WATCH: Interview with F. Sionil Jose, National Artist for Literature

In this interview filmed in 2011, F. Sionil Jose – National Artist for Literature in 2001 – talks about writing and the social issues that shaped the Philippines throughout the years. 

Sionil Jose, now 92, is also a publisher, cultural issues lecturer, and the founder of the Philippine chapter of the international organization PEN (Poets, Playwrights, Essayists, Novelists). His novels have been translated into 22 languages.

He was bestowed the CCP Centennial Honors for the Arts in 1999; the Outstanding Fulbrighters Award for Literature in 1988; and the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts in 1980.

For the Akdang-Buhay series, he was interviewed by novelist and scriptwriter Charlson Ong 

During the Buwan ng Panitikan (National Literature Month), Rappler runs the series that features interviews with several national artists for literature and influential writers, conducted by young writers who have studied their works or whom they have mentored.

Akdang-Buhay is a joint project between the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Likhaan: The University of the Philippines Institute of Creative Writing, and the University of the Philippines Open University. Rappler obtained permission to republish the series.

Watch Sionil Jose’s interview here. – Rappler.com