PH film wins in Bucheon pitching forum

In Bucheon (from left): Director/writer Mikhail Red, producer Micah Tadena, cowriter Mariah Reodica and coproducer Taro Imai

Mikhail Red’s coming project, “Eerie,” won the NAFF Award at the 10th Network of Asian Fantastic Films, held during the 21st Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (Bifan) in South Korea last week.

The award comes with a 10-million won (P452,386) cash prize, to jumpstart the production of the planned movie. The Filipino project competed with 15 other entries. Overall, there were 233 submissions from 39 countries in this year’s pitching forum.

Red told the Inquirer that “Eerie” is his first “full-on genre” movie. He described it as “a religious horror film that centers on a murder committed in an all-girls’ Catholic school.”

“The sole witness is the ghost of a former student, and a clairvoyant guidance counselor takes on the challenge of solving the mystery,” he related.

Red explained that “Bifan is the top genre festival in Asia. Our team got to build a strong network and met a lot of potential collaborators and coproducers.”

It was a productive trip. “We had 24 meetings over the course of three days. We have generated a lot of interest for international coproductions.”

Red attended the forum with producer Micah Tadena, screenwriter Mariah Reodica and coproducer Taro Imal.

The young filmmaker expressed excitement over the potential of “Eerie.” He

remarked: “We believe it has captured the local market, but has the reach for international sales. Horror transcends language and borders. If all goes well, we plan to start shooting in mid-2018.”

Red’s latest movie, “Birdshot,” won the top prize in the Asian Future section of last year’s Tokyo International Film Festival. —BAYANI SAN DIEGO JR.