The Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival has shortlisted 33 full-length film entries from a record 203 submissions by both emerging and established Filipino filmmakers.
From the shortlist, seven finalists will receive a production grant of P5 million each, the largest in Philippine film festival history.
“This has been the most competitive year of the Puregold CinePanalo yet as we drew a wide variety of both up-and-coming and veteran directors,” said Ivy Hayagan-Piedad, Puregold senior marketing manager and festival chair. “With the removal of genre and narrative restrictions, we received the boldest and most creative pool of applications.”
Hayagan-Piedad added that the sharp increase in submissions shows how the festival has grown into a significant platform for local cinema.
“We received 203 applications this year, nearly double the 125 entries from our inaugural edition,” she said. “We are immensely grateful for the support of filmmakers, producers, and students who have entrusted their dream projects to us.”
The 33 shortlisted titles are: Ennui, Pasilyo, Gods and Thieves, Camarera, Apol of my AI, Multwoh, Corolla, Bayani with Minimum Wage, And There Was Silence, JPB7, Chester’s Eighth Birthday Party, Stuck on You, Mono No Aware, Ang Lalakeng Lumuluha ng Perlas, SSS, NBI, PAG-IBIG, atbp, Aura, Blak Awt, All the Water We Owe, 6 to 6, Beast, Lupe, I’ve Seen Where It Ends, Us vs Us, Paghanduraw sa Kamingawa (Memories of Solitude), Swimmers, Aripuen, Patay Gutom (Dead Hungry), When Stars Begin to Cry, 10 Ways Para Di Ma-cancel, Magdalena, Catch Me If You Stan, Ang Unang Cariñosa ni Binhi, and Stay.
The filmmakers behind the shortlisted works will next submit pitch decks to the selection committee. Fifteen will be chosen to present their projects directly to festival officials, from which seven final entries will be selected.
The 2026 Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival will run from Aug. 7 to 18, 2026, at the Gateway Cineplex 18. The event follows the success of past editions that premiered internationally recognized titles such as Kurt Soberano’s Under a Piaya Moon, Sigrid Bernardo’s Pushcart Tales, and TM Malones’ Salum.
Submissions for the festival’s student shorts category remain open until Nov. 25 via tinyurl.com/PCPFFShorts. Inquiries may be sent to thesecretariat@cinepanalo.com or through the festival’s official Facebook page, @puregoldcinepanalo.
