wanted to be brutally honest.”

The action in Topakk: “We wanted to make it more visceral, raw. Given our constraints, we cannot approach action the same way Hollywood does. But what we can do is give the viewers something they will feel. We are doing it the old-school way,” he says, admitting he would like to continue the story in the future.

“We don’t often get to do action films in the Philippines. So when we do, why not go all the way back to that heyday of action? We had consultant on the set, who would say: ‘The sound, the smells, the blood – it feels elevated when you are in the middle of it.’”

“When you are in the war zone, nothing feels normal anymore.”