Philippine Cinema is celebrating its 100th year this 2018 and what better way to honor its milestones, struggles, and successes than by supporting both veterans and amateur filmmakers and artists in the industry?
This month, the annual film fest Cinema One Originals unreels the freshest and most imaginative ideas into the big screens again. Now on its 14th year, it’s gathering the best films of different genres starring both new and established artists like Rufa Mae Quinto, John Lapus, and Ricky Davao among many others. The festival will run from Oct. 12 to 21.
Here are the nine competing films this year:
Bagyong Bheverlynn
Dir. Charliebebs Gohetia
Bheverlynn (Rufa Mae Quinto) is a heartbroken woman whose hugots and feelings conjured a super typhoon. And in order to save the Philippines, Bheverlynn needs to move on and find happiness.
Pang-MMK
Dir. John Lapus
John Lapus picks up where 1999 Maalala Mo Kaya episode entitled Origami ended. Twenty years after, Janus (Neil Coleta) was given the stressful responsibility to take care of his father’s funeral. Witness the drama, chaos, and hilarity a funeral home can induce.
A Short History of a Few Bad Things
Dir. Keith Deligero
The Cinema One Originals 2016 Best Director comes back with a Cebuano crime-procedural drama film which he describes as “serious comedy” highlighting “funny portions of sadness.” It stars Victor Neri among many others.
Asuang
Dir. Rayn Brizuela
Asuang (Alwyn Uytingo) is a Bicolano mythological god of sin who wants to rebrand himself as god of social media. The format is a mockumentary directed by a female filmmaker (Chai Fonacier).
Double Twisting Double Back
Dir. Joseph Abello
FIlmmaker Joseph Abello’s second film is a sports crime film (which is also “psychological and erotic,” he says) set in the world of gymnastics. It follows a gymnast (Joem Bascon) striving to be the best, but in order to achieve that, he must outdo his best friend (Tony Labrusca).
Hospicio
Dir. Bobby Bonifacio
Hospicio is a “Hotel California-esque” rehabilitation center where a young woman (Loisa Andalio) got checked in. When she found out how the head (Ana Abad Santos) of the facility “rehabilitates” the addicted people, the young woman had to immediately get out.
Paglisan
Dir. Carl Papa
Paglisan, directed by Carl Papa who won the Best Picture for Cinema One Originals 2015 with Manang Biring, is the only animated feature (dramedy) in the roster. It follows an aging couple (Eula Valdez and Ian Veneracion) struggling to keep their marriage alive while one of them suffers from Alzheimer’s.
Mamu And A Mother Too
Dir. Rod Singh
The film follows a middle-aged transgender sex worker (Iyah Mina) who’s transitioning into a surrogate mother to an equally transitioning or “nagdadalagang” transgender niece Bona (EJ Jallorina).
Never Tear Us Apart
Dir. Whammy Alcazaren
“Almost indescribable, Never Tear Us Apart somehow manages to make sense of combining Third World espionage with old country folklore,” reads the Cinema One Originals press release. It’s about a family with a delusional mother (Meryll Soriano), a spy father (Ricky Davao), and a promiscuous son (Albee Saspa). The film is shot on an iPhone X, vertically, which will surely give you a different experience. Recently, the film drew attention on social media after releasing a poster with its first title Fisting. Some find it distasteful, so during the press conference, they’ve announced that the movie has adapted its subtitle Never Tear Us Apart. Read Cinema One Originals’ official statement about the matter here.
These films will be shown in the following theatres:
- TriNoma
- Glorietta
- Gateway
- Santolan Town Plaza
- Powerplant Mall
- SM North EDSA
- SM Megamall
- SM Manila
- SM Sta. Mesa
- Cinematheque Manila
- UP Cine Adarna
- Cinema ’76
- Black Maria Theater
- Cinema Centenario
Tickets are priced at P200 each in major and alternative cinemas and P150 for students and at SM theaters.
Featured image courtesy of Bagyong Bheverlynn on Facebook
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