Ina Nyo

Directed By Mary Grace Evangelista

Type of Project:  Drama
Length:  12:00 minutes    
Producer(s):  Lucia Reis and Mary Evangelista
Editor:  Mary Evangelista
Cinematographer:  Joanne Mony Park

Ina Nyo is day in the life of Ana, a young housemaid in the Philippines. Desperate to send more money to her mother, Ana is caught up in the scruples of the precocious teenage daughter and the older wayward son of the house. She must now decide what she is willing to compromise to maintain her place in the household.

Mary Grace Evangelista – Graduate
mge253@nyu.edu

Mary was born in Manila Philippines, but grew up in the Bay Area California after her family immigrated to the States. With a desire to make striking films across genres that move people to action, she has focused on trying to give voice to those considered the other. Her honors thesis film for her BFA from the University of California, San Diego is called Mad(drag)ness inspired by her brother's dalliance into the drag queer world of San Francisco and the DIY termite process of filmmakers like the Kuchars and Chantal Akerman. Prior to her attendance at New York University where she is an MFA candidate for directing and cinematography in the Graduate Film Program, she spent a year at Discovery Channel Philippines making regional TV Commercials. She also had a three year stint as a Digital Strategist at Mekanism an award-winning ad agency based in New York and San Francisco. Her second year film entitled Ina Nyo is a story about a young housemaid trying to keep her job and dignity as she navigates the difficulties of being used as a pawn in a sibling rivalry. With this story she hopes to unsettle and resonate with viewers about such everyday exploitation. Inspired by the strength of the women who surrounded her growing up who took jobs as caretakers, housemaids, and nannies; the protagonist illustrates the inherent vulnerability of women who seek a way out of poverty through domestic work but also their resiliency.