The story of papermaking at the Duntog Paper Mill in the Philippine mountains is told with love, but I want to know so much more. This video acquaints us but does not instruct. The printed introduction which scrolls up the screen gives some general background, but I found it difficult to read; the lack of capital letters made it possible to unconsciously ignore the punctuation. This, plus some awkward English, tended to garble the meaning. The narration is minimal and does little more than name the activities of gathering fiber and processing it into paper. It concludes with a listing of the uses of the paper made at Duntog, ending with shifu, the spinning and weaving of paper thread into cloth. Immediately following, without any further explanation or commentary, is a demonstration not of shifu but of Western marbling, then shifu, then Japanese marbling, and the film ends. For those uninitiated in papermaking and related processes, it must be somewhat perplexing. There are times when the views of the surrounding landscape, the music, the light coming through newly made paper result in a lovely poetry. It captures my heart but not my mind. There is so much more to be said about Duntog. Descriptions of native Philippine fibers, the gathering, processing, and final uses, complete with samples, are a frequent part of Kalin di Duntog, or Voice of Duntog, the Mill's quarterly publication. Some of these fibers have a long history of use, while others have just recently been researched and developed at Duntog. Two of these are pina and latbang, which are used together to make thread for shifu. Is it just research? No. Shifu thread in several colors is offered for sale. Several other programs are noteworthy in the energetic and many layered approach to papermaking at Duntog. They are collaborating with South China University of Technology on new cooking, beating, and drying techniques for the mill at Longboy. An international paper conference in January 1992 included a number of reports on the state of papermaking in China, given by professors of this same university. Recent artists in residence have included printmakers from China and America. The Duntog is also encouraging small groups interested in Western and Oriental sheetforming, letterpress, bookbinding, weaving, or marbling to come and work with them. I would like to see a video devoted to either a very detailed comparison of the many local fibers and papers in the Philippines, or a richer portrayal of the many layers of the Duntog. Charlotte Reith  

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