Woods Hole Film Festival 2009

Rescued by a concerned neighbor from his abusive father, 7-year old Onyok is brought to a shelter for abused children. Amanda, the shelter's owner-founder realizes that Onyok is unable to speak, caused by a physical trauma that damaged his larynx. On the first day of his stay in the shelter he hears the faint sound of a violin being played from far off. This strange but beautiful music that has captivated Onyok's attention comes from Amanda's reclusive brother Ariel, who has turned back on his career as a concert violinist in Manila and came back to the family house bearing a terrible guilt.This is the beginning of a simple, yet moving friendship between Onyok and Ariel. Ariel's initial cynicism over his sister's commitment to caring for abused children slowly melts when he sees Onyok's intrinsic inclination to the violin. Onyok proves to have inborn talents to the instrument that leads Ariel to teach the mute little boy.Amanda begins to worry, however, when Ariel begins to push Onyok beyond his limits, leading the boy away from dealing with his own emotional issues as well as straining his new-found friendship with Shirley, a young precocious child in the shelter.In the course of the film, Ariel's secret guilt over the death of his sweetheart protege is revealed. The question of Ariel's motives about him pushing Onyok's gifted talents to a similar level comes to the fore. Does Ariel really care for Onyok's condition, or is he pushing Onyok to fulfill a shattered dream?Onyok's abusive father is slowly rehabilitated and the shelter is eventually preparing for a reconciliation between father and son. Ariel realizes that he does not own the child. And their friendship will have to encompass both their individual issues -- hardly similar and yet resonant to both of them.Nobody knows whether Onyok's reconciliation with an abusive parent will succeed. But one thing has remained inevitably clear: he has regained his voice.