MARICHU Vera-Perez Maceda, one of the pillars of the Philippine movie industry, died on Monday due to complications of kidney and heart disease. She was 77.
Her sisters Gina de Venecia and Lilibeth Betchay Vera-Perez Nakpil told ABS-CBN News Maceda died at a hospital in Quezon City where she had been regularly confined for treatments since 2018.
Born into the fabled Vera-Perez family that founded Sampaguita Pictures in the pre-World War 2 era, Maceda parlayed herself as a writer, production designer and producer of many noteworthy projects in and outside Sampaguita, including the classic 1981 movie “Batch 81” directed by Mike de Leon.
She is also credited for laying the foundation of the Philippine movie industry starting with her efforts in the 1970s to make it competitive in the international market.
Fondly called “Manay Ichu,” Maceda helped organize various committees and foundations.
In 2018, the Film Development Council of the Philippines recognized Maceda as one of the grand matriarchs of Philippine movies at the Cinematheque Manila.(ABS-CBN)
