Oda sa Wala (English: Ode to Nothing) is a 2018 Philippine drama film written and directed by Dwein Baltazar. Philippine actress Marietta "Pokwang" Subong (credited by her full name) portrays Sonya, who lives in the funeral parlor she runs with her father. Her routine, isolated life is suddenly upended with the arrival of a cadaver that gradually remains unclaimed.
Oda sa Wala's cast includes Joonee Gamboa, Lita Loresco, Dido De la Paz, Anthony Falcon, and Iana Bernardez, who also produced the film. Filmed in San Miguel, Bulacan, cinematographer Neil Daza briefly considered filming in black-and-white before abandoning the idea in favor of monochromatic color.[1]
Premiering in October 2018 as part of the QCinema International Film Festival's Circle Competition, Oda sa Wala won 5 awards from 8 nominations including Best Picture and Best Actress.[2] It also won a FAMAS Award from seven nominations, and earned a Gawad Urian nomination for Best Actress.
Oda sa Wala was released virtually in the Philippines on 23 April 2021 as part of a "Black Pack" that included other Black Sheep releases Motel Acacia, and Death of Nintendo.[3] This indicated the film as a 2021 release on the social cataloging service Letterboxd, where it subsequently placed #2 on their mid-year ranking of the best films of 2021.[4] Its presence on the list alongside another Philippine film, Cleaners, attracted international attention.[5] American home-video distribution company Kani Releasing acquired home video distribution rights and released the film in Blu-Ray in March 2022.[6]
