The indigenous groups in Benguet, Philippines, have begun to produce their own music videos and other media products to express themselves and to correct ill-informed portrayals about them. Through such, they have achieved self-representation by textualizing their cultures and worldviews, including their perspectives on the natural world and its ideal state. Employing a textual analysis that is grounded on the concepts of postcolonial appropriation and Ginsburg et al.'s “screen memories,” this article discusses how two indigenous-produced music videos, which tackle the environment, represent their imaginations of an ecotopia. These, once recognized in environmental discourse, would ideally result in the formulation of more effective, cost-efficient, and socially just environmental plans and practices. As the world clamors for a sustainable and more ideal state of the planet, exploring indigenous perspectives on an ecotopia could be beneficial, as they may provide legitimate, ethical, and context-appropriate alternatives that have been neglected due to “othering.”

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The local film production industries in the Philippine Cordillera region have been thriving since the 1980s. In Baguio City, Benguet, and Mountain Province, local filmmakers have already produced various cinematic forms such as documentary films, feature (short and full length) films, music videos, and animated films for various purposes. Utilizing political economy of media as a framework, this paper provides a preliminary exploration of the processes involved in the local production of those types of films in Baguio, Benguet, and Mountain Province. It also discusses the motivations and constraints that influence or inform the decisions and activities of local filmmakers in terms of content and production.

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