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Everything slowly falls apart and deteriorates in the life of the Lim family. Anthony Chen’s “Ilo Ilo” follows the characters in their trying attempt at holding on to their middle-class stature in Singapore in the time of economic crisis. The family’s patriarch (Chen Tianwen) is made redundant; the mother (Yann Yann Yeo), and simultaneously the most tragic character, is few months into her pregnancy; whilst their son Jia Le (Jia Ler Koh) is a troublemaking brat who really struggles to behave in class.

“Jiseok” is screening at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema

The film is set during the economic crisis of 1997 that struck many Asian countries, Singapore included. One of the few elements that signal the timeframe is Tamagotchi, a handheld game that Jia Le plays. Apart from being a marker of the past, it becomes a symbol of the boy’s escapism. The depressed, overworked couple make for terrible parents,...

Gory, glittery and irresistibly bleak, In My Mother’s Skin represents a stylish, ripe contribution to the folk-horror canon. Not unlike his acclaimed debut, Ma (2018), Manila-based writer-director Kenneth Dagatan’s second feature revolves around a young person who makes a bargain with a malevolent insectoid forest spirit to help her family — with disastrous consequences.

This time round, Dagatan and his team have added a period frame by setting the story on a rural estate in the Philippines during the final days of World War II, just before the defeat of the occupying Japanese forces. Inevitably, that fascism subtext coupled with the creepy-ancient-being stuff strongly brings Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth to mind, at least to a Western viewer’s eyes. But if you’re going to steal, steal from the best. And there’s plenty that’s fresh, frisky and original here. It’s no surprise the global rights were...

Folklore and horror are often two sides of the same coin. Genre filmmakers the world over have either drawn from or created local myths to jangle the nerves of their audience, from “The Wicker Man” in Britain and “The Blair Witch Project” in America to “La Llorona” in Guatemala and “Kwaidan” in Japan. For the latest evidence, look no further than the Philippines and “In My Mother’s Skin” — already picked up by Amazon ahead of its Sundance Mdnight premiere. Writer-director Kenneth Dagatan’s second feature after 2018’s “Ma” (no relation to the Octavia Spencer picture) takes place in the waning months of World War II, as Japan’s occupation of the Philippines is nearing its (un)merciful end. Though that watershed conflict is mostly confined to the background, the film’s very first line of dialogue makes it clear that political and supernatural horrors shall intermingle: “Did you hear...

The first big pickup out of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Deadline reports today that Amazon Prime Video has acquired In My Mother’s Skin, a buzzy Filipino horror movie.

Kenneth Dagatan directed the film, which premieres this Friday at Sundance.

Prime Video has acquired global rights.

Deadline notes, “A Q4 drop date in several countries is currently scheduled.”

“Set in 1945 Philippines, at the tail end of World War II, the pic follows the story of Tala, a 14-year-old daughter of a Philippines textile merchant who lives in a war-worn colonial house with her sickly mother Ligaya and younger brother Bayani. When Tala’s father mysteriously leaves once more to barter for his family’s freedom with the Japanese, his family finds themselves alone in their isolated forest mansion, awaiting his return.

“With Ligaya’s condition rapidly deteriorating, Tala seeks out a mysterious fairy who has promised to protect her.

Tagalog-language selection to debut on platform by end of 2023.

Prime Video has picked up worldwide rights to Filipino Sundance Midnight premiere In My Mother’s Skin ahead of Friday night’s world premiere.

Kenneth Dagatan wrote and directed the horror fairytale about a young girl whose duty to protect her dying mother is complicated by her misplaced trust in a bewitching, flesh-eating fairy.

Beauty Gonzalez, Felicity Kyle Napuli, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, James Mavie Estrella, and Angeli Bayani star in the Tagalog-language film – the only entry in this year’s Midnight selection not in the English language.

Prime Video will debut In...

In what reps the first acquisition of this year’s Sundance Film Festival by a streamer, Prime Video is taking global rights to Kenneth Dagatan’s Filipino horror movie In My Mother’s Skin which is premiering in the Midnight section on Friday, Jan. 20. A Q4 drop date in several countries is currently scheduled.

In My Mother’s Skin is the only non-English title playing in this year’s Midnight lineup.

