The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Boy Villasanta
Led by Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chair Don Artes, the Selection Committee of the agency has chosen the last five official entries to the 2024 Metro Manila Film Festival held at the Podium Hall of The Podium Tuesday afternoon in Ortigas, Pasig City.
Artes said that there were seventy submissions to the selection of the remaining five of ten films in this year’s festival.
He added that it’s unfortunate that only five were chosen out of the submissions.
“We will try to accommodate the other films when we decide on the summer film festival,” assured Artes.
The five movies selected from their finished products to complete the lineup for the 50th MMFF are: Strawdogs Studio’s “Topakk,” an action caper which stars Arjo Atayde, Julia Montes etc. directed by Richard Somes; Mintorque and Project 8 Projects’ “Uninvited,” a horror which features Vilma Santos, Tirso Cruz III etc. directed by Dan Villegas; Regal Films’ “My Future You,” a romcom which presents Seth Fedelin, Francine Diaz etc. directed by Crisanto Aquino, Cineko Productions’ “Espantaho,” a thriller which top bills Judy Ann Santos, Lorna Tolentino et al directed by Chito Rono; and Viva Communications’ “Hold Me Close,” romance drama which showcases Carlo Aquino, Julia Barretto et al directed by Jason Paul Laxamana.
This year’s fest is a significant occasion, according to Artes, because it celebrates the golden anniversary of the festival which dates back to the late Manila Mayor Antonio J. Villegas’ creation of the Manila Film Festival and jumpstarted to become a Metro Manila event by former president Joseph Estrada.
Last July, the first five films which were selected from their script submissions are ABS-CBN Films and IdeaFirst Company’s “And the Breadwinner Is…,” a comedy which stars Vice Ganda, Eugene Domingo etc. directed by Jun Robles Lana ABS-CBN Films and IdeaFirst Company; GMA Films’ “Green Bones,” a drama which features Dennis Trillo, Kylie Padilla etc. directed Zig Dulay; Reality MM Studios’ “Strange Frequencies: Taiwan Killer Hospital,” a suspense thriller which presents Enrique Gil, Jane de Leon etc. directed by Kerwin Go; Creazion’s “Himala, Isang Musikal,” a musical which top bills Aicel Santos, Bituin Escalante directed by Jose Lorenzo “Pepe” Diokno and MQuest Ventures , M-Zet Productions and APT Entertainment’s “The Kingdom,” a neo-drama which showcases Vic Sotto and Piolo Pascual directed by Michael Tuviera.
The 50th MMFF opens on Christmas day, December 25, 2024 and closes on January 7, 2025.