THIS YEAR’S Cinemalaya Independent Festival concluded with an awards ceremony on Aug. 12 at Ayala Malls Cinema in Parañaque.
Two UST fine arts alumni won top prizes in the tilt: advertising arts graduate Jaime Pacena II was named this year’s best director for his film “Kono Basho,” while painting alumnus JL Burgos received the Special Jury Prize for his documentary “Alipato at Muog.”
Here is the full list of winners in Cinemalaya 2024 along with their award citations.
SHORT FILMS
Best Screenplay
For its savage take on Philippine television and how poor Filipinos willingly subject themselves to public humiliation for cheap fame and paltry fortune.
The award for best screenplay goes to Sonny Calvento for “Primetime Mother.”
Best Direction
For effectively orchestrating the resources of cinema in its depiction of a hard-up and lonely unpaid worker and her dashed hopes for romance.
The award for best direction goes to Sam Manacas for “Cross My Heart and Hope to Die.”
Special Jury Prize
For its compelling evocation of the glories of nature as seen through the eyes of two Lumad youngsters and their struggle to protect and preserve the Agusan Marsh of Mindanao.
The Special Jury Prize goes to “Pamalandog sa Danow (Reflections in the Marsh)” by Breech Asher Harani.
Best Film
For its heartbreaking portrait of overworked and underpaid women-workers, and its subtle but mordant critique of their abuse and exploitation.
The award for best film goes to “Cross My Heart and Hope to Die” by Sam Manacas.
FULL-LENGTH FILMS
Best Sound
For creatively evoking the din and blare of highway traffic, of silence and its interstices, as they are captured in the mind of a personal driver, as he journeys from Baguio to Manila and back, contemplating questions of destiny, fantasy, and identity.
The award for best sound goes to Jedd Dumaguina and Mario Consuni for “An Errand.”
Best Original Music Score
For their highly effective use of ancient songs and ethnic instrumentation to complement its powerful depiction of an indigenous people’s fight for its ancestral domain.
The award for best musical scoring goes to Paulo Almaden and the Ati People of Kabarangkalan and Nagpana for “Tumandok.”
Best Editing
For its masterful montage of the sights and scenes of road travel as captured in the mind of a driver coping with questions of time, class, and identity.
The award for best editing goes to Dominic Bekaert for “An Errand.”
Best Production Design
For its highly effective melding of the resources of art direction to tell a poignant tale of personal loss, shared grief, and self-discovery amid the backdrop of a Japanese city recovering from the ravages of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
The award for best production design goes to Eero Yves Francisco for “Kono Basho.”
Best Cinematography
For its highly poetic employment of light and shadow and other photographic resources in its profound exploration of themes of loss and grief, of estrangement and reconciliation, and of ruin and renewal.
The award for best cinematography goes to Dan Villegas for “Kono Basho.”
Best Screenplay
For taking as its subject matter a sector that’s relegated to the margins of society, and its powerful tale of an indigenous people’s resolve to keep their ancestral land in the face of corruption and violence.
The award for best screenplay goes to Arden Rod Condes and Arlie Sweet Sumagaysay for “Tumandok.”
Best Supporting Actor
For his very impressive performance as elder and chieftain trying to keep his people together in their steadfast but non-violent fight to keep their ancestral land despite violence and intimidation by the wealthy and the powerful.
The award for best performance of an actor in a supporting role goes to Felipe Ganancial for “Tumandok.”
Best Supporting Actress
For her effective portrayal as community leader of a coastal village of informal settlers trying to keep their unity while fighting off eviction.
The award for best performance of an actress in a supporting role goes to Sue Prado for “Kantil.”
Best Director
For his utter craftsmanship and expert summoning of the resources of the cinema to tell a poignant story of personal loss and family grief amid the trauma of disaster, for his powerful exploration of themes of diaspora, self-discovery, and sisterhood, and for his humanist vision that inspires reconciliation, renewal, and rebuilding.
The award for best director goes to Jaime Pacena II “Kono Basho.”
Best Actor
For his sensitive and very convincing portrayal of a boy who refuses to be silent and to be silenced about his abuse.
The award for best performance by an actor in a lead role goes to Enzo Ossorio for “The Hearing.”
Best Actress
For her spirited portrayal of a public school teacher risking life and limb to protect the sanctity of the ballot and for her sensitive and very moving portrayal of a young woman navigating the cultural complexities of a foreign funeral while coming to terms with personal loss and family grief.
The award for best performance by an actress in a lead role is shared by Marian Rivera for “Balota” and Gabby Padilla for “Kono Basho.”
Special Jury Prize
For its effective use of the resources of documentary cinema to shed light on an actual case of enforced disappearance and reveal dark truths about human rights in the Philippines.
The Special Jury Prize goes to “Alipato at Muog” by JL Burgos.
Best Film
For its focus on a marginalized sector of Philippine society; for its nearly epic sweep of the life and landscape of a people disempowered by the wealthy and the powerful and victimized by government neglect and corruption; for its highly convincing characters and effective ensemble acting by a cast of non-professional actors; and for its highly effective filmmaking in defense of the rights of indigenous people to their ancestral domain.
The award for best film goes to “Tumandok” by Richard Jeroui Salvadico and Arlie Sweet Sumagaysay.