Set in 1945 Philippines, at the tail end of World War II, the pic follows the story of Tala, a 14-year-old daughter of a Philippines textile merchant who lives in a war-worn colonial house with her sickly mother Ligaya and younger brother Bayani. When Tala’s father mysteriously leaves once more to barter for his family’s freedom with the Japanese, his family finds themselves alone in their isolated forest mansion, awaiting his return. With Ligaya’s condition rapidly deteriorating,...

It’s hard to believe that it’s been three years since I was last in Park City to enjoy the Sundance Film Festival in person, which is why this writer is beyond thrilled to be headed back to Utah next week to partake in their amazing lineup of films once again. Sundance 2023 officially kicks off on Thursday, January 19th, and will be running through Sunday, January 29th. And while we’re undoubtedly stoked for the fest’s slate of Midnight titles, there are also a handful of genre films playing in other categories that this writer is definitely going to check out during my time at Sundance as well.

In anticipation of our return to Park City next week, here’s a look at 12 different horror, sci-fi, and genre-adjacent films that are playing at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. As usual, Sundance serves as a fantastic kickoff for the festival season,...

Taking place January 19th–29th, the 2023 Sundance Film Festival will spotlight 99 feature films from around the globe, and we have a look at the full list of movies screening in the eclectic and eerie Midnight category, including the world premieres of Brandon Cronenberg's Infinity Pool and Kenneth Dagatan's In My Mother’s Skin:

From the Press Release: From horror and comedy to works that defy genre classification, these films will keep you wide awake, even at the most arduous hour. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include Fresh, Hereditary, Mandy, Relic, Assassination Nation, and The Babadook.

birth/rebirth / U.S.A. — A single mother and a childless morgue technician are bound together by their relationship to a little girl they have reanimated from the dead. Cast: Marin Ireland, Judy Reyes, A.J. Lister, Breeda Wool. World Premiere. Fiction. Day One

In My Mother’s Skin...

It’s that time of the year again when the Sundance Film Festival shares all of its horror discoveries that we’ll be seeing in the next few years.

Today they announced the comprehensive slate of independent films selected from the fest that will take place January 19–29, 2023, in person in Park City, Salt Lake City, and the Sundance Resort, along with a selection of films available online across the country January 24–29, 2023.

Bloody Disgusting combed through the entire program this afternoon and pulled out all of the genre films of note, with first-look images and information where available.

What are you most excited to see at Sundance next year?

Midnight: From horror and comedy to works that defy genre classification, these films will keep you wide awake, even at the most arduous hour. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include Fresh, Hereditary, Mandy, Relic, Assassination Nation, and The Babadook.

Kenneth Lim Dagatan’s horror thriller In My Mother’s Skin is set to be revealed as the first co-production between the Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan.

Scheduled to start filming in mid-June with actress and Instagram star Beauty Gonzalez, the project is set to be announced tomorrow (May 21) by Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (Imda) and Film Development Council of the Philippines (Fdcp) at their joint pavilion in the Riviera’s International Village.

The story follows a girl who trusts a flesh-eating fairy to save her dying mother when they are left behind in an isolated mansion, near the...

Following last year’s hybrid edition, Sgiff returned fully to the cinemas this year, hosting 77 onsite screenings.

Panah Panahi’s Hit The Road was named best film at the 30th Silver Screen Awards in Singapore, while Ps Vinothraj took best director for Pebbles and Tolepbergen Baissakalov received the best performance award for Fire. The Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff) announced the winners on Facebook on Sunday (December 5).

The jury - Peggy Chiao, Angeli Bayani, Kim Young-woo and Chalida Uabumrungjit - said the Iranian film “masterfully weaves raw poetic imagination with humour, melancholy and humanism”, and lauded Indian director Vinothraj for...

Araceli Lemos is a director, writer, and editor born in Athens, Greece, currently based in Los Angeles. Her debut feature, “Holy Emy” premiered at Locarno Iff 2021, where it won the Special Mention of the competition section “Filmmakers of the Present.”

Abigael Loma is an actress who made her debut in Holy Emy.

Joel Garber is a consulting producer in Holy Emy, and also a script writer, director, editor and actor. Other works of his include Connie (2017) and Scenes from a Real Marriage (2018).

