American film and entertainment studio Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. has partnered with Filipino company Mentorque Productions to enter the local film market — with an P80-million movie about the country's first-ever documented serial killer as their opening salvo. 

Warner Bros. and Mentorque Productions formally signed an agreement for the official distribution of "Mallari" over the weekend. 

The film, which stars Filipino actor Piolo Pascual, is based on the true story of Fr. Severino Mallari, who is considered the country's first and only serial killer. It is one of the official entries in this year's Metro Manila Film Festival.

Opportunities open

"We would like to explore more because we know Warner Bros. can open opportunities for Philippine cinema. We have a lot of aligned projects. If we will release capital, we will do it with the number one distributor.

Hopefully, the time will come for possible co-production," Mentorque Productions president John Bryan Diamante said. 

"Warner Bros. is very particular on their standard, and they have rules. To keep up with that, somehow we have to spend more. The film itself cost us P80 million," he added. 

Along with local film distribution, Warner and Mentorque are exploring paths to Warner distributing Filipino films to the Asian region, collaborations in streaming, and further along the game, the possibility of co-productions. 

The last time Warner Bros. attempted to distribute locally was a limited release of an indie film in 2003.

For now, Warner Bros. Distribution director Rico Gonzales said the company is open to expanding its partnership with more industry players, but for now, this "is the first and exclusive partnership with Mentorque."