Photo courtesy of Cinemalaya’s official Facebook page
The much-awaited Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival will run from August 3-12 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines and select Ayala cinemas.
The finalist for the full-length features are as follows:
(1) “Ang Mga Bisita ni Mamang” by Denise O’Hara — This is about Mamang, an old woman who hangs on to her memory to her memory of her unmarried, middle-aged son.
(2) “Distance” by Perci Intalan — It’s a drama film about a wife (Iza Calzado) who comes home to be reunited with the husband and children that she turned her back on years before.
(3) “School Service” by Luisito Lagdameo Ignacio is a docu-drama about batang hamog or street children in Manila who run after people, cars, buses, and jeeps to ask for money.
(4) “Kung Paano Hinihintay Ang Dapithapon” by Carlo Enciso Catu — This follows Teresa, a lady at the twilight of her life. While living with her longtime partner Celso, she receives a call from her estranged husband Benedicto who is seeking forgiveness from her and their son Chito.
(5) “Kuya Wes” by James Robin Mayo — A man called Kuya Wes, working in a money transfer company, finds himself “in a relationship” with a regular client, a married woman who suffers from marital woes.
(6) “Liway” by Kip Oebanda — This is about a notorious NPA rebel in Negros whose beauty is legendary and her tactics, unparalleled.
(7) “ML” by Benedict Mique Jr. — Carlo meets Colonel, an old resident in their village who was a former soldier during the Marcos regime. After learning how the Colonel cruelly tortured student activists, Carlo’s life changes when he experienced all the Martial Law cruelties one night.
(8) “Pan De Salawal” by Che Espiritu — The movie is about Sal, a lonely panadero suffering from a chronic kidney stones and wants nothing but to die.
(9) “Musmos na Sumibol sa Gubat ng Digma” by Iar Lionel Arondaing — In the middle of chaos in Mindanao, children are being born in harsh conditions due to war and the root of the Muslim culture called “Rido” or the clash between clans.
(10) “The Lookout” by Afi Africa — It follows the life of seven-year-old George, a victim of child trafficking, who vows to return to his mother (who sold him and his sibling to a syndicate) and her boyfriend to make them pay for what they did.