Star Powerhouse

  For the 21st edition of Cinemalaya, the pioneering independent film festival returns with the theme “Layag: sa Alon, Hangin, at Unos”, turning the big screen into a reflection of brave and persevering Filipino stories. Ten full-length films and ten short film entries are set for screening from October 3 to October 12 in three partner venues: Shangri-La Plaza, Ayala Malls Cinemas, and Gateway Cineplex 18.  Since its inception in 2005, the Cinemalaya is traditionally held in the theaters of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). The ongoing rehabilitation at the Center has led to the festival finding new venues to continue its tradition of discovering, encouraging, and supporting the cinematic works of upcoming and veteran Filipino filmmakers who boldly articulate and freely interpret the Philippine experience with fresh insight and artistic integrity. This year, Shangri-La Plaza will serve as the main hub of the festival for the first time. In addition to its long-stan...

The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival continues to sail as it opens its doors for new entries for the Full-Length Film category of its 2026 edition.  The deadline for submissions is on or before  6PM  of  JUNE 6, 2025  (Friday). The country’s biggest independent film festival continues its pursuit of innovative and excellent filmmaking as it celebrates 21 years of nurturing independent Filipino filmmakers eager to make their marks in the film industry in 2026.   Those who are interested in submitting their entries may submit it  ONLINE  through   https://forms.gle/ XFAaxKrwY34VDLjz8  with the following requirements: the concept paper of the project containing the premise(s) of the film, the genre, the tagline, the key characters, and their descriptions in Filipino or English; a two-page synopsis/storyline of the film project; resume of the proponent/s; two (2) recent photos of proponent/s; and a sample of the work dire...

To date, Cinemalaya has nurtured over 200 Filipino filmmakers and showcased more than 1,000 of their works, including full-feature films, shorts, documentaries, Filipino film classics, and art films. The country’s biggest and pioneering independent film festival has been relentless in developing and supporting the production of independent Filipino films since its founding in 2005, bringing new narratives that reflect the ever-evolving landscape of Filipino cinema each year. Shortly after celebrating its 20th year, Cinemalaya has once again welcomed another batch of filmmakers, giving them the opportunity to articulate and freely interpret the Filipino experience with fresh insight and artistic integrity. With two decades under its belt and many filmmakers propelled to success, we look back at some of the pioneers who helped establish this tradition. “I couldn’t believe I would become a director,” said 2005 Cinemalaya director Michael Angelo Dagñalan. “Joining Cinemalaya opened so many...

  Hot on the success of the recently-concluded Cinemalaya Bente: Loob Lalim Lakas, the Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Cinemalaya Foundation Inc. have already set the artistic stakes even higher with the 10 new full-length finalists who will be competing in the country’s pioneering independent film festival in 2025. For its 21st edition, Cinemalaya will continue to uphold its vision to develop and support the production of cinematic works of Filipino independent filmmakers that boldly articulate and freely interpret the Filipino experience with fresh insight and artistic integrity, with new narratives that embody the ever-evolving landscape of Filipino cinema. The 2025 finalists, culled from the 20 semi-finalists, are still undergoing training at the Cinemalaya Film Lab, a three-month-long film-laboratory mentorship program meant to prime the finalists in the different aspects of filmmaking such as scriptwriting, directing, cinematography, performance, editing, productio...

After its successful run at the Cannes Film Festival, classic Filipino Bona returns home to the Philippines and closes the 20 th edition of the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival on August 1 0, 8:30pm, at the Ayala Malls Manila Bay (Cinema 2, 8, 9, 10).  Directed by National Artist Lino Brocka and written by Cenen Ramones, the film Bona is a story of a middle-class school girl who skips classes to hang around with minor actors on the sets of low-budget films. When her father attempts to beat some sense into her, Bona moves into Gardo’s shack in the slums, delighted to play house–only to find herself not the wife, but the maid. National Artist Nora Aunor played the titular role, along with actors Philip Salvador, Marissa Delgado, Raquel Monteza, Rustica Carpio, Venchito Galvez, Nanding Josef, and Spanky Manikan, introducing the PETA Kalinangan Ensemble. Since its release in 1980, Bona has remained largely unseen until it was rediscovered by University of Illinois profe...

  Award-winning filmmaker Carlos Siguion-Reyna looks forward to revitalizing the country’s independent film industry as the new Competition and Monitoring Committee chairman.  He assumed the position vacated by director Jose Javier Reyes, who is now serving as the new chairman of the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP).  “I have to get into transition mode. Basically, a lot of that is making sure na ma-implement kung ano ‘yung naka-plan for 2024,” said Siguion-Reyna when asked about his first order of business. “Right now, I’m getting to know the landscape of this year’s Cinemalaya Film Festival.” Aside from that, he will run the Cinemalaya Film Lab for 2025, where he will be “guiding the 20 semi-finalists and helping them complete the scripts that would be chosen for next year’s competition.”  His connection to Cinemalaya runs deep. Siguion-Reyna taught a combination of 13 writing and directing courses at the Singapore campus of the New York Universit...

The movie, "ML" has been carefully crafted to narrate the truth in the history. It tells the side of the story and the factors that made the time of Martial Law as a dark era of our nation. Without being bias or partisan, the narrative of the movie explains the weight and the participation of everyone regarding the current situation of our country.  

CINEMALAYA - SHORTS A (2017) FATIMA MARIE TORRES AND THE INVASION OF SPACE SHUTTLE PINAS 25 (Carlo Francisco Manatad, 2017) - ★★★☆☆ Although the title was as subtle as Jason Mraz's Waiting for My Rocket to Come, there were still a lot of funny bits here that kept me erect, er, entertained in my seat.

SPOILER ALERT!! JUANA AND THE SACRED SHORES (Antonne Santiago, 2017) - ★★☆☆☆ Similar to Pina, this dance film was just too artsy for my basic tastes. Kwento ko na lang sa inyo mga bes. So merong long-legged Ate Dyosa na nag-trip magsayaw sa maduming batis. Biglang dumating si Gluta Koya na may dalang santol at more join sa ballet nya.

There’s really no stopping for Jake Cuenca as far as keeping with his passion for self-improvement and acting is concerned. This time, the highly-regarded star is dipping his hands into movie production with the Cinemalaya 2017 finalist Requited, which also stars himself and Anna Luna.

Genre: Drama SYNOPSIS Taklub is a story of three major characters - Bebeth, Larry and Erwin, whose lives intertwine after super typhoon Haiyan left the city of Tacloban in a horrendous state.  They search for the dead while trying desperately to keep their sanity intact, and to protect what little faith may have.

The INDIE NATION Section of Cinemalaya 2015 are newly-minted independent films produced in the Philippines -- with ONE TIME screening each: Here the list of the dates and time of NDIE NATION Section of Cinemalaya 2015

Venue: CCP Main Theater (Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo), Roxas Blvd., Pasay City (NOTE: Schedule in the other theaters in CCP and Greenbelt 3 Cinema is being finalized, to be announced.)