Featured art by Bhernn Saenz. With images courtesy of Bettina Someros-Ching.
CALIFORNIA, U.S. — When stories of underrepresented communities continue to be left untold, Filipina marketing and communications professional turned filmmaker Bettina Someros-Ching steps into the director’s chair with purpose. Her directorial debut, 20/80, is a psychological thriller crafted for the 2025 Easterseals Disability Film Challenge.
Before moving to California, she has worked in Public Relations for global brands and served as the country digital lead for a major international hotel group. While she had always been drawn to film—taking electives in college and nurturing a quiet love for storytelling—it wasn’t until marrying California-based Filipino filmmaker Steven Ching that she began seriously exploring filmmaking as a creative pursuit. With his encouragement, she found a new way to use her voice in cinema.
Her husband, who wrote the screenplay and stars in the film, is blind in one eye and has low vision in the other. Known in the California film community for his work behind the camera, he steps into the spotlight to portray a man navigating a surreal maze of psychological and emotional turmoil—a cinematic reflection of his own lived experiences.
Images courtesy of Twenty Eighty Film/Bettina Someros-Ching.
The Easterseals Disability Film Challenge tasks filmmakers with creating a fully realized short film in just five days. For the creative couple, the time pressure was real, but secondary to the responsibility of telling a story with care, nuance, and authenticity.
“This was more than just a film project—it was a deeply personal journey,” Someros-Ching shares. “I had the privilege of shaping a story that honors my husband’s lived experience, while giving voice to those who often feel unseen. In a world that too easily overlooks quiet struggles, 20/80 is a reminder that these stories matter—and that telling them is, in itself, an act of visibility and care.”
The short film was made possible by a remarkable team of creatives, including standout Filipino talents. Aaron Anil Ahkter, a Filipino American with roots in Laguna, served as Assistant Camera. Polo Miguel Dela Cruz, a Thailand-based composer known for his work with OPM artists, created the original score and mixed the immersive soundscape. Kevin Yu, a graphic artist for a major hotel brand in the Philippines, developed the film’s bold and striking visual identity.
Images courtesy of Twenty Eighty Film/Bettina Someros-Ching.
The production also brought together a passionate crew from across California, whose energy, creativity, and care made the five-day shoot feel both seamless and special. This team—connected by culture, craft, and heart—showed what’s possible when people come together with a genuine love for what they do.
20/80 is now part of a global awareness campaign running until April 22 (Philippine time), where films are judged based on online engagement. The team invites everyone to watch, like, comment, and share the film to help amplify its message.
Images courtesy of Twenty Eighty Film/Bettina Someros-Ching.
The Easterseals Disability Film Challenge, an annual competition, celebrates and empowers filmmakers with disabilities and their allies. By giving participants five days to write, shoot, and deliver an original short film, it helps change how the world views disabilities.
Watch the short film here:
To learn more, visit: https://disabilityfilmchallenge.com
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