In 1942, Japan conquered the Philippines from the Americans. In 1945, they would be kicked out. Due to the geography of the Philippines, many Japanese remained isolated and stuck in the jungle. The order was to join the last military resistance in Cebu. The retreat was a massacre. The Japanese were already undernourished, without rations for a long time.

This episode is filmed by Shinya Tsukamoto in the film Nobi - Fires On the Plain presented at 71 Venice Film Festival.

In Southeast Asia, galvanized by exponential increases in GDP, a modern, educated, universal and traditional cinema is being produced at the same time. The filmmakers studied, learned their lessons but kept the communication channel open with their country of origin. Making choices, creating their own style, exploiting far-reaching stories, adapting and conveying messages make them even more influential than the decadent West.

Among many examples are Thai Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Filipino Brillante Mendoza.

In Masahista, Brillante Mendoza shocks the audience by telling with sweetness and realism. The protagonist is Iliac, a masseur for men in a brothel on the Manila outskirts. The director's style repeats. Social adaptation, the difficulties of complicated growth are the Iliac's scenario, his sufferings and his family.

The cha-cha-cha dance has a Cuban origin. Like all dances born on the Caribbean island, cha-cha-cha has a fast pace. There is the same passion for cha-cha-cha in the Philippine islands, where it is even the title of a film - Anita's Last Cha Cha - Ang huling cha-cha ni Anita - by Filipino director Sigrid Andrea Bernardo. In a small village in the Obando area, near Manila, there are still intense social relationships. The kids live quietly, play in the countryside or wander around the still unpaved streets. Among them is twelve-year-old Anita. A beautiful, lively, intelligent, sensitive girl. The film is his story of the film.