Dolly De Leon, Soliman Cruz, and Martika Escobar. Image from FDCP.
Actors Dolly de Leon and Soliman Cruz, and filmmaker Martika Escobar will be this year’s recipient of the Film Development Council of the Philippines’ (FDCP) Annual Achievement Award in recognition of their “invaluable” contribution to the local film industry.
The award will be conferred during the “Parangal ng Sining” (Honor of the Hours) on April 23 at the Seda Hotel, Quezon City. The recognition is FDCP’s initiative to “recognize Filipino filmmakers, artists, and institutions who continue to achieve and work for excellence, leading to acclaim in international film festivals across the globe.”
With her breakout performance in Cannes-winning film “Triangle of Sadness,” De Leon has been recognized in various film festivals and prestigious award-giving bodies around the world, one after another.
Among the most notable were the Best Supporting Actress nominations she received from the 80th Golden Globe Awards and British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), making her the first-ever Filipina to receive such nominations.
Before being recognized locally and abroad, De Leon has been in the industry for decades playing small roles in television shows and movies. Her rise to fame may have come at a later point in her career but there are no signs of stopping yet as she has recently been cast in an upcoming action-comedy film alongside Hollywood stars John Cena, Awkwafina, and Simu Liu.
She was recently tapped as the jury head of the first Summer Metro Manila Film Festival.
“For proudly representing the Filipino as an artist, standing side by side with a multinational cast in an international production—and delivering a performance not only noteworthy but memorable to the point of being historical in its time and place, the FDCP will recognize De Leon as one of the Annual Achievement Award recipients of this year’s Parangal ng Sining,” the council stated.
Cruz, on the other hand, become a household name in the entertainment industry as one of the most prolific Filipino character actors, with his filmography of films, television shows, and stage plays.
In the Romanian film “To The North,” the feature film debut of Mihai Mincan, Cruz played the lead character for the first time in his career.
The Soliman Cruz-starrer made its world premiere in one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world—the Venice International Film Festival—where it won the Premio Bisato D’Oro 2022, awarded by the independent film critics of Venice.
His breakthrough performance, along with fellow Filipino actor Bart Guingona, has received standing ovations from festival goers, a proof of the Filipino talent that goes beyond international borders.
FDCP said Cruz is “the embodiment of the consummate actor of both film and stage, providing inspiration to an entire generation of young actors as to what is meant by dedication and professionalism to the art and the craft.”
Meanwhile, Escobar made history in 2022 as the first-ever Filipino director to win at Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the United States.
After eight long years of development and production, Escobar’s feature film debut “Leonor Will Never Die” finally made its world premiere at Sundance, marking the comeback of the Philippines in the festival’s competition section 16 years after the country’s last entry.
Since its world premiere, “Leonor Will Never Die” has been screened in numerous international film festivals from all over the globe such as the Toronto International Film Festival, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, and Berlin International Film Festival.
Escobar will also be one of the first recipients of the Annual Gaward Lente for “proudly (represented) the new generation of filmmakers, breaking ground on the world stage and making known the potential of the Filipino cinema artist in weaving original works that are native to the culture but universal in theme.”
Through “Parangal ng Sining,” the FDCP aims to encourage and motivate the creatives and stakeholders of the Philippine Film Industry, including the filmmakers, artists, workers, distributors, cinema owners, and audiences to come together and continue celebrating the role and importance of cinema in distilling the nation’s cultural identity, and our own identity as Filipinos. EDV