On the occasion of “Holy Emy” screening in Thessaloniki International Film Festival, we speak with them a

Can you tell me a bit about how you ended up shooting a film about two Filipino sisters in Greece?

Araceli Lemos: In the beginning, the script was a theoretical idea about two sisters, which actually came from a short story from Japanese writer Yoko Ogawa, who was writing about her...

Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff) returns for its 32nd edition from 25 November to 5 December 2021, with tickets going on public sale today, 9 November 2021 at 12pm, via Sistic. As announced previously, this year’s Festival will present a diverse, inclusive range of over 100 films by filmmakers from more than 40 countries and categorised under Films in Competition (Asian Feature Film and Southeast Asian Short Film), Singapore Panorama, as well as five new film sections that position cinema from different perspectives.

According to Sgiff’s Programme Director, Thong Kay Wee, “As we return to the cinemas this year, we also wish to encourage further discourse in-person, which includes Q&As with filmmakers as well as our Forum section, featuring leading industry voices in topical panel discussions. We are also especially thrilled to offer a special presentation of the feature film Scene UnSeen, on Singapore’s underground music scene, which will include a one-night-only showcase...

It is not everyday we get to watch a Greek production about Filipinos in Greece, and even more, one that looks as a Filipino film at least as much as a Greek. Araceli Lemos, however, has managed to do just that, in a movie that is as weird as it is intriguing, and captivating on occasion.

“Holy Emy” is screening at the 62nd Thessaloniki International Film Festival

With their mother having returned to the Philippines after some mysterious incidents in the house she used to work as a domestic help, sisters Emy and Teresa are left to fend for themselves for the most part, with the help of an aunt, Linda, and the Filipino Catholic community in Athens. Teresa works at a fish seller’s and she tries to convince the owner to hire her sister also, but Emy has an unusual condition that causes her to shed tears of blood,...

Creating a film where irony is the main ingredient and mocking the main purpose sounds like a very dangerous business in these ridiculously politically correct times. Carlo Francisco Manatad, who is mostly known for his editing work with directors like Khavn and Chito S. Rono, but has also been directing movies for more than a decade, manages to pull off this “dangerous” endeavour, which actually starts with the title.

Most of the short takes place in a gas station, where Jodilerks, a middle aged woman, and a young man are working the night shift. Jodilerks tries to sell bottles with gas on the side while smoking, but when that does not work, she and her colleague decide to get drunk. As expected in the particular hours, their customers are also drunk, and furthermore, weird, not willing to pay and even dangerous. When her colleague is knocked out due to their drinking,...

Everything slowly falls apart and deteriorates in the life of the Lim family. Anthony Chen’s “Ilo Ilo” follows the characters in their trying attempt at holding on to their middle-class stature in Singapore in the time of economic crisis. The family’s patriarch (Chen Tianwen) is made redundant; the mother (Yann Yann Yeo), and simultaneously the most tragic character, is few months into her pregnancy; whilst their son Jia Le (Jia Ler Koh) is a troublemaking brat who really struggles to behave in class.

The film is set during the economic crisis of 1997 that struck many Asian countries, Singapore included. One of the few elements that signal the timeframe is Tamagotchi, a handheld game that Jia Le plays. Apart from being a marker of the past, it becomes a symbol of the boy’s escapism. The depressed, overworked couple make for terrible parents, and in an attempt at containing the ongoing crisis,...

Eric Khoo helmed “Food Lore” aims to explore a number of social issues throughout Asia, by connecting them with the local cuisines. Erik Matti handles the Filipino episode, focusing on one of the most pressing problems the country faces: work-related immigration.

Food Lore is available on HBO Asia and HBO

Nieves, who has been working as a housekeeper for a rich family in Manila for 10 years, returns to her birthplace of Cartagena, during the biggest celebration of the island. Her coming is met with enthusiasm by her friends and relatives, particularly due to the gifts and the overall “air” of the big city she brings. However, her husband Noel, son Tonton and teenage daughter Marianne are not exactly satisfied with her absence, while a decision she has made for both her and her daughter bring even more tension between the couple. At the same time, through flashbacks, the film reveals her extremely poor childhood,...

