The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Alvin I. Dacanay
Filmgoers can expect a bigger Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival next month after the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) announced the return of its full-length feature category after a one-year absence, and added new sections and a new venue in Cebu City.
The CCP also revealed that a few more mainstream performers are featured in the participating films. They join Cinemalaya veterans Nora Aunor, Judy Ann Santos, and Barbie Forteza, who all won acting awards for their first appearance in Cinemalaya films.
In a statement, the CCP said the 12th edition of the annual film festival, which has “Break the Surface” as this year’s theme and will run from Aug. 5 to 14, will have nine finalists in the Full-Length Feature category.
These are Ang Bagong Pamilya ni Ponching (Ponching’s New Family) by Inna Miren Salazar and Dos Ocampo; Dagsin (Gravity) by Atom Magadia; Hiblang Abo (Strands of Gray) by Ralston Jover; I America by Ivan Andrew Payawal; Kusina (Kitchen) by David Corpuz and Cenon Palomares; Lando at Bugoy (Lando and Bugoy) by Vic Acedillo Jr.; Mercury is Mine by Jason Paul Laxamana; Pamilya Ordinaryo (Ordinary Family) by Eduardo Roy Jr.; and Tuos by Derick Cabrido.
J.E. Tiglao’s Maselang Bahaghari (Delicate Rainbow), was supposed to round out the list of finalists, but financing problems forced the director to withdraw it from the festival.
Two of the finalists, I America and Mercury is Mine, star mainstream actors making their Cinemalaya debut: Bela Padilla topbills the former; comedienne Pokwang, the latter.
Aunor and Forteza, who earned the festival’s Balanghai trophies for Joel Lamangan’s Hustisya (Justice) (2014) and Milo Sogueco’s Mariquina (2014), respectively, star in Tuos, while Santos—who shared the best-female-ensemble Balanghai prize with Iza Calzado, Janice de Belen and Agot Isidro for their work in Jose Javier Reyes’s Mga Mumunting Lihim (Little Secrets) (2012)—leads the Kusina cast.
The CCP also said 10 films will compete in the Short Feature category. These are Ang Hapon ni Nanding (Nanding’s Afternoon) by Rommel Tolentino; Ang Maangas, ang Marikit at ang Makata (The Arrogant, the Beautiful and the Poet) by Jose Ibarra Guballa; Bugtaw by Noah del Rosario, Butas (Hole) by Richard Cawed; Fish Out of Water by Mon A.L. Garilao; Forever Natin (Our Forever) by Cyrus Valdez; Get Certified by Isaias Herrera Zantua; Mansyong Papel (Paper Mansion) by Ogos Aznar; Nakauwi Na (Already Went Home) by John Relano, Patrick Baleros and Luis Hidalgo; and Pektus by Isabel Quesada.
The films will premiere at the CCP, and be shown at Ayala cinemas in Makati City’s Greenbelt 3 and Glorietta malls; Quezon City’s TriNoma mall and UP Town Center; Nuvali in Laguna province’s Sta. Rosa City; and Cebu’s Ayala Mall, which will screen them from Aug. 9 to 14.
Special sections
Besides the two main film categories, the CCP has several sections and new features this year.
One of these, Asian Showcase, will screen award-winning Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (Netpac), films released in 2015. These are Child of Debt by Umashankar Swamy (India/Kannada); Mina Walking by Yosef Baraki (Afghanistan/Canada); Motor Bicycle by Shameera Rangana Naotunna (Sri Lanka); Stranger by Yermek Tursunov (Kazakhstan); The Kids by Sunny Yu (Taiwan); Under Heaven by Dalmira Tilepbergen (Kyrgyzstan); and Until I Lose My Breath by Emine Emel Balci (Turkey/Germany). The section will also screen Chinese director Li Ruijun’s 2014 film River Road.
Another is the Tribute to Francis Pasion, the 38-year-old filmmaker who died of cardiac arrest in March. It will honor his life and works by showcasing his three Balanghai-winning films: Jay, which won best film in 2008; Sampaguita, recipient of the Cinemalaya Special Jury Prize in 2010; and Bwaya (Crocodile), honored as best film in 2014.
A third is the Special Screenings, which will show Lav Diaz’s Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis (A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery), which won the Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize at the 2016 Berlin Film Festival. It will also show the works of Ma’ Rosa’s Cannes best-actress winner Jaclyn Jose, as well as independent-film pioneer Nick Deocampo’s historical documentaries Eiga (Movie) and Gunita (Recollection), among others.
Festival’s Best, Documentaries, and the Cinemalaya Institute Showcase round out the sections.
“A new feature of this year’s festival will be the participation of young celebrities who will take on the role of Cinemalaya Navigators. As such, they will engage with audiences in conversations about the Cinemalaya films,” the CCP said.
“Also new this year is the partnership of Cinemalaya and Eigasai: The Japanese Film Festival, through the Japan Foundation. As allied festivals, Cinemalaya and Eigasai will encourage film exchange, help in the promotion of both events, and contribute to audience building and film education,” it added.
The CCP said that, under the alliance, Eigasai will add Hiroshi Shoji’s Ken and Kazu and Ryutaro Nakagawa’s August in Tokyo to the Asian Section, and that the former will open that section. Both will be shown for free.
“The Cinemalaya Campus, a major component of the festival, will be held on Aug. 9 [and] 10 at the CCP Little Theater. The Gawad CCP Para sa Alternatibong Pelikula at Video, which is considered the longest-running independent film competition of its kind in the [Southeast Asian]/Asian region, will have its 28th run during Cinemalaya,” the CCP said.
Established in 2005, the Cinemalaya is is a film festival and competition that aims to discover, encourage, and honor the works of Filipino filmmakers. It is a project of the Cinemalaya Foundation, the CCP and the Ayala Mall cinemas.
To date, Cinemalaya has supported and promoted the production of 127 full feature independent films and 106 short films. Many of these films have won awards in local and international competitions and festivals.
Cinemalaya has showcased over 1,000 works by independent filmmakers including full feature films, shorts, documentaries, Filipino film classics, and art films.
For more information about Cinemalaya, visit www.cinemalaya.org.