© Provided by The Philippine Star
After months of deliberation, the jury now has the list of eight new movies that will be featured in the Circle Competition, one of the categories in the Quezon City International Film Festival (QCinema) 2016.
The eight new films are Ang Lubong ni Hesus written by Fatrick Tabada and directed by Victor Villanueva; Ang Manananggal sa Unit 22B written by Jen Chuaunsu and directed by Prime Cruz; Baboy Halas directed by Bagane Fiola; Best. Partee. Ever. directed by HF Yambao; Gusto Kita With All My Hypothalamus by Dwein Baltazar; Hinulid by Kristian Cordero; Purgatoryo directed by Roderick Cabrido; and Women of the Weeping River by Sheron Dayoc.
The selection process was facilitated by the Quezon City Film Development Commission (QCFDC), an organization formed by Mayor Herbert Bautista and Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte to promote arts and culture in Quezon City.
The homegrown filmmaking talents will be given a grant amounting to a total of P1M. The QCinema allows filmmakers to own the rights to their movies.
Ang Lubong ni Hesus is a Cebuano comedy-drama road film. The movie shows how the status quo of a dysfunctional and emotionally bankrupt family takes a wild turn upon the death of the protagonist’s ex-husband.
Ang Manananggal sa Unit 22B shows the struggles of Jewel, a manananggal (creature who separates from its lower body and becomes a winged monster at night) who falls in love with a broken-hearted man.
Baboy Halas melds reality and fantasy together. Set in a mountain in Bukidnon, the movie follows the life of a hunter who transforms into a boar after plunging into the Enchanted River to pursue an Enchanted Nymph, masquerading as a white pig.
Best. Partee. Ever narrates city jail goings-on through the eyes of Mikey, a young, discreet gay man from the affluent class who spends five years in a city jail while hearing his case for drug pushing. Mikey eventually finds himself as the ringleader of a group of gay inmates called Gang-da.
Gusto Kita With All my Hypothalamus takes the narrative to Avenida Rizal, the once “downtown” of Manila, where the fates of four men intertwine: A pickpocket, a widowed old man, a university student and a thrift shop employee, all connected by a mysterious beauty named Aileen.
In Hinulid, a woman travels to Cagbunga, Camarines Sur while carrying the ashes of her only son.
Purgatoryo tells the story of Ilyong, a man recently killed by the police after he was caught stealing.
In Women of the Weeping River, a widow in a Southern Mindanao village forms a relationship with an aging woman to help her hold peace talks with a rival family.
For details, log on to www.qcinema.ph.