ToFarm finalists will make Direk Maryo J smile from heaven

Maryo J. delos Reyes (left) and Milagros How

In a lot of ways, this year’s ToFarm Film Festival will serve as a fitting tribute to its late advocate, esteemed filmmaker Maryo J. delos Reyes.

At the fest’s launch on Tuesday, founder Milagros How pointed out: “I am sure Direk Maryo J is smiling at us from heaven. He loved this festival and gave it his all. It is our duty … to continue the good work of supporting the Filipino farmer.” Delos Reyes passed away after suffering a heart attack last January.

Screening committee member and actress Raquel Villavicencio told the Inquirer: “No doubt Direk Maryo would have approved of these stories, if not chose them himself. He shared and supported Dr. How’s dream for these films to be recognized abroad, compete internationally and find a market for them.”

ToFarm’s biggest success story is Paolo Villaluna’s “Pauwi Na,” which won the top prize in the A-list Shanghai film fest last year.

This year, ToFarm was deluged with an “overwhelming” number of entries in so short a time, How recalled.

The event’s managing director Joey Romero related that “for this year, the fest had received 119 entries.”

The screening committee members—which, aside from Villavicencio, also include writers Krip Yuson and Manny Buising, and directors Antoinette Jadaone and Mario Cornejo—
chose 13 scripts from the submitted entries. The short list was further narrowed down to seven finalists.

Jadaone described this year’s batch of filmmakers as “a diverse set of storytellers” and the film entries as composed of “a variety of genres: from sci-fi to biopic, from comedies to dramas!”

Romero agreed, adding that this year’s directors comprise of “seasoned veterans, as well as newcomers.”

Villavicencio remarked: “Compared to last year’s entries, the stories that made it to the final seven this year are more unconventional and novel in theme and concept.”

True to festival director Bibeth Orteza’s promise, the 13 short-listed films underwent a pitching process.

Still, How felt strongly about some entries that didn’t quite make the final cut.

She suggested holding a workshop for these entries so the screenplays could be further polished and entered in next year’s competition.

This year’s top seven entries are: Hubert Tibi’s historical drama “1957,” which focuses on agrarian unrest and the Hukbalahap in Bicol; Keith Sicat’s science-fiction flick “Alimuom,” which centers on OFWs or Outerspace Filipino Workers; Charlson Ong’s period drama “Fasang,” which recounts the hapless romance of a Japanese immigrant farmer and a Bontoc woman in the 1920s; Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil, Rosalie Matilac and Nilo Paz’s biopic “Isang Kuwento ng Gubat (The Leonard Co Story),” which celebrates the life of a slain botanist in Leyte; Eduardo Roy Jr.’s cultural drama “Lola Igna,” which tells the story of the world’s oldest living person in Sagada; John Carlo Pacala and Carlo Catu’s futuristic drama “Mga Anak ng Kamote,” which visits a Philippines where the sweet potato has been outlawed; and Roman Perez Jr.’s dark comedy “Sol Searching,” which zooms in on a deceased teacher who cannot be buried due to financial constraints.

The ToFarm film fest will be held from Sept. 12 to 19 in select cinemas in Metro Manila and other cities.