MANILA – The critically acclaimed documentary about former First Lady Imelda Marcos will make its Philippine premiere later this month.

“The Kingmaker” by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and photographer Lauren Greenfield will be screened on January 29 at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP).

In a statement, CCP vice president and artistic director Chris Millado said their screening of “The Kingmaker” is “a way of making artistic expression engage with issues that we feel are very important to tackle.”

“The CCP as a government cultural institution has a contentious history, so it cannot be denied that Imelda founded this during the Marcos years, that Imelda was the main patron for the establishment of this institution. But it also cannot be denied that the Marcos regime had its excesses in terms of corruption, and its human rights record. And it also cannot be denied that they have been convicted in courts for this,” he said.

“We can’t deny the relations of the center with the Marcoses, but CCP has moved on to become a People’s Art Center. The CCP has always been a platform for artistic expressions and rational conversations. We are presenting a documentary tackling an issue that we are concerned about, as a Filipino people,” Millado added.

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The 100-minute “The Kingmaker” explores the disturbing legacy of the Marcos regime and examines the family’s improbable return to power in the Philippines.

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It is the first documentary film to be invited to all four top festivals – Venice, Telluride, Toronto, and London – and has since garnered a Writers Guild Nomination, three Critics’ Choice Nominations, and the Critics’ Choice honor for the “Most Compelling Living Subject of a Documentary.”

The screening of “The Kingmaker” is in cooperation with De La Salle University-Taft, and is under the CCP Arthouse Cinema program.

For ticket inquiries, call the CCP Box Office at (02) 8832-3704, or TicketWorld at (02) 8891-9999. For more information, visit www.culturalcenter.gov.ph.