Award-winning Singaporean filmmaker Eric Khoo‘s new series “Food Lore” is now available to stream on HBO. “Food Lore” is divvied up into eight episodes showcasing unique narratives, each highlighting tales and tastes across Asia. In addition to this imaginative review of food lore, Khoo’s series will work in tandem with accomplished filmmakers from each region. Featured filmmakers and countries include Erik Matti (the Philippines), Phan Dang Di (Vietnam), Billy Christian (Indonesia), Don Aravind (Singapore), Pen-Ek Ratanaruang (Thailand), Takumi Saitoh (Japan), and Ho Yuhang (Malaysia).

“Food Lore” is produced by Singapore-based company Bert Pictures, and in partnership with Infocomm Media Development Authority (Imda) in Singapore. The show will be available to U.S. subscribers starting Monday, March 2 on HBO Now, HBO Go, and partner platforms.

The episode summary can be found below:

Episode 1 – Island of Dreams

Dreaming of a brighter future for her family, Nieves leaves her husband and...

Winner of the Balanghai Trophy for Best Screenplay at the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival, “Baggage” is a film that moves in two axes: motherhood and Philippino social institutions.

Baggage screened at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian cinema 2018

Mercy Abbunag has just returned home in the Philippines after spending years working abroad and her family is throwing her a party. However, members of the National Bureau of Investigation suddenly appear and ask Mercy to join them on an investigation about a newborn that was dumped into the dustbin of the plane she was boarding. The case has already made the news and has shocked public opinion. As Mercy interacts with various institutions that include the police, a hospital in Manila, social workers who eventually bring her to an asylum where (psychologically) traumatized women live, politicians, the press and her own family, a terrible secret comes to the fore and her...

We present the list of winners of the CineFilipino Film Festival 2016.

The CineFilipino Film Festival runs from March 16th until the 22th in Manila (Philippines). The festival aims to support and develop new cinematic, audience-friendly works of artistic merit by up-and-coming and established filmmakers to help define the human experience through a Filipino perspective. The festival features a competition for feature-length movies, shorts section (mobile, online content, and short features), documentary, and TV series in digital format.

Best Picture

Ned’s Project by Lemuel Lorca

2nd Best Picture

Sakaling Hindi Makarating by Ice Idanan

3rd Best Picture

Star Na si Van Damme Stallone by Randolph Longjas

Best Dictor

Ice Idanan for the film Sakaling Hindi Makarating

Best Actress

Angeli Bayani for the film Ned’s Project by Lemuel Lorca

Candy Pangilinan for the film Star Na si Van Damme Stallone by Randolph Longjas

Best Actor

Pepe Herrera for the film...

Crime & Punishment: Diaz’s Latest Epic Examines the Banality of Evil

For those accustomed to the cinema of Lav Diaz, the four hour running time of his latest opus, Norte, the End of History, seems conservatively trim by comparison. But for those uninitiated, this is an excellent place to start. Basically, Diaz’s narrative displaces Dostoevsky’s Crime & Punishment to the Philippines, further examining the moral suffering of his Raskolnikov figure by denying societal sanctioned consequences, exacerbated by the fact that another man takes the fall for his actions. Truth and meaning, the sacred and profane, society and the family—all are philosophical notions discussed figuratively and literally in the frameworks of Diaz’s latest, but not to the radical effect that this may imply. Instead, the banality of life and the dreadful, sometimes excruciating passage of time devours all.

Fabian (Sid Lucero), is an increasingly angry young man who...

The tensions between a family and their Filipino maid make for an engaging film

Anthony Chen's portrait of a middle-class Singaporean family's struggle with financial, domestic and personal issues during the economic crisis of the late 90s picked up well-deserved awards for best debut feature at festivals in Cannes and London. Angeli Bayani excels as the Filipino maid/nanny whose presence becomes the focal point of tensions within the family. While the father, Teck (Tian Wen Chen), hides both his redundancy and his smoking from his pregnant wife Hwee (Yann Yann Yeo), troublesome son Jiale (Koh Jia Ler) finds growing solace in the presence of "auntie", a bond that threatens his increasingly frustrated mother.

Shot with extraordinary intimacy and naturalism, and boasting superbly unaffected performances from the core cast, this sympathetic and engaging drama is deceptively gentle in its insight compassionate yet unsentimental.

Continue reading...

