I am the child of immigrant parents who came to Canada from the Philippines in the early 1970s. I grew up in Walnut Grove, BC, a predominantly white neighbourhood, in the 80s. Even though I was never targeted for my skin colour, I was ashamed of my brown skin. I wanted to be white.
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Outsiderness is an exploration of this shame and a journey to overcome it. It touches on themes like identity, belonging, and assimilation through conversations with both first and second generation Filipino immigrants, as well as a psychologist in the Philippines.
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Outsiderness had its world premiere in Nelson, BC, Canada on June 19, 2025 to over 250 people. The screening also raised $2000 for Kapwa Strong, a campaign run by Filipino BC and United Way BC to support families affected by the tragedy that occurred at the Lapu-Lapu Festival in Vancouver on April 26, 2025.
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If you are interested in hosting a screening in your community, please reach out to me using the contact form.
CARLO ALCOS
Creator, Director, Writer, Editor
Carlo Alcos has been working in digital media since 2008 and making documentaries since 2018. He works as a freelance videographer, location sound recordist, and sound editor/designer/mixer. He believes strongly in the power of storytelling; it's through stories that we gain an understanding of each other. He also advocates strongly for diversity and representation as he knows firsthand how important it is that we see ourselves reflected back to us in different spaces.
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Read more of his thoughts and ramblings and join the conversation at the Outsiderness substack.
TEAM
SARAH KAPOOR
Story Editor
I’ve had the pleasure of working with Carlo in a professional capacity for audio post. I had been looking for Kootenay based talent to work with and Carlo delivered. He quickly embedded himself in my mind as an excellent communicator and someone I would want to work with again. I was surprised when he approached me as a story editor to help him think through and structure his upcoming, personally driven documentary, Outsiderness. The themes he is exploring are close to my own lived experience as well. Outsiderness is a film I want and need to see. Carlo is taking a deep dive into topics of belonging and assimilation. It’s not easy, and Carlo is in the thick of some very deep work which he is conducting with care and thoughtfulness. It’s a privilege to both witness and support him on this journey of reckoning, understanding and creativity.
JONATHAN RAMOS
Associate Producer & Camera Operator
Jonathan Ramos is a mixed-multimedia artist and content creator from Nelson, BC. Growing up as a half Filipino/Canadian helped shape the values and work ethic that would later influence his works. Having studied music, art, and film academically, Jonathan has carved out a multi-disciplinary career that spans 10+ years and includes professional experience as a performing artist, producer, animator, writer/actor, editor and filmmaker.
Jonathan thrives in telling the stories of the under-represented, using documentary filmmaking as the medium to combine all of his passions into one artistic expression. The opportunity to explore his Filipino identity with the Outsiderness project - and connect with other similar minded creatives - makes this story of belonging worth telling.
KRISTEN JORDAN ALAAN SISON
Associate Producer
Kristen Sison is a Filipina woman born in Scarborough, Tkaronto / Toronto on Dish With One Spoon Wampum Treaty Territory. Her lineages: Ilocano by way of Binalonan, Pangasinan, & Tagalog with ancestral ties in Batangas. She is a devoted organizer + archivist in the community arts and climate justice realms of Toronto.
A founding member of grassroots groups Kapwa Collective, Conscious Minds Co-operative, and Rooted and Rising, she has been co-creating intergenerational spaces for decolonization and communing with the sacred for over a decade. She believes in the power of harnessing story to create more empowered + thriving futures, self-publishing Womxn in 2016 & It’s Bigger Than All Of Us in the Summer of 2021. Both works feature 50+ BIPOC artists.
Kristen moved to Nelson, BC in the Fall of 2021 on the unceded territory of the Sinixt, Ktunaxa, & Syilx Peoples. For the past 15 years she’s been a deep witness + participant in Toronto’s now blossoming Filipino arts + culture scene, having been introduced to community art programming and the exploration of her Filipino roots at 16 years old!!! She is super keen to see what stories unfold through the exploration of Nelson’s growing Filipino community through the Outsiderness project!​
