“Eraserheads: Combo on the Run” will finally be screened in local movie houses and select cities abroad from March 21 to March 23 this year, and not on Netlfix or any streaming devices as earlier announced, filmmaker-music producer Maria Diane Ventura exclusively told GMA News Online on Monday night.
The nearly two-hour documentary, co-presented by DVent Pictures and WEU Events Management Company, co-produced by Voyage Studios and Offshore Music and distributed by Warner Brothers, explores the struggles and triumphs of the most influential and popular band in the history of Original Pinoy Music.
“What people shouldn’t expect is, for this to be just another documentary about a break up of a rock band and the proverbial clash of egos,” Ventura, managing director of DVent Productions, told GMA News Online. “Though those kinds of films admittedly entertain, I feel that storyline has been rehashed a thousand times.”
According to Ventura, “Combo On The Run” explores “themes and truths beyond the superficial because the Eraserheads isn’t that at all.”
“I’m grateful to have witnessed the guys (notorious for their guarded aloofness) allow themselves to be vulnerable enough to talk about things that are difficult to talk about with candidness and openness that allowed for catharsis and reflection not only for them but for myself as I went through this journey of discovering what truly happened,” Ventura said.
Ventura is an internationally acclaimed filmmaker. Among her award winning works are the short films, “The Rapist” released in 2013, “Awaken” (2014) and her debut feature length opus, the 2021 “Diene Farbe (Your Color),” which has been made available on Amazon and Amazon Prime.
The Eraserheads, which is composed of vocalist-guitarist-main composer Ely Buendia, drummer Raimund Marasigan, bassist Buddy Zabala and lead guitarist Marcus Adoro, was formed in 1989 and disbanded in 2002.
They first reunited on August 30, 2008 at the Bonifacio Global City Open Grounds but the concert was famously cut short after Ely suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital.
They had a second reunion titled “The Final Set” on March 7, 2009 at SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds, which was reportedly attended by nearly 100,000 fans. Co-produced by MTV Philippines and Smart Communications, the concert was exclusively aired on GMA Network as a TV special in April, 2009.
Since then, they’ve been touring abroad but have not performed together in their home country until “Huling El Bimbo” in December 2022, after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.
Said to be the Eraserheads’ last reunion show, the band managed to bring the concert to the US, Canada, and Middle East.
They will also bring the reunion show to Australia and New Zealand in March.
Ventura, who also functioned as writer for the documentary, told GMA News Online that the movie “is a comprehensive deconstruction of the band, their mythology relationship, breakup, and the mark they left on Filipino culture and its people that transcends generations and differences.”
It’s “a testament to the power of their music,” she added.
The documentary trailer was premiered at San Diego ComiCon in San Diego, California in September, 2024.
Follow “Huling El Bimbo Concert” socials for details.
— LA, GMA Integrated News
