By Shane Neri Sinangote

[Filmmaker, Michael Lacanilao, Discusses the Concept | Photo by Julio Ceasar Napone]

On 15 April 2025, the Xavier Ateneo Film Society (XAFS) and its primary partner, the Xavier Ateneo Night School Program - Alternative Learning System (Night School Program), collaborated with DAKILA Cagayan De Oro and Manila-based filmmakers to organize “Basa Salida: Critical Thinking and Disinformation.” A public screening was first held at Carmen Art District, followed by a one-time event at Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan.

The program featured screenings of films by Director Michael Lacanilao: the first was his film thesis, “Building a Modern Myth.” After the film went viral following its leak in 2012, it depicted the Escherian Stairwell, an infinite loop with impossible geometry on stairs located at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). Just as the stairwell’s design manipulates perception to create a false sense of endlessness, disinformation distorts reality through repeated, cyclical narratives that mislead audiences.

In 2022, during the peak of the presidential election, the film became one of the most viewed videos online.  “I felt conflicted,” Director Lacanilao shared. “On one hand, it was very exciting. On the other, it was disturbing to see it exploited and churned through a systematic propaganda machine.” This prompted him to release his second film, the documentary “A Brief History of the Escherian Stairwell.” The latter, released a decade after Lacanilao’s original work, explores how and why it was created. By showing how the media is so easily manipulated and highlighting vulnerability to deception, the film reminds us why questioning what we see and checking facts matters to stop lies from spreading too far.

[Audience Viewing the Documentary Film | Photo by Dan Tupas]

It is more than just a work of art—it is a call to action. ‟If all our lives we’re told what to think and what to believe, it can be terrifying to take on the responsibility of thinking for ourselves,” the director said  “Critical thinking] is like a muscle that gets stronger the more you exercise it. We get better at discerning what’s true from what’s false. But we have to start with the hard part—with recognizing that there’s no safety net and that the messy work of figuring out what to believe is something worth embracing as an individual.”

Students from various schools—including USTP, Liceo, and XU Senior High—who attended the screening were left rattled yet captivated by the film’s design, whether they were first-time viewers or returning audiences. Many described feeling a mix of shock, fear, and awe, just like the anxiety Director Lacanilao shared.

From the paradoxical clip of the film-- a person trapped in an endless loop when ascending and descending the stairs being its metaphor-- it already encourages the audience to think. “The idea was to make a project that was centered around something a priori false,” Director Lacanilao concluded. “Something you could disprove simply by thinking about it.” Much like the stairwell’s illusion collapses under scrutiny, his work urges viewers to—before they spiral into belief.

[The Speaker with the Audience Attempting Film Society’s hand sign | Photo by Julio Ceasar Napone]

In the political sphere, as the 2025 senatorial elections are ongoing, the event underscored that disinformation cannot be erased, but it can be resisted. XAFS’s mission to merge cinema and education proves art is not just entertainment–it is a tool to spark awareness about staying critical. By storytelling and reflection, the films remind us that truth, like the stairwell’s secrets, demands scrutiny to unravel.