Angelina Jolie is most "wanted" by flicker pirates. Four flicker pirates were arrested late June after they were caught copying the blockbuster Jolie starrer, "Wanted," released by Solar Entertainment Corporation.
The Motion Picture Anti-Film Piracy Council (MPAFPC) with Ric Camaligan as president launched an intensified and integrated anti-flicker piracy campaign in cooperation with the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Flicker piracy is the system of shooting or copying films being shown in cinema houses through camera recording using gadgets from the simple cell phone to sophisticated recording equipment.

Since they failed to show the permit to copy, Jerryden Caylan Buhisa (20) of Quezon City and Ariel Desuyo Dichoso (24) of Cavite, Thamy Makalay Malik (27) of Makati City and Wilfredo Rodrigo, Jr. (29) of Quezon City were arrested and detained at the NBI. Buhisa and Dichoso were recording "Wanted" using MP4 players inside Cinema 11 of the SM North EDSA Mall. They were apprehended by production checker Imelda Oro and security guard Ma. Rosalia Nablea. Confiscated from them, among other pieces of evidence, were a CD with video portions of "Wanted" and two MP4 players.

Malik videotaped "Wanted" without authority at Cinema 1 of the Robisons Pioneer, Mandaluyong City on June 29. Rodrigo was caught by a monitoring agent videotaping "Wanted" with a cell phone inside Cinema 7 of SM City North EDSA on June 28. His cell phone showed about 30 minutes recording of "Wanted."

They were charged with violation of Sec. 217 in relation to Sec. 177 of the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines (R.A.8293).

As "Wanted" distributor, Solar Entertainment Corporation is the complainant in all of the above stated cases.

MPAFPC rewards citizens who catch a flicker pirate in the act inside a cinema, seize the camcorder used, and report to the authorities. They are given P10,000 reward money. "And after the hearing with the fiscal, you get an additional P10,000," assured Camaligan. "So anyone can get P20,000 for reporting the crime of recording a movie in the cinema."

Besides this reward system, the MPAFPC uses sophisticated methods such as infra red technology to apprehend flicker pirates.

The MPAFPC conducted a workshop held last June 17 at Club Filipino in Greenhills which was attended by over 200 members and supporters of the anti-piracy body.

"From the average output of 162 films per year from 1996 to 1999," Camaligan said, "the number of local films had plummeted down to only 45 films in 2006. The yearly outputs are still diminishing farther. Foreign films used to have five movies a week or a supply of about 400 titles a year than the current 224 films."

He attributed this big cut and continuous decrease to film piracy, heavy taxation and decrease in purchasing power.