Having been quite the hit on the festival circuit – picking up the Golden Camera award at Cannes last year, not to mention several other accolades in various cities across the world (London included), Anthony Chen’s debut feature film Ilo Ilo certainly has a lot to live up to in that regard – and this compelling study of friendship does little to disappoint.

Set in Singapore, in the latter end of the 1990s amidst the recession that sweeps over the region, we delve into the life of a family struggling to cope. The mother, Hwee Leng (Yann Yann Yeo) is heavily pregnant, and while her husband (Tian Wen Chen) has severe financial woes, they hire the Filipino nanny Teresa (Angeli Bayani) to come and look after their insubordinate son, Jiale (Koh Jia Ler). Though initially the troubled young boy bullies and intimidates his new carer, soon the pair strike up a strong bond,...

A lovely, intimate drama of family dynamics under stress, offering an intriguing peek into previously unseen Singaporean middle-class life. I’m “biast” (pro): nothing

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Few films have come out of Singapore, which is only just now starting to develop a significant cinema, and most of those have been genre films. The lovely, intimate Ilo Ilo — Singapore’s official submission to the 2014 Oscars in the Foreign Language category — is part intriguing peek into middle-class life in that city-state, something most viewers will be unfamiliar with either firsthand or onscreen, and part illustration of the frustrations and indignities of foreign domestic workers that appear to be universal wherever women leave their own homes to go work in someone else’s. Here, Teresa (Angeli Bayani) has just arrived from the Philippines to take care of the Lim...

Ilo Ilo, Singapore's Submission for the Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. U.S. : Film Movement. International Sales Agent: Memento Film International

On the subject of family dynamics there are various components to consider. The conflicts or connections between the members of a household emerge from the role each person plays in relation to one another. Breadwinners, for example, exert a certain authority onto others because of their inherent responsibility to provide. In a different manner, homemakers, earn the group’s respect because they oversee the correct functioning of the essential daily chores.

While the same person might exercise these two roles, each one teaches a different set of skills to the quietly receptive children. This power play is modified when it involves a servant, someone whose input is part of a business transaction, but who is still allowed into the privacy of the family’s home. Debutant feature director Anthony Chen exhibits his version of these interactions with a singular Singaporean flavor in his touchingly bittersweet film Ilo Ilo.

Enjoying a middleclass lifestyle during the late 90s, preteen troublemaker Jiale (Koh Jia Ler) and his parents live in a comfortable high-rise condo in the financial hub of Singapore. Teck (Tian Wen Chen) , the father, works at a stressful sales job in a time where the Asian economy was shaky. The boy’s mother, Hwee Leng (Yann Yann Yeo), is a proud office worker who is pregnant with her second child and can’t seem to catch a break. Responsible for giving her headaches, Jiale is a disobedient kid who appears to be acting rebellious since his grandfather passed away. He gets into fights with his teachers and ignores his mother’s pleas to behave. In desperate need of some help, Hwee Leng hires 28-year-old Filipino maid Teresa (Angeli Bayani), who instantly senses Jiale’s hostility toward her.

Fearful of how his wife might react, Teck suffers in silence by hiding the fact that he was a part of the numerous layoffs taking place all over the country as the economic crisis unfolded. In the meantime, Teresa or “Terry” as she likes to be called, becomes the victim of Jiale’s mischievous antics. Afraid of losing her job she is unable to express her discomfort to his parents. Ultimately, with his mother at the office all day, Jiale unwillingly accepts Terry’s help after breaking his arm.

Her patience and maternal instinct slowly win over the naughty kid. Being herself a mother apart from her son, caring for Jiale serves as a coping mechanism for Terry who feels like an outsider not only to the family, but also in the country. As the pair’s unlikely bond strengthens, Hwee Leng notices how important Terry has become for her son. Feeling replaced at home she becomes jealous of her loving maid, a situation that adds to the already existing distress. Eventually the financial uncertainty forces the family to make difficult decisions, which will sadly give Jiale another taste of heartbreak.

Delivered with remarkable chemistry by both Bayani and young Koh Jia Ler, their banter is humorously enchanting. They establish a relationship that transcends mere employer-employee status and is elevated to a genuine friendship. Terry’s duties are not limited to cooking and cleaning for him, but instead she takes it upon herself to truly care for the child. She gives him the love an attention his parents, being overly busy with work, have neglected to provide.

