Manila Broadcasting Company has announced the 15 films that made it into the final round of the 2022 MBC Short Film Festival, which drew 152 entries anchored on human interest stories underscoring acts of kindness and compassion.
For the animation category, Ang Liwanag ng Bakunawa by Shem Domingo; Guhit by Dionisio V. Bacudio III; Bahay-Bound by Danica Sy and Andrea Castillo; Proud by Are Jay Madrigal Peralta; and CITSALP by Jean A. Evangelista got the nod of selection jurors Gary Thomas of the British Council London’s Film Programs Division; Fil-Canadian animation specialist Mars Cabrera, and game developer/animation guru Miker Rivero.
The documentaries that received the highest scores were Ang Pagpakalma sa Unos by Joanna Vasquez Arong; Nasaaan Sila, Nasaan ang Virus by Ram Esteban Estael; Lola Samiya, 109 by Samer Sulaiman; Kambalingan by Gio Gonzalves; and Super-Able by Arjanmar H. Rebeta.
The French Embassy’s audio-visual attache Martin Macalintal joined renowned documentary filmmakers Sari Dalena and Jewel Maranan on the selection panel.
The short features that scored highest were Beauty Queen by Myra Aquino; Lorna by Noel Esconda; Daluyong by Ervie Jay Torzar; Haan Ta Mataengan nga Aggidan by Mike Cabarles; and The Transfiguration of Marya by Jericho Rimando.
All 105 short features were screened by the selection panel composed of New York-based writer-director Nicole Lauchengco Yulo, Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize winner Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan, and the acknowledged father of digital filmmaking in the Philippines Khavn de la Cruz.
The 15 films, which are automatically guaranteed P20,000 each, go back to square one, with a different but equally elite panel of jurors choosing the three category winners who will receive P100,000 each, and will then compete for the Grand Prix, with a total take-home prize of P220,000.
Trailers of these films are now up on dzrh.com.ph/msff .
The full films will be posted from July 15 to August 5, when viewers can also begin casting their votes daily for their choice of Fan Favorite, which will receive P25,000.
Winners will be announced in a special program on August 6, to be streamed at 7:30 p.m. on all social media platforms of MBC stations nationwide – DZRH, Love Radio, Yes The Best, Easy Rock, Aksyon Radyo, Radyo Natin, and DZRH News Television.
The MBC Short Film Festival was conceptualised as the centerpiece of the anniversary celebrations of the network’s flagship station DZRH, now on its 83rd year, as it continues to watch history unfold, giving unparalleled service to the Filipino public.
