Every cinephile’s much-awaited annual independent film festival is back, now on its 20th year. Yup, that’s two decades! This year’s edition of the Cinemalaya Film Festival brings the theme “Loob, Lalim, Lakas” to life — with a promise to deliver top-tier visual storytelling that will deeply capture the Filipino cinematic soul.
Planning to go? Here are some things to expect:
A fresh set of competing films
The 20 th Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival kicks off on August 2 with the opening film, “The Gospel of the Beast” by Sheron Dayoc, which was recognized in two different international film festivals. After which, all full-length and short feature films competing for the coveted Balanghai trophy will be screened in different schedules.
Here are the 10 films competing for Full-Length Category:
- “Aliputo” at Muog by JL Burgos
- “An Errand” by Dominic Bekaert
- “Balota” by Kip Oebanda
- “Gulay Lang, Manong” by BC Amparado
- “Kantil” by Joshua Caesar Medroso
- “Kono Basho” by Jaime Pecana II
- “Love Child” by Jonathan Jurilla
- “The Hearing” by Lawrence Fajardo
- “The Wedding Dance” by Julius Lumiqued
- “Tumandok” by Richard Salvadico and Arlie Sumagaysay
On the other hand, below are the 10 competing Short Feature films:
- “Abogbaybay” by PR Monencillo Patindol
- “All this wasted space” by Cris Bringas
- “Ambot Wala Ako Kabalo Unsay I-Title Ini” by Rey Anthony Villaverde
- “Cross My Heart and Hope to Die” by Sam Manasca
- “I Was Walking on the Streets of Chinatown” by Ryan Capili
- “Mama” by Alexandra Brizuela
- “Mariposa” by Melanie Faye Tampos
- “Pamalandog sa Danow (Reflection in the Marsh)” by Breech Asher Harani
- “Primetime Mother” by Sonny Calvento
- “The Red Trails (An Baga sa Dalan)” by Mariel Ritchie Jolejole and Roniño Dolim
View the full screening schedule here.
Ayala Malls, The Metropolitan Theater screenings
While it’s sad that Cinemalaya won’t be held in its usual home, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (which is under construction, btw), the film festival will be screened in different Ayala Malls Cinemas. Film-watchers can conveniently choose the nearest one to them. The main venue for the festival is Ayala Malls Manila Bay.
Below is the list of participating Ayala Malls Cinemas:
- Greenbelt
- Trinoma
- UP Town Center
- Market! Market!
Tickets can be purchased on-site or via sureseats.com.
Meanwhile, viewers can catch some non-competing films at the prestigious The
Metropolitan Theater for free. See the list of films here.
Distinguished set of judges
Leading this year’s jury is Golden Globe and BAFTA Awardee and Cinemalaya 2023 Best Supporting Actress Ms. Dolly de Leon. She will be joined by multi-awarded director, editor, composer, and writer Jerrold Tarog, renowned critic and academic Nicanor Tiongson, Berlinale film curator Nicola Marzano, and Dhaka International Film Festival founder and director, Ahmed Muztaba Zamal.
They are tasked to evaluate the competing films and choose which ones are deserving of the coveted Balanghai trophies.
Meanwhile, the jury for NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) Award will compose of award-winning local filmmaker and producer Monster Jimenez, Russian film producer Nina Kochelyaeva, and Cinemalaya veteran Jay Abello.
Never-before-screened films
Apart from the feature films, Cinemalaya will show never-before-screened films from acclaimed Filipino directors in its Premiere Section.
List of films below:
- “Rizal” by National Artist Marilou Diaz-Abaya
- “Lost Sabungeros” by Bryan Brazil
- “And So it Begins” by Ramona Diaz
- “Abenida” by Luisito Lagdameo Ignacio
- “Asog” by Sean Devlin
- “Guardia de Honor” by Jay Altajeros
- “Lola Magdalena” by Joel C. Lamangan
- “Transients” by Kyla Romero
Powerful actresses competing for the Best Actress award
When I saw the film trailers, I immediately noticed the power lineup of actresses competing for the Balanghai trophy.
Renowned actress Marian Rivera will make her Cinemalaya debut with “Balota”, and award winning actress Mylene Dizon is up for a comeback with the “Healing.” Mainstream actress Jane Oineza will play a young mom in “Love Child”, alongside her on and off-screen partner, RK Bagatsing.
Cordilleran actress Mai Fanglayan is also playing a lead role, while film and theatre actress Gabby Padilla is back with “Kono Basho” after competing last year with her Cinemalaya film, “Gitling.”
What are you planning to watch from this year’s edition of Cinemalaya?
Before the new year starts, it’s already fair to assume that Supergirl might be one of the most anticipated movies of 2026. Premiering a year after the globally successful Superman, Supergirl will see the adventures of Clark Kent’s superpowered cousin, Kara Zor-El. Now, the next film in the sage finally has a teaser trailer.
