J. Dennis C. Teodosio was a writer for TV, cinema, print, advertising, and the stage.
He was a fellow in the UP Likhaan National Writers Workshop (for poetry in Filipino, 1996, and for one-act play in Filipino, mid-career, 2007), the Iligan National Writers Workshop (for one-act play in Filipino, 2002) and the Nueva Ecija Personal Essay Writing Workshop (Filipino, 2019).
In 2021, he was named as one of the first international writing fellows (for playwriting, Philippines/Myanmar) of the 27th Iligan National Writers Workshop.
He was one of the scholars of the 1st ABS-CBN2/Ricky Lee Course in Soap Writing and was part of the Star Cinema Concept Development Group.
His works garnered prizes from the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature (screenplay, teleplay, one-act play, and essay), National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Gawad Ka Amado, Valenzuela City Cultural & Tourism Development Office, Valenzuela Arts & Literary Society, the PBBY-Salanga Writer’s Prize, Gawad Teatro Bulawan, CineManila International Film Festival, Star Cinema, Viva
Films, Philippine Pink Film Festival, Film Development Foundation of the Philippines, Film Academy of the Philippines, Anak TV, Gawad Tanglaw, the Aliw Awards, Broadway World Awards, Migration Advocacy & Media Awards, Myanmar Script Fund, China-Southeast Asia-South Asia TV Arts Week, and the Asian TV Awards.
His works were anthologized in “Likhaan 40@40: Commerative Issue” (UP Press, 2018); “Likhaan Journal 10” (UP Press, 2016), “Transfiksyon” (UP Press, 2014), “Mga Piling Dula mula sa Virgin Lab Fest, 2005-2008: Unang Antolohiya,” (CCP, 2009), “Ladlad 3: An Anthology of Philippine Gay Writing” (Anvil Publishing, 2007), “Writing to the Future: Poetika at Politika ng Malikhaing Pagsulat”, (UP-ICW & NCCA, 2008), and “Writing to the Music of Pestle-on-Mortar: The 9th Iligan National Writers Workshop,” (MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology, 2003).
He was commissioned to write by Gantimpala Theater Foundation, PETA, Tanghalang Pilipino, and Artist Playground and, to date, has 45 stage plays to his credit.
His Virgin Lab Fest portfolio includes 12 brave new works on gender and identity, namely: ‘Gee-Gee At Waterina’ (VLF1, 2005), ‘Baka-Sakali’ (VLF2, 2006), ‘Payb Siks’ (VLF2, 2006), ‘Bagahe’ (VLF3, 2007), ‘Pobreng Alindanaw’ (VLF3, 2007, independently produced), ‘Gumamela’ (VLF4, 2008), ‘Asunto’ (VLF4, 2008, dramatic reading), ‘Salise’ (VLF5, 2009), ‘Carmi Martin’ (VLF6, 2010), ‘Totong Hilot’ (VLF8, 2011, full-length play), ‘Rosas’ (VLF14, 2018), and ‘Surrogare’ (VLF15, 2019).
Based in Yangon, Myanmar since 2011, he develops and writes TV programs for Forever Group Co., Ltd. and designs and conducts training programs for Myanmar Media Development Center.
In 2014, he founded the Yangon-based independent film group, ‘The Creative Playground’. He was challenged to write, direct, and produce short Myanmar features (narrative and documentary). His themes focused on human rights and social realities in Myanmar. His short Myanmar features were screened and recognized in film festivals in Yangon, Manila, New Delhi, and San Francisco (Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival, Youth Film Festival, Wathann Film Festival, CCP Independent Film & Video Competition, Jeevika Asia Livelihood Documentary Film Festival, Filipino International Cine Festival, and the Myanmar Film Festival of Los Angeles, among others).
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte conferred to him the Pamana ng Pilipino Award at Malacañang Palace during the 2018 Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organizations Overseas (PAFIOO). The highly-coveted prize recognized both his excellence as a writer and his outstanding accomplishments as an educator in the field of mass media in Myanmar.
In 2019, inspired to pay it forward, he kicked off his personal advocacy on free education. He beefed up his Facebook Page and launched his You Tube Channel. He also worked closely with two communities. The first community received intensive training on basic playwriting. Participants were from disadvantaged villages of Samar, Philippines. The second community required rigorous training on basic screenwriting. Participants were from the war-inflicted zones of Myitkyina, Myanmar. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, follow up sessions continued online. However, the intended showcase of projects were put on indefinite hold until conditions adapt to the new normal. For both communities, the main goal was to inspire the participants to pen their own stories.
He and his M take care of six cute brown poodles.
P. S. On the first of February 2021, the military junta put Myanmar under a state of emergency. When the dust finally settles, he feels that he has a role to play in helping the nation to transition back to democracy and to help its citizens tell their stories to the world.
P. S. S. Sadly J. Dennis C. Teodosio left the world on July 13, 2021.
Now, his M still takes care of their six cute brown poodles, his works, and Sayar J. Dennis Foundation.