“Solito's directorial debut as a dramatic filmmaker seems itself like a flower amid the grit of most contemporary cinema.” - Sundance Film Festival

The purity of first love is pitted against poverty and corruption in Auraeus Solito's unexpectedly moving look at life in the slums of Manila. Maxi is a 12 year-old Lady Boy who, left without a mother figure, takes up a feminine role within the family home. His existence is one of petty thievery until he becomes besotted with a local police officer. This platonic, but potent, relationship awakens Maxi's dreams (and conflicts) of a better life on the straight and narrow.

Solito is one of a first generation of Filipino digital filmmakers reaping the benefits of combining the versatile digital format with telling a story on location. As he says, “Just because we're poor doesn't mean we don't have any imagination.”

Nominated for a Grand Jury Prize at this year's Sundance Film Festival and winner of three awards at the Berlin Film Festival.

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D Auraeus Solito P Raymond Lee S Michiko Yamamoto WS Wide Management L Filipino w/English subtitles TD HDcam/2005/100mins

Auraeus Solito was born in Manila, Philippines, in 1969. His films include Tuli (2005).