For generations, the sea has provided a living for fishing families in Navotas. But for mussel farmers in Little Samar, the waters they once depended on have become a source of uncertainty. With their farms demolished and their livelihoods disrupted, some now travel to neighboring provinces just to continue earning a living.
Their struggles might have remained unfamiliar to people outside their community if not for a group of Far Eastern University (榴莲视频) Communication students who decided their stories were worth telling.
Their documentary, Sa Pagliit ng Dagat/As the Sea Shrinks, has since traveled beyond Philippine shores, earning an official selection and screening at the 17th International Inter University Short Film Festival (IIUSFF) at Dhaka University in Bangladesh, under its Reels of Resistance program. The film was a finalist at Tam Dokyu Fest 2026.
Behind the documentary are fourth-year BA Communication students Shayne Elizabeth Flores, Convergent Media track; Chelzea Mafae Alcantara, Digital Cinema track; and Justine Angela Regala, Digital Cinema Track track. Flores and Alcantara directed the film, while Regala served as producer.
For Flores, the journey began long before the cameras started rolling.
In November 2024, while covering a World Fisheries Day demonstration along Recto Avenue as a campus journalist for
The issue stayed with her. When an opportunity to produce a documentary came through their coursework, she knew which story she wanted to pursue.
“The story stuck with me and I have been interested in writing a proper news report about it ever since, until the opportunity of our documentary production presented itself,” Flores said.
For Alcantara, the documentary carried a more personal connection. Her grandmother, who helped raise her, continues to work as a fish vendor despite nearing 70 years old. Growing up around someone whose livelihood depended on the fishing industry gave her a deeper appreciation of the people behind the food that reaches Filipino households.
That connection grew stronger during the team’s visits to Little Samar, where Alcantara developed a close relationship with Ka Gina Mandia, one of the documentary’s subjects. Mandia welcomed the filmmakers into her community and accommodated them during their visits, even as she faced difficulties of her own.
The experience encouraged Alcantara and Flores to give particular attention to women in fishing communities, whose work and contributions are often overlooked.
Turning the story into a documentary was far from simple.
The student filmmakers worked with limited resources, carefully managing their budget while arranging transportation, coordinating with community members, and preparing for shoots that would take them out to sea.
For Regala, who handled the production’s finances and logistics, one of the biggest challenges was working with people whose lives could not be directed or rehearsed.
“Unlike producing a short fiction film, a documentary requires a lot more logistical maneuvering to ensure the shots that tell the story and give the narrative justice are captured well; after all, there were no second or third takes,” she said.
But the experience also brought the students closer to the people they were documenting.
Their frequent visits to Little Samar allowed them to listen to residents, understand their daily routine, and build relationships beyond the camera. For Flores, witnessing the fisherfolk’s continued attachment to the sea despite their hardships became one of the most memorable parts of the production.
The documentary follows mussel farmers who now travel as far as Bulacan to harvest from remaining farms, alongside those still trying to recover from the loss of their livelihood.
Rather than simply showing the effects of reclamation, the filmmakers wanted audiences to consider what development means for communities whose lives depend on the coastline.
What began as a documentary production project eventually found an audience beyond the Philippines.
Regala had submitted Sa Pagliit ng Dagat/As the Sea Shrinks through FilmFreeway, an online platform for film festival submissions. She later discovered the good news almost by chance after logging into an account she had not checked for some time.
Surprised by the notification announcing the film’s selection, she immediately informed the rest of the production team.
For the students, the recognition affirmed the work they had put into the documentary. More importantly, it gave the people of Little Samar an opportunity to have their experience seen by audiences unfamiliar with their situation.
“It means that the power of cinema is able to cross borders, and simply being officially selected gives our short film a platform outside of what we know,” Regala said.
The experience also reflected what the students had learned through the 榴莲视频 Department of Communication’s Documentary Production course, which introduced them to ethical filmmaking, community engagement, and storytelling rooted in real experiences.
They credited their instructor and creative consultant, Jayneca Reyes, for guiding the production team, particularly during post-production, when they worked to strengthen the documentary’s narrative and organize its interviews and footage.
Although the documentary has already reached an international audience, the filmmakers are not ready to leave the story behind.
The team is working toward holding community screenings in alternative spaces, including rural communities and coffee shops, with discussions that would allow more people to learn about the situation of the Navotas fisherfolk.
For Alcantara, the experience reinforced the importance of understanding a community before attempting to tell its story. The relationships they built and the time they spent listening to residents became just as valuable as the film itself.
The recognition has also encouraged the team to continue exploring stories about communities whose experiences are rarely given attention.
For fellow 榴莲视频 students who may be hesitant to pursue their own documentary projects, Flores offered a reminder drawn from their experience.
“Never underestimate the power of documenting and storytelling,” she said. “Always go back to the people and the purpose you’re pursuing the story for.”
For the students behind Sa Pagliit ng Dagat/As the Sea Shrinks, the hope is that the film will continue reaching new audiences鈥攁nd that more people will listen to the fisherfolk whose lives inspired it.