There is a profoundly moving quality to all four major performances in this character driven film. Their personal struggles come from trying to fulfill their specific roles in a world that is moving at such fast pace, it has forgotten to contemplate the simple joys of family. Unruly Jiale unconsciously refuses to get caught up in the system, thus he sincerely connects with Terry, who accepts him unconditionally even when he doesn’t live up to everyone’s expectations.

Through his superbly developed characters and nuanced storytelling, Chen successfully captures both the cultural pluralism of the Singaporean society and the preoccupations and wonders (Walkmans and Tamagotchis included), of a time which now seems strangely distant. Curiously enough, Ilo Ilo takes its name from Terry’s small hometown in the Philippines, and although he might never get to be there, through his friendship with Terry a part of Jiale will always live there. Pleasantly surprising Chen’s heartwarming debut is a subtly thoughtful and endearing work.

Ilo Ilo Opens in L.A. on April 11

Read more about all the 76 Best Foreign Language Film Submission for the 2014 Academy Awards...

Singapore Slump: Economics Brushed Aside in Chen’s Gem Debut

In his autobiographical debut Ilo Ilo, young Singaporean helmer Anthony Chen delivers a beautifully simple story with hometown verve. Realism runs faithful to banal domestic life, but the low-key drama, set during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, comes alive with lighthearted humor. While there is a distinctive nineties aesthetic owed to lighting design, color sensitivity and an obligatory Tamagotchi cameo, the widely accessible narrative, through which racial and economic tensions are brilliantly woven, is far from passé.

Upon arriving at the middle-class family flat, Teresa (Angeli Bayani), a twenty-eight-year old Filipino domestic worker, hands over her passport to uneasy employers. Remaining silent, she is directed to a pathetic trundle bed in a room shared with a bratty nine-year-old boy. This could easily play out as a sob story about an overworked, helplessly timid, wholesome catholic immigrant, but such stereotypes of passivity are quickly pushed aside.

In Ilo Ilo, director Anthony Chen depicts the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s in a decaying, claustrophobic world of temp job insecurity, bleeping Tamagotchis, bubble tea, and crooked hucksters selling “opportunity.” Children play in the streets, seemingly oblivious to the cratered economy, but susceptible to the anxiety of their parents, aware of the laid-off workers throwing themselves from rooftops, and paying way more attention to the national lottery numbers than kids really should. Small details and incidents accrete into a pointillist rendering of despair. Teresa (Angeli Bayani), a young Filipina mother, has come to Singapore to earn money to care for her own distant family, working as a maid in the household of the pregnant Leng (Yeo Y...

Ritesh Batra’s The Lunchbox has bagged six nominations at the 56th Asia-Pacific Film Festival including Best Film and Best Director.

Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur and Nawazuddin Siddiqui have secured nominations in Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor categories respectively.

Rajeev Ravi has been nominated in Best Cinematography category for Monsoon Shootout.

The awards will be announced on December 15 in Macau. The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (Apff) is an annual event hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific (Fpa).

Best Picture:

“The Grandmaster” (Hong Kong)

“Like Father Like Son” (Tokyo)

“The Lunchbox” (Mumbai)

“Stray Dogs” (Taipei)

“Ilo Ilo” (Singapore)

“In Bloom” (Tbilisi)

Best Director:

Tsai Ming-liang, “Stray Dogs” (Taipei)

Bong Joon-ho, “Snowpiercer” (Seoul)

Ritesh Batra, “The Lunchbox” (Mumbai)

Jafar Panahi and Kamboziya Partovi, “Closed Curtain” (Tehran)

Wong Kar-wai, “The Grandmaster” (Hong Kong)

Hirokazu Kore-eda, “Like Father Like Son” (Tokyo)

Best Actor:

Irrfan Khan, “The Lunchbox” (Mumbai)

Nick Cheung,...

