GUAM PACIFIC DAILY NEWS
SHIRO'S HEAD
MUNA BROTHERS TO HOLD PREMIERE OF MOVIE THIS WEEK
By Lacee A.C. Martinez
September 28, 2008

From its trailer and teaser, "Shiro's Head" could be any other movie you catch on the big screen or rent from the local video store. The production values of the short clips appear sharp and expertly edited. Both are intensely driven with quiet narration and a soundtrack that builds and climaxes with heart-pounding rhythm.
"Shiro's Head" is a movie that you will be able to catch on the big screen next week and possibly purchase on DVD around the holiday season.

What's strikingly different, or familiar, rather, are the faces in the movie--the scenery, too. The faces are familiar because they are from Guam. The scenery is familiar because it is Guam.

The name isn't Coen behind the brother team producing "Shiro's Head", but Muna -- Don and Kel Muna. The two are realizing their dream of releasing a high-quality movie written by Guamanians, featuring Guamanians and shot on Guam.

The highly anticipated Guam feature film "Shiro's Head" will premiere in island theaters next week, followed by screenings at the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival on the East Coast and the Louis Vuitton International Film Festival in Hawaii.

Guam-centered aspects of "Shiro's Head" aside, this is an independent movie the brothers want you to watch, regardless of where you're from.

The movie takes its lead from the story "Shiro's Head, the legend," using the island as its backdrop. The Muna rendition follows the character Vince Flores, played by Don Muna, who's coming to terms with the death of his father.

"He has a bit of remorse for the things he's done in his past," Don Muna says. "The movie is about his inner struggle and the guilt he has of not really nurturing the relationship with his family."

He describes the film as a coming-of-age story despite Flores being in his late 30s.

"I know a lot of what I contributed to the script dealt with personal issues and things I wanted to get off my chest," Don Muna says. "It's how I vent, through my art, all of that basically, all of my experiences that I've come to experience on island with my family and lot of my regrets and lost chances."

Both brothers went up against each other, videotaping and screening to see who best fit the lead character's role. Kel Muna, however, takes a back seat to the silver screen, remaining only behind the scenes. Both say they were impressed with the acting chops that came from local cast members, some of whom you'll recognize from local programming and others that were chosen for their look right off the street.

You'll easily spot Julius "Caesar" Santos as Jacob Flores, from his Malafunkshun antics and even the more serious role he had in the Guam stage production of "Rent."

Dion Lizama, 26, is better known for wielding a pair of scissors as stylist at Hairdresser by Kimberly in Hagåtña than a gun in his assassin role as Imo Masakatsu.

"His character in the movie is so opposite from real life," Kel Muna says. "He's such a soft-spoken and very well-mannered guy."

The 26-year-old Lizama from Malojloj is gritty in the film, sporting a Mohawk to match the metal jewelry throughout his face and tattoos from head to toe. The tattoos are real and so are the several ear and lip rings and bar pierced at the bridge of his nose.

The Muna brothers film is the first acting job for the hair stylist, whom you might just catch in line during one of the general screenings.

"I am excited to see how my character is going to be portrayed on camera," Lizama says. "All of my parts were pretty intense, yet I'm really calm. I'm a really very chill and fun-loving guy."

The Muna brothers regard the film as "independent," drawing on strong influences from the Hollywood likes of Peter Berg of the "Friday Night Lights" franchise and Robert Rodriguez of "Sin City" fame.

"It's about the pacing and writing," Kel Muna says. "There's a very strong influence like in the original 'Rocky' by Sylvester Stallone. It has a lot of depth and layers and you walk away after the movie is done feeling like you can conquer the world."

Since the movie was based and shot on Guam, the two say it was paramount to not have doctored up the landscape to make it more appealing. From Umatac to Urunao, the camera takes you on a journey through Guam's beauty and blemishes just as the island is today.

"Shiro's Head" comes at the tail end of a two-year journey for the brothers, who have worked day in and day out on the project while balancing their everyday lives. Whether you're from the island or not, you'll grab the familial aspects of the story or at least enjoy the experience, they say.

The Muna brothers also credit family and friends for their support throughout the production, which had an almost non-existent budget. Even the movie soundtrack gets a local touch, featuring Guam artists including Brandi Jae Aguon, Matala and Rebel Lion, to name a few.

"We put out a movie as creative people -- being as hard as we are on quality control and knowing what ingredients need to be put in it," Kel Muna says. "It's a movie that I personally would like to see. We had no paying jobs when we made this because we couldn't die without doing a movie."