As James Gunn mentioned previously, Supergirl will be based on Tom King’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. Off traveling to other planets to party, Kara finds herself thrust back into the role of being a hero after a young girl named Ruthye Mary Knoll asks her for help.
Though the teaser trailer is mostly a montage of scenes, we already know what we can expect. According to Gunn, Supergirl will be tonally different from Superman, and we see this in the trailer.
However, we can still see influences from Gunn including the usage of “Call Me” by Blondie for the trailer. Also, the film’s space scenes look like they can fit right in with Guardians of the Galaxy.
Still, that’s what we have, and we’re excited. Supergirl will premiere on June 26, 2026.
The film will be directed by Craig Gillespie (Cruella). Milly Alcock plays the titular character. Meanwhile, she will star alongside Eve Ridley as Ruthye Mary Knoll.
SEE ALSO: Superman sequel, titled Man of Tomorrow, comes out in 2027
You can’t go wrong with a revenge story. Watching a group of evildoers get their deserved comeuppance is always a good time. Mamoru Hosoda’s Scarlet promises such a tale worthy of the greats. However, Hosoda quickly sheds the veneer of revenge for a tale of self-discovery.
Scarlet, the film’s eponymous character, is a princess on a quest for revenge against her uncle, a usurper who ordered the death of her father. However, before she can deal the killing blow, her uncle outsmarts the attempt by poisoning her. She dies and is teleported into a purgatory called the Otherworld. There, she must fight against the other departed to exact revenge from the other side.
So much for revenge
A mix between Dante’s Inferno and Hamlet, Scarlet should have the makings of an excellent revenge story. However, though Scarlet keeps revenge as her main motivation throughout the entire film, she eventually finds a new quest in discovering what she wants to be after she gets her retribution.
She meets Hijiri, a pacifist paramedic from the modern era, who persistently asks her to reconsider seeking violent ends to her enemies. With Hijiri in tow, Scarlet discovers that there is more value in helping other people and giving her enemies a second chance.
Was it a shift well earned?
Most revenge stories today come with a similar twist where the main character reevaluates their murderous rampage to seek inner peace. This usually comes after the murderous rampage. After all, how do you redeem someone who hasn’t done anything wrong?
In stories like these, satisfaction comes when the main character kills minor villains. After getting their fun, a traumatic incident causes them to lose their drive to fall short of killing the main villain. In some situations, the character sacrifices themselves to save someone else. In others, they choose to forgive the villain.
Scarlet fast-forwards straight to the finish by choosing less violent measure right from the beginning. As hellbent as she is on killing her uncle, she fails at every step, usually because of stronger enemies. The only thing she becomes good at is sparing and forgiving her foes, often prodded by allies.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with writing a unique take on the revenge story. However, Scarlet wants audiences to learn its lesson without going through the grueling work that often comes with such a lesson.
Hosoda wants to play it off as the futility of vengeance, and he’s right in making that the moral of the story. However, this just doesn’t stick.
A beauty on the screen
Amid all the criticism, Mamoru Hosoda always manages to deliver visually appealing pieces for the big screen. Scarlet is no different. It features hand-drawn animation that looks three-dimensional and laid on top of realistic scenery.
For all its misgivings, Scarlet transports audiences to a picturesque purgatory with a clear target, the Infinite Lands. If you love fantasy world-building, the movie showcases a fantasy worthy of the name. Though I had problems with Scarlet’s character, I still looked forward to seeing what comes next over the horizon.
Fans are finally getting an official first look at live-action Toph as Netflix has unveiled the first teaser trailer for Season 2 of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
It’s been more than a year since the announcement of the live-action adaptation’s renewal for Seasons 2 and 3. The second season is slated in 2026.
Aside from a short trailer, Netflix also bared first look photos for the upcoming second installment. Season 2 features new cast member Miya Cech, who plays master Earthbender Toph in the series.
Returning cast members, meanwhile, include Gordon Cormier as Aang, Kawentiio as Katara, and Ian Ousley as Sokka, among others.
In Season 2, after a bittersweet victory saving the Northern Water Tribe from the Fire Nation, Avatar Aang, Katara, and Sokka regroup and set off on a mission to convince the elusive Earth King to aid their battle against the fearsome Fire Lord Ozai.
Book 2 of the renowned Nickelodeon animated series, of course, focuses on the Earth Kingdom, with Toph Beifong among the key characters throughout that season.
The narrative also becomes more complex, with Zuko’s character arc and as well as the role of Azula as one of the intriguing antagonist figures to set up Season 3.
The 78-second clip mostly previews Miya Cech as the live-action Toph, plus the visual effects fans can expect with her ability to manipulate rocks and see the world through seismic vibrations.
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