CULTURTAIN Musicat Productions’ Ang Larawan was adjudged Best Picture during Metro Manila Film Festival’s Gabi Ng Parangal Wednesday night at the Kia Theater in Cubao.
Based on A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino by National Artist Nick Joaquin, the film, set in 1941 just before World War II in a mansion in Intramuros, Manila, edged out Dan Villegas’s All of You (3rd Best Picture) and Paul Soriano’s Siargao (2nd Best Picture).
The lone musical film entry at this year’s MMFF, which failed to make the cut in July when the criteria were based solely on scripts submitted to MMFF Executive Committee, earned a total five awards including the prestigious Gatpuno Antonio J. Villegas Cultural Award, Best Actress in a Leading Role for Joanna Ampil, Best Musical Score, and Best Production Design.
It was a bitter sweet victory for the cast and crew of the musical as it struggles to stay in cinemas, having been dropped from more than 25 theaters across Metro Manila, just two days into the film fest, due to reported low ticket sales.
According to its producer Celeste Lagaspi, they have been “slowly” regaining screens as of Wednesday—
thanks to fan outcry and positive reviews.
Meanwhile, Paul Soriano’s romantic island film Siargao went home as the most decorated film of the night.
It won a total seven awards including the Best Director plum for Soriano, the 2nd Best Picture award, Best Supporting Actress (Jasmine Curtis-Smith), Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Sound and Best Theme Song (“Alon” by Hale).
Other winners were: Best Float – Deadma Walking; Best Child Performer – Baeby Baste Granfon for Meant To Beh; Fernando Poe Jr. Memorial Award for Excellence – Ang Panday; Best Visual Effects – Ang Panday; Best Screenplay – All Of You; Best Supporting Actor – Edgar Allan Guzman for Deadma Walking; Full-length People’s Choice Award – Gandarrapido: The Revenger Squad; Best Actor – Derek Ramsay for All Of You; and Special Jury Prize – Nick Joaquin and Rodel Nacianceno (Coco Martin)
Meanwhile, Thomas Orbos, general manager of the Metro Manila Development Authority and concurrent MMFF executive chairman, said.“In just three days, MMFF 2017 has surpassed MMFF 2016 in terms of national gross sales.”
But Orbos did not disclose the box office figures the MMFF earned from Christmas day until Wednesday, saying organizers would not release the figures until the last day of the annual festival.
But he said: “We are very thankful for the overwhelming show of support by our Filipino moviegoers for this year’s MMFF.”
Last year, the line up of eight movie entries, mostly independent films, failed to hit or surpass the P1 billion total gross it earned in 2015.
Lawmakers expressed disappointment and were not satisfied about MMFF last year’s status, particularly its earnings.
Senator Vicente Sotto III had filed a Senate resolution to have a separate festival for independent films, citing the changes made to MMFF 2016 as one of the reasons behind the recommendation for a new film festival.
Among the changes, according to Sotto, was the removal of “50 percent commercial viability” from the criteria for selecting the eight films that would be featured in the festival.
As a result, mostly films produced by independent companies were chosen, instead of the usual big budget commercial films.
Sotto said in the resolution that while some enjoyed the new films in MMFF 2016, others were still looking for old festival favorites that “give them a good laugh.”
Film Development Council of the Philippines chairperson Liza Diño-Seguerra, also a member of the MMFF Executive Committee, agreed to Sotto that movies intended for children should not be set aside.
Seguerra explained the reason why all the measures were being taken was because there was a big gap between the independent community and the commercial industry.
In 2015, the MMFF earned P1.020-billion total gross, which was more than P15-million the festival earned in 2014.
The MMFF beneficiaries include the Movie Workers Welfare Foundation Inc., Motion Picture and Anti-Film Piracy Council, Film Development Council of the Philippines, and the Optical Media Board.