Bets hedged on arts

After an arduous screening process, eight finalists earned a 3-million production grant and the chance to showcase their masterpieces at the 2025 Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival.

The lineup of filmmakers for the 2025 Puregold CinePanalo includes “Co-love” by Jill Singson Urdaneta; “Fleeting,” Catsi Catalan; “Food Delivery,” Baby Ruth Villarama; “Journeyman,” Christian Paolo Lat; “Olsen’s Day,” JP Habac; “Perlas sa Silangan,” TM Malones; “Sepak Takraw,” Mes de Guzman; and “Tagsibol,” Tara Illenberger.

While the number of finalists for the festival was initially limited to seven, the selection committee found that the superior quality of the entries warranted the inclusion of one more finalist, and thereby one more recipient of the P3-million grant.

This decision was fully supported by Puregold and its President Vincent Co, who deem the CinePanalo Film Festival as an avenue for bolstering the growth of Philippine cinema.

“Giving the opportunity to eight full-length stories to be official entries in Puregold CinePanalo 2025 is a reflection of the significant talent and craftsmanship of Filipino filmmakers,” said Co.

“We are committed to showcasing the vision of these young directors. And we are confident that supporting their films will enrich Philippine cinema.”

The inclusion of an eighth entry may also be credited to the Festival’s partners, including CMB Film Services Inc., Terminal Six Post, Mowelfund Film Institute, the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board, and Gateway Cinemas, where the eight films will debut.

To be selected, each filmmaker had to compete against multiple applicants from all across the country. Following the initial screening, sixteen filmmakers were selected to go through a face-to-face pitch.

From this choice list, only half were chosen to participate in the second-ever Puregold CinePanalo.

“These applicants went through a tough selection process,” said Puregold senior marketing manager Ivy Hayagan-Piedad.

“Just getting this far in the film festival is a testament to their dedication to their craft and to the brilliance of their ideas.”

Hayagan-Piedad was one of the six that comprised the selection committee, which included festival director Chris Cahilig, renowned directors Jeffrey Jeturian and Emmanuel Dela Cruz, and representatives of Republic Creative Creations Inc. Sonny Bautista and Lyle Gonzales.

 “Last year’s Puregold CinePanalo was a massive success and sent this festival on the road to becoming one of the country’s most prestigious film competitions,” said Cahilig. “This drove us to be incredibly meticulous in choosing which films to display in next year’s festival. The Puregold CinePanalo is here to tout only the best that Filipino filmmaking offers.”

The eight feature films will now have the chance to compete for the Puregold CinePanalo’s selection of awards.

Apart from the awards at the CinePanalo event proper, the eight films now have one more platform in which to display their films on the world stage.

Alongside the eight features, Puregold CinePanalo 2025 will also hold its student shorts competition. Twenty-five student filmmakers will receive a grant of P150,000 each to create their film project for the world to see.

The films will be screened at the 2025 Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival, which is set to run in Gateway Cinemas in March next year.