Sinag Maynila Film Festival presents the finalists for 2018

The Sinag Maynila Film Festival: Sine Lokal, Pang-Internasyonal presents its finalists for the Full Length, Short Film, and Documentary categories. Now on its fourth season, Sinag Maynila remains true to its advocacy as the roster of films this year capture the artistic storytelling that appeal to international film festivals.

Sinag Maynila CEO and Founder Wilson Tieng and world-renowned and internationally acclaimed film director Brillante Ma Mendoza are grateful for the unwavering support of the sponsors, film and entertainment industry, and the media since the launch of the festival back in 2015. The immense success of Sinag Maynila paved way for the international recognition of Tu Pug Imatuy (The Right To Kill) and Kristo in the Tokyo International Film Festival last year.

Similarly, the following Full Length films are in the running for more international recognition. While some of the finalists have already been screened overseas, all films will be screened and made available in Philippine cinemas for the first time through Sinag Maynila.  

ABOMINATION by Yam Laranas

A young woman is found unconscious in a city street - claims to be another person who was brutally murdered two months earlier - escapes from a psychiatric hospital in order to prove her identity and find the truth about her life, her death, and her murderer.

Stars Tippy Dos Santos, Tony Moynihan, Justine Peña, Paul Homes, Lukas Magallano

BOMBA (The Bomb) by Ralston Jover

Pipo makes ends meet by taking on the toughest jobs.  Life is more difficult because he’s deaf.  He supports himself and his teenage lover Cyril. His irate boss is getting difficult and Ben, his childhood friend wants his daughter Cyril back. Like a bomb, Pipo’s ticking to explode, anytime soon.

Stars Allen Dizon, Angelline Nicholle Sanoy, Allan Paule, Sue Prado, Kate Brios, Joel Saracho, Tabs Sumulong, Felixia Dizon, Lucas Alric Dizon

EL PESTE by Richard Somes

Abner lives a drab, downcast, solitary existence. His wife has abandoned him for good. Working for pest control company Panther, his job remains his sole connection to the outside world. It seems going nowhere until he meets Viola, a client whose existence is as sad as his. As sexual tension between Abner and Viola turns to illicit affair, Abner devices something that will eventually lead to a tragedy that will change their lives forever.

Stars Mon Confiado, Jean Judith Zeta, Alvin Anson, Jim Libiran, Leon Miguel, Tikoy Aguiluz

MELODRAMA/RANDOM/MELBOURNE! by Matthew Victor Pastor

Presented in Glorious Cinema - O - ke! A feminist documentarian, a pickup artist, and a virgin's lives collide. Aries Santos is a Fil-Aus feminist documentarian who is struggling to complete her new film. Her subjects are the male members of '©TRU MALE DYNAMICS', a company formed to teach men how to seduce women. Meanwhile, a sex worker named Melody slays into the night. The line between reality and fiction blurs, and blood is shed on the neon-lit streets of Melbourne.

Stars Celina Yuen, Bridget O' Brien, Rachel Javier, Khoa Le, Matt Furlani, Vlady T, Gregory Pakis, Kristen Condon, Elliot Ng, Charlie Dao, Louise Bremner, Aston Elliot, Jarrod Mayne

TALE OF THE LOST BOYS by Joselito Altarejos

A story of the friendship between two men — Alex, a Filipino mechanic, and Jerry, a Taiwanese aborigine student. The two meet randomly when Alex flees to Taipei from Manila and a casual conversation develops into a surprising personal connection between them. The two men go on a road trip and eventually reconnects them with their mothers and both discover a certain sense of identity and freedom.

Stars Oliver Aquino and Ta Su

The following titles are the finalists for the Short Film and Documentary categories:

SHORT FILM

1) Cesar & Magda - Pamela Barrios

2) Firestarter - Jill Urdaneta

3) Halusinasyon - John Agcalis

4) Kalye FM - Tom Nava

5) Pompoms - Angelo Amar

6) The Duwende - Odin Fernandez

DOCUMENTARY

1) Am-amma - Dexter Macaraeg

2) Halaga - Vandam Arambulo

3) Journeyman - Albert Almendralejo

4) Mahal - Janine Santos

5) Tsuper - Rina Abary

6) Voltaire - Jaimee Bernardo

The 2018 Sinag Maynila Film Festival will be from March 7 to 15 in select SM Cinemas within Metro Manila— SM Mall of Asia, SM Megamall, SM North EDSA, SM Fairview, SM Southmall, SM Bacoor, SM Manila, and SM Sta. Mesa. Sinag Maynila Film Festival is made possible by McDonald’s, in partnership with FDCP and CineLokal. Special thanks to our official venue partners SM and SM Cinema.

Get the full list of entries and details via http://sinagmaynila.com/. Join the conversation at #SinagMaynila2018! Get updates on Sinag Maynila via Facebook.com/SinagMaynila, Twitter and Instagram via @sinagmaynila. Subscribe also to the official Sinag Maynila Youtube Account: https://www.youtube.com/SinagMaynila.

In celebration of the 100 years of Philippine Cinema, Sinag Maynila independent Film Festival 2018 is partnering with the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) and CineLokal. For a hundred years of filmmaking in the Philippines in the hands of native-born filmmakers starting with Don Jose Nepomuceno in 1917 (with the establishment of his company, Malayan Movies), the history of Philippine cinema has gone through diverse and unbridled periods. It began with the colonial period under Spanish and American rulers, it has survived a tragic war under the Japanese, enjoyed an advancement during the post-war independence, went through the period of Martial Law, and has transformed in the modern digital era.  

For the week of March 7-15, Sinag Maynila and FDCP have lined up special screenings, forums, and workshops to further highlight the 100 years of film in the Philippines.