What to expect from Cinemalaya 2014

The heat is on for one of the most anticipated film festivals in the country: Cinemalaya 2014!

Set to take place from August 1-10 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Ayala Cinemas, this edition marks the 10th anniversary of the pioneering event.

The 2014 edition of the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival is gearing up to have a star-studded lineup. The complete list of celebrities who will be featured in the competing entries have yet to be completed but they will be revealed in future articles in this section.

In the meantime, PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) presents the 5 official finalists in the Director's Showcase category and 10 films in the New Breed category—with corresponding genre, writer, director, and logline (or story concept) of each entry.



DIRECTOR'S SHOWCASE Category:
Official Finalists

1. HUSTISYA
GENRE: Character Study of a Crime Drama
Written by: Ricky Lee
Directed by: JOEL LAMANGAN

LOGLINE:

A foul-mouthed woman fights for her soul in the belly of the city. Working for a human trafficking agency controlled by a powerful syndicate, she sees no evil, hears no evil. In a society like ours, you have only two choices: to be a victim, or a victimizer. She makes her choice.


2. ASINTADO (BETWEEN THE EYES)
GENRE: Drama
Written by: Socorro Villanueva
Directed by: LOUIE IGNACIO

LOGLINE:

In the middle of preparations for the Taong Putik Festival, a young man, penniless and in love, takes on a drug courier job that goes terribly wrong. To save him, his mother now makes the most difficult decision of her life.


3. HARI NG TONDO
GENRE: A-Slice-of-Life Depiction of a Family Drama
Written by: Bibeth Orteza
Directed by: CARLOS SIGIUON-REYNA

LOGLINE:

A grandfather brings his grandchildren back to the community that made and shaped him, only to find out the place is no longer the same.


4. KASAL
GENRE: Adult Drama
Written and Directed by: JOSELITO ALTAREJOS

LOGLINE:

Kasal is an examination on how a gay couple navigates through their own private space into a Filipino home, institutions and society as a whole.


5. THE JANITOR
GENRE: Crime Drama
Written by: Aloy Adlawan
Directed by: MICHAEL TUVIERA

LOGLINE:

The story behind the bloodiest bank robbery in Philippine history. Crisanto Espina, an ex-cop, is tasked with liquidating the suspects who masterminded the robbery/massacre of July 16, 2013. As he diligently executes his orders while dealing with his own personal demons, he begins to realize that the whole circus of the investigation is going to eventually consume him and make him question his own faith in what he believes to be his brand of justice.



NEW BREED Category:
Official Finalists


1. DAYANG ASU (In Pampanga, We Eat Dogs)
Written and Directed by: BOR OCAMPO
GENRE: Coming of Age Action-Drama

LOGLINE:

Amidst legalized corruption, a son struggles to prove to his father that he is fit to survive in a dog-eat-dog society.


2. 1ST KO SI 3RD
Written and Directed by: REAL FLORIDO
GENRE: Drama-Love Story

LOGLINE:

A 65-year old woman gets reunited with her 1st love and finally the supposed 1st date happens four decades after they got separated.


3. SUNDALONG KANIN
Written by Jerry O’Hara
Directed by: JANICE O'HARA
GENRE: Drama

LOGLINE:

Set during the Japanese Occupation, four friends (Nitoy, Benny, Carding, and Badong) aspire nothing more than to become soldiers fighting the Japanese... until they are confronted by the realities of war that threaten to destroy their families and their friendship.


4. KANA, THE DREAMWEAVER
Written and Directed by: IDA ANITA DEL MUNDO
GENRE: Epic

LOGLINE:

When Kana, a young T'boli woman, becomes a dreamweaver, she has the chance to weave together her village's warring clans. But, will she give up true love to do so?


5. RONDA
Written by Adolfo Alix Jr. and Jerome Zamora
Directed by: NICK OLANKA
GENRE: Drama

LOGLINE:

A policewoman who patrols Manila during the night arrests her teenage son for killing his lover.


6. BWAYA
Written and Directed by: FRANCIS XAVIER PASION
GENRE: Drama

LOGLINE:

Divina is preparing for her daughter Rowena’s 13th birthday when she hears a shocking news: her daughter has been attacked by a crocodile, her body still missing. As Divina searches for the body of her daughter in the marshlands of Agusan del Sur, she learns a lesson more tragic than her fate: not all predators are underwater. Based on actual events.


7. MARIQUINA
Directed by: MILO SOGUECO
Written by: Jerrold Tarog
GENRE: Tragic Comedy

LOGLINE:

Unlike the former Philippine First Lady, Imelda is indifferent towards shoes. To her, they are fraught with the bittersweet nostalgia of childhood, one that was marred by a difficult relationship with her shoe-maker father, Romeo. Growing up, all of hers were handmade by him. Now a mature woman, she takes a pivotal call from the morgue, spurring her search for the perfect pair of shoes for her dead father. The deeper she searches for the perfect shoes, the more she finds herself.


8. DAGITAB (SPARKS)
Written and Directed by: GIANCARLO ABRAHAN
Executive Producer: Paul Soriano
GENRE: Drama

LOGLINE:

While the marriage of two professors is on the verge of falling apart, the woman is dragged into a scandal involving a young student. On the other hand, the man falls in love with his research—a deity (supernatural being) that appears to him as the ghost of an old flame.


9. # Y
Directed by: Gino Santos
Written by: Jeff Stelton
GENRE: Coming of Age / Teen Drama

LOGLINE:

# Y (Hashtag Y) chronicles the adventures of the members of a generation made universal by the realms of social media, the internet, sex, drugs, and alcohol, and the occasional YOLO [You Only Live Once].


10. SEPARADOS
Directed by: GB Sampedro
Written by: Eric Ramos
GENRE: Romantic Comedy-Drama

LOGLINE:

The mostly bittersweet, partly comic, partly tragic saga of six men who have separated from their wives. Based on true stories, their parallel and overlapping tales are framed by a church wedding to a second wife by one of them, who grabs another chance at matrimonial bliss.