2017 QCinema Filmfest to begin on October 19
The Quezon City International Film Festival (QCinema) 2017 is one of the most anticipated film festivals in the country.
Aside from offering a new slate of fresh titles from independent Filipino filmmakers, it gives us a glimpse of Asian and world cinema.
Under the Circle Competition, the lineup consists of romance, war drama and mystery thrillers that show the complexity of humankind.
Those who made it to the list are “Dapol Tan Payawar Na Tayug 1931” (The Ashes and Ghosts of Tayug 1931) by Christopher Gozum; “Dormitoryo” by Emerson Reyes; “Balangiga: Howling Wilderness” (former Gugu) by Khavn dela Cruz; “Kulay Lila ang Gabi ng Binudburan Pa ng Mga Bituin” by Jobin Ballesteros; “Medusae” by Pam Miras; “Neomanila” by Mikhail Red; “The Chanters” by James Robin Mayo; and “The Write Moment” by Dominic Lim.
Christopher Gozum’s “Dapol Tan Payawar Na Tayug 1931” (The Ashes and Ghosts of Tayug 1931) retells the story of rebel leader Pedro Calosa and the infamous Tayug Colorum Uprising in Pangasinan from three diverse angles: A silent film dramatizing his return to his hometown; as an aging supremo as he searches for a sacred cave accompanied by historians; and a filmmaker doing interviews about the 1931 uprising to prepare for a film about Calosa.
“Dormitoryo,” Emerson Reyes’ second directorial effort, focuses on the lives of eight individuals who spend the evening tucked away in personal galaxies, talking about collective experiences, and sharing a similar fate.
Khavn dela Cruz’ “Balangiga: Howling Wilderness” follows the life of the 11-year-old Kulas who flees town with his grandfather and their carabao to escape General Smith’s “Kill and Burn” order. Through a twist of fate, Kulas finds a toddler amid a sea of corpses. Together, the two boys struggle to survive the American occupation. The movie is set in 1901.
Jon Steffan “Jobin” Ballesteros’ “Kulay Lila Ang Gabi Na Binudburan Pa Ng Mga Bituin” is about the story of a couple who signs up for retreat program that gives them three days and two nights to resolve their issues in their bid to fix their marriage.
Pam Miras’ “Medusae” is about a documentarist whose son disappears after filming a story on the disappearances of the firstborns in a remote island.
Mikhail Red’s second film, “Neomanila” provides a closer look on the violent war on drugs waged in present day Manila. Toto, a teenage orphan, is recruited by a notorious death squad. Irma, the group’s leader, soon becomes a maternal figure to the young boy. As the two form a familial bond, their loyalties will be put to the test when one of their targets turns out to be a familiar face.
James Mayo’s “The Chanters” is a comedy-drama film which centers on Sarah Mae, the 12-year-old granddaughter of the last chanter of the Panay Bukidnon tribe. As her Lolo Ramon suffers the onset of dementia, Sarah Mae helps him complete the last of the remaining 12 epics, a vanishing tradition in their tribe.
Dominic Lim’s “The Write Moment” is about a writer who finds himself living in the scenes he wrote after he fails to get back with an old flamed through his romantic “hugot” script.
Under the “Asian Next Wave” division, six features from up and coming Asian filmmakers will be screened.
They are “Dragonfly Eyes,” the debut film of distinguished Chinese artist Xu Bing about a woman who encounters a series of turnabouts upon leaving the Buddhist temple where she used to train a nun; Dong-Eun Lee’s “In Between Seasons”about the story of mother-son relationship that will be tested with the revelation of a long-kept secret; Vietnamese director Le Binh Giang’s “KFC,” a “body horror” about a man who seeks to avenge the death of his girlfriend and in the process, uncovers beyond description; Japanese actress and director Kiki Sugino’s “Snow Woman,” a spell-binding story about a young woodsman who marries a mysterious beauty he meets in the forest; Indonesian filmmaker Mouly Surya’s “Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts,” an Asian western about the story of Marlina who is being haunted by the restless spirit of a man she killed to protect herself and Kirsten Tan’s road-trip drama “Pop Aye” about the colorful and nostalgic journey of architect who gets reunited with his long-lost elephant.
The other competition sections include “Rainbow QC” which will present the full spectrum of LGBT features from around the world and “QC Shorts” that will screen the eight QCinema-aided short films.
Also part of QCinema’s competition sections are “Screen International” which features films that have made waves in their respective country of origin and beyond; a surprise QCinema “Trilogy;” and “Before Midnight,” an unrated section composed of mind-boggling genre or controversial titles.
.
There are also “Digitally Re-mastered Series” where classic titles come alive again on the big screen as well as “Special Screenings” section.
QCinema 2017 happens from October 19 to 28 in selected Quezon City cinemas.
