Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 18) — This year’s edition of Cinemalaya will feature a total of 10 full-length films, including the first animated and documentary features to join the competition in 19 years.
Sheryl Rose Andes’ “Maria,” the first documentary film to join the Philippine independent film festival, is about the journey of three women named Maria who are seeking truth and fighting for justice amid the Duterte administration’s bloody war on drugs.
Andes is a development worker, filmmaker, and educator. Her first feature film, based on Andrian Legaspi’s Palanca-winning script “Pandanggo sa Hukay,” was also among the finalists at Cinemalaya 2019.
Meanwhile, “Iti Mapukpukaw” (The Missing) is a Filipino-Ilocano rotoscope animated film about a mouthless young animator whose life unravels after the death of an uncle and the arrival of the familiar alien that wants to take him.
Rotoscoping is a technique used in animation where live action footage is traced frame by frame to produce realistic movements.
Iti Mapukpukaw was written and directed by Carl Joseph Papa, a software engineer, who also led the film’s animation team. The film stars Golden Globe nominee Dolly de Leon and award-winning actors Gio Gahol and Carlo Aquino.
Papa’s first feature film “The Unforgetting” won him the QCinema Netpac jury prize in 2014. “Iti Mapukpukaw” is his third animated feature film.
Cinemalaya will run from Aug. 4 to 13 at the Philippine International Convention Center due to the ongoing renovation of its usual venue, the Cultural Center of the Philippines.
READ: CCP to shut doors for 2-3 years for renovation
Other full-length films that made it to Cinemalaya 2023 are:
– “Gitling” by Jopy Arnaldo
– “Tether” by Gian Arre
– “Ang Duyan ng Magiting (The Cradle of the Brave)” by Dustin Celestino
– “Bulawan Nga Usa (Golden Deer)” by Kenneth De La Cruz
– “Rookie” by Samantha Lee
– “Huling Palabas (Fin)” by Ryan Machado
– “When This is All Over” by Kevin Mikhail Mayuga
– “As If It’s True” by John Rogers
The schedule of film screenings and selling of tickets are yet to be announced.
The Cinemalaya Foundation is a non-profit and non-governmental foundation that provides financial grants for cinematic works of Filipino independent filmmakers.
