Film
Ana Barredo, Fil-Am Filmmaker, on “The Year I Did Nothing”
Ana Barredo immigrated to the United States with her family in 1986. The Filipino-American filmmaker says she has always been fascinated by Hollywood; in fact, Barredo insists she learned to speak English watching American TV shows while growing up in the Philippines.
The filmmaker has produced a semi-autobiographical film that captures both personal and historic moments in her life and that of her former home country, the Philippines. Written and directed by Barredo, The Year I Did Nothing, is set in 1985 Manila where 3 siblings spend an extended summer waiting to immigrate to America. All the while, their country is roiled in conflict as Filipinos prepare to evict their homeland’s notorious dictator, Ferdinand Marcos.
The Year I Did Nothing (Trailer) from Grand Fenwick on Vimeo.
For Ana Barredo growing up in the Philippines, Hollywood was something she always dreamed about.
“But, never in a million years would I have ever imagined or aspire to actually be a part of.”
The dream became a reality when, in 2001, she wrote, directed and produced her first indie feature called A Real Job. According to Barredo, the micro-budget movie went on to garner glowing reviews, a Best Director nomination for a DVD Premiere Award, and a distribution deal with Image Entertainment.
Her newest film, The Year I Did Nothing, has been honored with the Best Drama Award at the 2019 Independent Filmmakers Showcase (IFS) Film Festival.
The Year I Did Nothing 
The Year I Did Nothing 
The Year I Did Nothing
PalacioMagazine.com spoke with Ana Barredo by phone about the long gestation period for the film, the challenge of making a feature-length foreign language film whose main characters include kids under 10, and shooting in Los Angeles while making it look like Manila in the 1980s for under $50K.
The Year I Did Nothing will screen August 3, 2019, at the 2019 Masskara Festival presented by the Long Beach – Bacolod Association. The screening begins at 3 p.m. at Long Beach City College, 4901 East Carson St. Bldg T1200, followed by a Q&A with the filmmaker and the cast.
For additional details on the Masskara Festival, visit longbeachbacolodassociation.org. For more movie info, go to theyearididnothing.com.
Ana Barredo Bio
“In 2001, Ana Barredo wrote, directed and produced her first indie feature called A Real Job. The micro-budget movie went on to gain glowing reviews, a Best Director nomination for a DVD Premiere Award and a distribution deal with Image Entertainment. It was picked up by Shout Factory’s video streaming channel and can be seen on Amazon Prime. She then went on to make a mockumentary short titled The Plight of the Angelenos, which screened in numerous film festivals worldwide such as the LA Shorts, Moondance, Oxnard, and Rotterdam Film Festivals. While working as a DVD Special Features Producer, she met Twilight Zone Companion author Marc Zicree. This led Barredo to produce and direct her documentary feature The Table, which won the Best Feature Award at the 2011 SoCal Film Festival. After playing the festival circuit, Barredo landed a distribution deal with Cinedigm Corp. Ana Barredo also produced and directed an 8-episode web series called Vlog This! featuring an eclectic group of YouTubers and their channels.”
