‘The Ritual’ (Ang Ritwal)
Documentary
8 minutes
2024
In Manila’s tenements and cemetery slums, devotion to basketball verges on sacred. Over the course of ‘Undas’ (the Filipino day of the dead), two ballers take us into the heart of the streetball scene where community pride is the ultimate prize. Ang Ritwal is about the power of communal rituals — sacred or profane — and their role in creating a sense of identity for those on the city’s fringes.


“Guided by a ghost story told by a group of boys from the cemetery, director Alex Tiernan feeds urban folklore into short film Ang Ritwal, capturing the collision of religion and basketball fandom seen in Manila’s slums” – NOWNESS

Credits
Director/Cinematographer – Alex Tiernan
Production Co. – Bullet Manila
Producer – Leslie Ann Tan
Exec. Producer – Jeremy Goold @ You Are Here
Associate Producer – Sanou Diouf @ Old Man Taro
Producer Manager – Aileen Ilumin
1st AC – Vic Ong
Production Assistant – Eleyn Medina
Additional photography – Jacopo Brogioni
Editor – Liam Bachler @ Tenthree Editing
Post Production – Company3
Colour Producer – Ellora Soret
Colourist – Yoomin Lee
Music Composer – Vittorio Giampietro, Bianca Loffreda

Recognition

1.4 Awards 2024, SHORTLIST: Flying High – Best Personal Project 
Mirada Corta Short Film Festival 2025, WINNER: Best Documentary Short
Brussels Short Film Festival 2025, OFFICIAL SELECTION
Mexico City Shortsfest 2025, OFFICIAL SELECTION
Concorto Film Festival 2025, SPECIAL PROGRAMME: Philippines
Sole Luna Doc Film Festival 2025, OFFICIAL SELECTION
DokuBaku International Documentary Film Festival 2025, OFFICIAL SELECTION