Cover Filipino films that won international awards this 2023 (Photo: Getty Images)
Filipino films that won international awards this 2023 (Photo: Getty Images)
1 / 1
These local filmmakers bring Filipino narratives around the world. In this article, we list thought-provoking titles that bagged prestigious international awards
Carl Joseph Papa’s full-length feature, Iti Mapukpukaw (The Missing), is the Philippines’ official entry to the 96th Academy Awards. The film stars Golden Globes nominee Dolly de Leon, focusing on the Best International Film recognition.
It follows the story of a mouthless young animator (Carlo Aquino) whose past unravels after the death of his uncle. Members of the Film Development Council of the Philippines vowed to support Iti’s campaign by providing PHP1 million through its Oscars Assistance Program.
As Filipinos hope for an odds-on feat, we list, in the meantime, the titles that won international awards this 2023:
Blue Room: La Femme International Film Festival
'Blue Room' Director Ma-an L. Asuncion-Dagñalan bagged the coveted Cinemalaya 18 'Best Director' award (Photo: Idan Cruz)
1 / 3
Ma-an L Asuncion-Dagñalan’s directorial debut follows Rebel Rebel, an indie band with an upcoming gig at a prestigious local music festival. After their celebratory drinking session, the members find themselves in an unfortunate encounter with cops who detained them for alleged drug possession.
“My film, Blue Room, was inspired by true scenarios. In 2010, I joined Sir Armando Lao’s workshop ‘Found Story,’ where we had to look for true events. Fortunately, someone shared this story with me, and I immediately felt it was worth sharing,” Dagñalan shares in a 2022 interview with Tatler.
The filmmaker, whose style is “maindie” [a portmanteau of “mainstream” and “indie”], describes her first filmmaking experience as “ both blissful and gruelling”. “There were days that I was distressed but had to remain calm, strong-willed, and focused,” she explains. “I realised how difficult it is to be a director and producer at the same time. I had ‘birth pains’, but it was worth it after seeing the progress of our work.”
Dagñalan’s hard work paid off when she bagged the Best Director award in Cinemalaya 18. She also won the Best Foreign Film Award at the recently concluded 19th LA Femme International Film Festival at the Regal Cinema in downtown Los Angeles.
As Filipinos grapple with misinformation and historical distortion, Dagñalan is among the filmmakers who honour the virtue of truth-telling. “My motivation in making films is to tell the truth. Because ‘truth’ matters—not only to us as individuals but to society in general. Inequality exists as long as justice comes from those in power.”
Read more: Why 'Truth' Matters to Cinemalaya 18 'Blue Room' Director Ma-an L. Asuncion-Dagñalan
Deleter: Grimmfest
Above 'Deleter' (2022) starring Nadie Lustre
'Deleter' (2022) starring Nadie Lustre
1 / 1
Deleter had all the elements for a fantastic movie experience. It follows Lyra (Nadine Lustre), an online content moderator who deleted a suicide video made by her co-worker. The responsibility of censorship proves bearable for Lyra, who attempts to erase and forget her troubled past.
In an interview with Inquirer.net, filmmaker Mikhail Red disclosed his working relationship with Lustre. “[She is] very professional and straight to the point, but she’s also very quiet and introverted. When the production started, I saw she was also very excited about the project, perhaps because it wasn’t the genre she was used to. It was something new to her.”
For Red, making horror films is one daunting task. “You have to hit your mark. Look this or that way. She [Lustre] pulled it off, and you see that when you look at our poster and stills…where a certain ‘horror look’ is crucial.”
The film, Red’s entry to the 2022 Metro Manila Film Festival, won eight awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography.
It also won the Best Scare Award at the 2023 Grimmfest held in Manchester, United Kingdom, on October 31.
Amon Banwa sa Lawud: Louth International Film Festival
A still from 'Amon Banwa sa Lawud' featuring the mangrove island of Suyac / Green Pelican Studios
1 / 2
Professor and University of Notre Dame Theatre director Anton Juan mesmerises the audiences with his film Amon Banwa sa Lawud (Our Island of the Mangrove Moons), set on the scenic mangrove island of Sumac in the Visayas.
The film focuses on the residents’ lives and livelihoods threatened by the incursions of foreign vessels.
“The mangroves grow following the shine of the moon,” Juan said. “And in the fullness of the moon, the fish rise. The memories of the ocean are carried on by the waves and crests that touch the island, trying to reach the sky, other lands, and other minds by telling stories. The mangroves tell their stories to the moon as they grow. . .with roots shaped like our Baybayin script that tell the stories for us. One day, the mangroves may not want to tell their stories and be quiet because they were stories that may be too painful to hear. And therefore, someone must tell their stories for them.”
Co-produced by the Erehwon Center for the Arts and the Kellogg Institute for International Feature Institute for International Studies of Notre Dame University in the US, the film received the Best International Feature Film award at the 2023 Louth International Film Festival.
Related: Anton Juan’s ‘Amon Banwa sa Lawud’ previews in Bacolod: “a poetic experience” and “story of the nation in microcosm”, critics remark
Asian Persuasion: Soho International Film Festival in New York
1 / 1
An underachiever creates a rather bizarre scheme to avoid alimony obligations to his fashion executive ex-wife in Jhett Tolentino’s Asian Persuasion.
The movie stars Filipino-American actor Dante Basco as Mickey, the recently divorced. To avoid legal repercussions, he tries to set up his ex-wife, Avery (KC Concepcion), for another relationship.
“I was not expecting to be doing my first international, American film [during the pandemic],” Concepcion tells the press, reflecting on her long hiatus from the film scene
The actress shares with the media that Tolentino found her attending a fashion event in New York on Instagram when he was looking for someone to fill the role of Avery Chua. “There are certain things that are for us, and [honestly] I’ve waited long enough to come back,” she continued.
The movie won the Audience Award for a Feature Film at the 2023 Soho International Film Festival in New York.
NOW READ
Hollywood indie film ‘Asian Persuasion’ gives a glimpse of the Filipino-American life
What is horror? Award-winning Filipino filmmaker explains the spine-tingling genre
Sundance winner Kayla Abuda Galang on the pressures of being an Asian-American filmmaker
Jove holds a degree in Journalism and is currently pursuing graduate studies in Philosophy at the University of the Philippines–Diliman. She has flair for in-depth, interview-driven stories that explore politics and culture, shaped by her background in national broadsheets.
When she’s not on assignment, Jove spends her days painting, sipping lemonade, and walking her dog, Jupiter. She can often be seen in Escolta with a film camera in hand, browsing novelty shops in search of rare memorabilia. For leads, reach her at Jove@tatlerphilippines.com.
