Bureaucracy frustrations push FDCP Chief Joey Reyes to rethink role

Source confirms Joey Reyes remains FDCP head despite his fiery post on health, purpose, and burnout.

FDCP Chairman and CEO Jose Javier Reyes said he is rethinking what he is “really meant to do” after a frustrating experience with government bureaucracy, prompting speculation about his future at the agency.

However, a source clarified that Reyes is not quitting the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), nor was he fired. The source also said the situation has nothing to do with the agency’s relationship with the Office of the President, but is “related sa ganap n’ya as chairman.”

Reyes opened up about the experience in a Facebook post on Tuesday, Sept. 15, saying he initially thought it was “one of the worst days” of his life.

“After all the hard work, all it took was the stroke of a memo to disavow all the sacrifice invested to fulfill what was required and to deliver credible results,” he wrote.

Reyes admitted feeling “infuriated,” “frustrated” and “insulted,” while acknowledging that dealing with bureaucracy was part of working in government.

“But that is bureaucracy and despite all these decades of human experience, I am still a neophyte in the domain of government,” he said.

The filmmaker and educator was appointed FDCP chairman and CEO in 2024 and was reappointed to the post in 2025. The agency currently lists him as its chairperson and CEO.

Physical, mental health take priority

The experience also prompted Reyes to reassess his priorities.

He said he woke up the following morning realizing that his frustration had manifested physically, leading him to recognize the importance of taking care of himself.

“I also realized that my physical and mental health take priority over all other considerations and obligations,” Reyes wrote.

At 70, he said he deserves to “love myself only next to the Almighty and to nobody and nothing else.”

The reflection led him to reconsider what he wants to do with his time and energy, rather than simply complying with directives.

“This morning I realize that I have done my work and earned my treasure not in Kind but with the people who have enriched me for just being there to make a better version of me,” he wrote.

“It is time to rethink  what I am really meant to do rather than to merely comply with the memoranda from others.”

Reyes ended his post with a blunt declaration: “Mission accomplished. Now it is time to do exactly what I want to do … and not give a flying f*ck.”

Mission accomplished

Despite the difficult experience, Reyes also found reason to be thankful, particularly for the people around him and a project he had long wanted to complete.

He recalled having dinner with “precious, priceless friends” the previous night and highlighted the additional screenings of Lino Brocka’s restored classic “Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang,” which he described as a project he had longed to complete during his “stint of authority.”

The FDCP formally opened the 2026 Philippine Film Industry Month with the restored version of Brocka’s 1974 film, with Reyes leading the agency’s celebration of the landmark work. 

Reyes also thanked, among others, newly proclaimed National Artist for Literature Nicanor Tiongson, calling them his “rocks.” 

For Reyes, the restoration and renewed screenings of “Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang” became one of the accomplishments he chose to hold on amid an otherwise difficult day.

“I have done my work,” he wrote, before turning his attention to what comes next.

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