Golden Horse Awards 2013 winners: ‘Ilo Ilo,’ Singapore’s Best Foreign Language Film Oscar submission, wins Best Picture (photo: Angeli Bayani and Koh Jia Ler in ‘Ilo Ilo’) Surprisingly, the 2013 Golden Horse Award for Best Picture was given to 29-year-old Singaporean director Anthony Chen’s feature film debut Ilo Ilo at a ceremony held Saturday night, November 23, in Taipei. Four rounds of voting were needed for jury members to reach their decision. (Golden Horse Awards 2013 winners and nominees.) "Singapore is a very little country and we made this film with a small budget," said the London-based Chen in his acceptance speech, "so we never dreamed of winning a Best Picture prize. The other nominees are the masters I learned from when I was in film school, so I’m very honored and thankful to them too." The directors of Ilo Ilo‘s fellow Best Picture contenders — and Anthony Chen’s "masters" — were Johnnie To,...

Exclusive: UK distributor acquires rights to Lav Diaz’s Un Certain Regard entry.

UK distributor New Wave Films has acquired Lav Diaz’s epic drama Norte, the End of History.

The festival favourite, which debuted in Un Certain Regard at Cannes and has also played at Karlovy Vary, Locarno and Toronto among other festivals, begins as a riff on Dostoyevsky’s novel Crime and Punishment but also alludes to Philippino class and politics, the country’s intelligentsia and its foreign-worker phenomenon.

New Wave, which acquired the film from producer is Raymond Lee after its screening at the London Film Festival, plans a spring 2014 release.

Cinema Guild had already acquired Us rights.

Screenplay is from Lav Diaz and Rody Vera. Cast includes Sid Lucero, Angeli Bayani, Archie Alemania, Angelina Kanapi and Soliman Cruz.

Philippine New Wave director Diaz won Venice’s Orrizonti Award in 2008 for drama Melancholia.

Now that the dust has settled and the behemoth Tiff is in our rear-view mirror, the Ioncinema.com team are comparing notes, grading films and looking back at our personal experiences, our rapport with the films we saw and the characters that vividly remain with us. Among our favorite fest recaps, our discerning fivesome (Eric Lavallee, Jordan M. Smith, Nicholas Bell, Leora Heilbronn, Caitlin Coder) have created a Top 20 List of New Faces from the 2013 of up-and-coming actors and actresses (of all age demos) that stole some thunder in lead or supporting player roles. Here they are:

#20. Zoe Levin (Palo Alto, Beneath the Harvest Sky)

Unlike the characters of Emily and Tasha in Gia Coppola’s Palo Alto and Aron Gaudet & Gita Pullapilly’s Beneath the Harvest Sky, Zoe Levin‘s future is a a bright one. Respectively playing a teens suffering from suburban and country-setting ennui, in Palo Alto...

#5. Century of Birthing Director: Lav Diaz Cast: Angel Aquino, Joel Torre, Perry Dizon, Hazel Orencio, Angeli Bayani Distributor: Rights Available Buzz: Hearts skipped beats when the title was revealed for this newest Lav Diaz work. 'Oh lord, he's finally done made a hundred year-long movie'. The guy known for the longest average film-length of any active filmmaker may have actually lowered said average with this relatively modest six hour-long film, but it's awfully dismissive to simply write him off as a high-brow spectacle. Combining performance art, an utmost humanism, and the frankest portrayals of duration that the cinema has ever seen, Lav Diaz is the Thanksgiving meal of film festival offerings. It's an awfully exorbitant serving, but boy do you crave it every day thereafter. The Gist: A filmmaker battles with film festival programmers, his girlfriend, and the media in order to retain his un-doctored vision. Coming from a filmmaker...

I cannot imagine Pink Halo-Halo being directed by anyone but Joselito Altarejos. Altarejos, who has made a name for himself in Philippine cinema as one of headliners of the burgeoning and bursting gay genre with such films like Ang Lalake sa Parola (The Man in the Lighthouse, 2007), Ang Lihim ni Antonio (Antonio's Secret, 2008) and Ang Laro ng Buhay ni Juan (The Game of Juan's Life, 2009). The film, about a boy (Paolo Constantino) whose father (Allen Dizon), a soldier, is detailed to war-torn Mindanao to keep the peace during a special elections, is inspired from Altarejos' own childhood, one that has been marked by the loss of a father, also a soldier, who was killed in the service of the country.

 

Set in Altarejos' native Masbate, Pink Halo-Halo opens with a row of soldiers jogging amidst a serene backdrop of the province. Several boys, running and carrying toy guns, follow suit.