Two Filipino films took home prizes from the 13th Pusan International Film Fest, which concluded yesterday, October 10, in South Korea. The comedy- drama 100 bagged the KNN Audience Choice Award while the short film Andong shared the Sonje Award with the Korean film Girl.
Directed by Chris Martinez, the Cinemalaya full-length film 100 stars Mylene Dizon, Eugene Domingo, and Tessie Tomas. The award comes with a cash prize of $20,000 that is sponsored by Korea's KNN TV network. Eugene and Tessie joined Direk Chris in attending the film festival that took place in Pusan (also known as Busan), South Korea.
Andong director Milo Tolentino was cited by the PIFF for "excavating a
truthful story from the midst of the city dumpsite and told it with witty humor
and brilliant performance." The Sonje award comes with a cash prize of $10,000.
Direk Milo's short film is about a six-year-old boy named Andong who is
obsessed with P20.
The nine-day Pusan IFF screened 315 movies from 60 countries, with 85 world
premieres and 95 Asian premieres. Fourteen films, including the film 100,
competed in the New Currents section. The jury was headed by French actress
Anna Karina, who is best known for her work with director Jean-Luc
Godard, her husband.
Direk Chris Martinez told PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) via email that
even before the festival started, 100's advanced ticket sales were
sold out in just one minute! The Pusan IFF marks the first international film
festival for the movie 100.
This Cinemalaya entry tells the story of a dying woman (played by Mylene
Dizon) with 100 things to do before she dies. Viewers will be able to watch the
film when it opens in commercial theaters starting December 3, distributed by
Star Cinema. The Film Development Council of the Philippines subsidized the trip
to Korea of lead stars Eugene, Tessie, and Direk Chris.