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Mark Louie Alvarez

Professor Madonna Dimaano
English 2
16 April 2015
Kickin the Dream
You dont want to miss that kick that would decide your place in the question are you a
winner or a loser? But whats more important in this scenario are the ounces of sweat and the
countless hours youve given up to transform yourself into an adept player worthy of
representing your folks back at home on that wide field where victors were already declared.
That kick youre about to make is the one that will fulfill the dream you have ever wanted. This
same setting goes for a film that tackles the ordinary game of football but with extraordinary
players of young hearts and shapes. Little Azkals is a documentary flick, which is the first of a
would be series, following the three - week training of 22 Filipino young boys aged 10 11,
chosen by the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) over a thousand of aspirants coming from
different parts of the Philippines to be part of the Little Azkals Under 11 Team, in the premiere
sports facility of Loughborough University in the United Kingdom. The term associated for the
team comes from the renowned Philippine football squad, Azkals. The primary goal for the
training was to prepare the kids for having a greater chance in qualifying for the Fifa Under - 17
World Cup in 2019, and eventually compete at the 2024 Olympics. The young players were
escorted by Filipino Asian Football Confederations ascribed coaches and of course, by the
director herself, Baby Ruth Valderama. She is the woman behind the 2013 documentary Jazz in
Love, which serves as the introductory film of the 9th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival

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(Dugena). On her journey with the kids, she was accompanied by film editor Chuck Gutierrez
and creative mentor Clodualdo del Mundo Jr. The documentary spans not only the promotion of
Philippine sports, specifically football, but also the sacrifice, discipline, and determination
embodied and portrayed not only by the on cam characters but also by Valderama herself. All
of these characteristics where naturally depicted on the director and on every character through
the obstacles and adjustments that they have to overcome and settle throughout the course of the
training. I watched this film only to get additional points for the demanding subject but it was
really worth the price. I am absolutely impressed with the documentary Little Azkals because of
its highly commendable directing, spontaneous ability to sustain interest through its entertaining
plot, and remarkable portrayal of the sacrifices and efforts of Filipinos to make a mark in sports.
The directing of Valderama alone has made the film a success in itself and, in my
opinion, has strengthen her reputation in the Philippine movie industry. The several footages
arranged in a simplified and ordinary way have made the film very understandable without any
room for confusion. The film follows the regular pattern of beginning middle end so as not to
deviate the audience from the current situation in the movie. Moreover, Valderama has managed
to amend herself from several changes and to compensate for insufficiencies brought about by
the demands of the documentary itself. First, she has endure the drastic shift in weather condition
from the tropical Philippine island to the parky country of United Kingdom. Second, she has
overcome the lack of filming equipment and personnel required to take intricate shots and to
focus on scenarios on different situational locations. Third, she did not only play the role of a
filmmaker but she also represent a mother who provided care and support to the 22 young kids in
training as she was the only woman in the whole crew. Through all these adjustments and
obstacles that she managed to pull through, she has portrayed several skills that a documentary

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filmmaker should embody. She has managed to take clever shots and emphasize the highlights of
the football matches that the kids have participated at, as well as to organize other supporting
cameos to signal a following event. Her determination and willingness have also been clearly
evident. She had a firm agenda and she had never gave in to the challenges she encountered. The
endurance that she has shown was very inspiring. She has been having the same training as the
22 boys with the difference in the fields they were specialized into. I hope she would be given a
recognition for the outstanding work she had done on this film.
What added to the integrity of the film was its spontaneous ability to maintain audience
interest through its highly enjoyable and entertaining plot. This film has changed my viewpoint
about documentaries. My first impression on films like this were boring and uninteresting unlike
the movies that took several days of directing with the actors lines and actions cohering to an
already woven story or script. However, the film has managed to make me anticipate for more
documentaries like this. Considering the plot, it was of course very simple, with the fate of the
story depending on the actual outcomes of the events, and not having a specific direction like the
regular movies. The film has tons of interesting conversations and activities from the characters
that many of us would be able to relate to. From the inability of the kids to pronounce their
destinations name, their complaints about the blandness of English food, their longing for rice in
a predominantly potato eating country, and even their regular ways of spending their free time,
being able to give out a laugh or express a feeling of closeness towards the little players was
unavoidable. The team, now including the coaches, also has to deal with sorting out the laundry
and nosebleed moments during discourses in English, adding to the humorous hype that the
young boys have already provided. The movie has also displayed the ability to easily accentuate
the conflicts and climax in the story. Conflicts that were majorly highlighted were when two of

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the boys had problems on being transported from the Philippines to the U.K. due to errors in
legislation from their guardians and when the boys lost their first match against the U 11
Leicester team. The climax of the story was not actually the situation itself, but the feeling of
anticipation of the result of the final match of the young Filipino boys against the English Quorn
team. Luckily, they have succeeded to bring home the bacon, having gained enough experience
from both training and beforehand matches. The boys have managed to make me cherish and
relive my childhood memories and experience the joy of being young.
Completing the package of the significance of the film is its astonishing portrayal of the
hard work and sacrifices of the Filipinos to develop and promote sports, specifically football. We
have to admit that it has been a struggle for us to make a mark in the field of sports, unlike in
music and dancing. We have been very less competent and were only renowned in the boxing
ring. However, this training of the Little Azkals can be the start of the pavement of a road
towards national sports promotion throughout the world. The training of these young Filipinos
overseas entailed many requirements. The expenditures on travel, equipment, and daily needs
were settled. The kids were separated from their parents from a significant period of time,
leading to homesickness and emotional and mental distress. There were some who had emotional
breakdowns during phone and social media conversations with their parents and had difficulty in
sleeping. The coaches, alongside Valderama, who accompanied the children did not only fulfill
coaching roles but also parenting responsibilities. Difficulties did not remain in the U.K. when
they had already went back to their hometowns. They continue to face another battle the battle
against the hardships of life. These boys have proven that their lives were like that of the football
field. They have to keep on kicking to live, and they have to keep on running to reach their
dreams. These efforts that these young boys have exerted, both in training and in real life, should

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not only be applauded but also be equated with opportunities that do not require them to migrate
to other countries.
The success, integrity, and significance of the film, depicted through the praiseworthy
directing of Valderama, spur-of-the-moment ability to sustain audience interest through a plot
filled with entertaining elements, and remarkable portrayal of the sacrifices of the Filipinos to
promote and develop sports especially football, have impressed me enough to place the
documentary, Little Azkals, in my list of recommended Filipino films to watch. The film
persuade people to patronage Filipino independent films like documentaries through its
modifications of the usual thoughts that most Filipinos generate on related flicks. Moreover, the
film encourages both young and professional filmmakers to consider crafting a documentary that
will feature topics and issues that interest the viewers. Most importantly, in accordance with the
aims of the film, Little Azkals reaches out to the Philippine government to spend enough
resources and take steps to focus on the promotion and development of sports. There are many
passionate and willing Filipino athletes but their skills are not fully established because they have
no access to equipment and facilities. The film in itself is a story of harnessing ones passion not
only towards self fulfillment, but also for the sake of making ones country proud. The 22
young boys are already kicking towards their dreams and they still have a long way to go to aim
the ball right on time on the goal. Now, take a deep breath, get yourself ready, and prepare to
kick yourself all the way through your own dreams.

Work/s Cited

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Dugena, Jennifer. Movie Review: Little Azkals is a simple yet powerful documentary that
football and non football fans will appreciate. Philippine Entertainment Portal.
PEP.ph Philippine Entertainment Portal Inc., 21 October 2014. Web. 11 April 2015.