Joseph Marco and Sofia Andres in “Pwera Usog”
Two Filipino films will be shown in a genre festival in Switzerland. Jason Paul Laxamana’s horror movie, “Pwera Usog,” is competing in the New Cinema from Asia section of the 17th Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival in Switzerland, from June 30 to July 8.
The fest’s website praises the Filipino thriller as “outstandingly entertaining … mixing genres and cultures to deliver spectacular supernatural action.” Laxamana’s movie follows a group of privileged kids who meet all sorts of misfortunes after being cursed by a homeless woman.
Also featured in the Asian Shorts program of the Neuchâtel fest is Ogie Tiglao’s “Luntiang Paraiso,” which the website describes as a “cross-boundary romance” between a man and a tree.
The Neuchâtel fest is renowned as “one of the foremost genre cinema events in the world.” —BAYANI SAN DIEGO JR.
Scene from “Luntiang Paraiso”