TAIPEI, Taiwan — Marissa “Isay” Baleros never got to see her son receive the award she urged him to chase.

But the short film that won Carl Ivan Baleros the grand prize in Taiwan’s inaugural #FindingTAIWAN Global Short Film Competition carries much of what she wanted for him: to find his place, pursue his dreams and share his story with others who, like him, had once felt lost far from home.

Baleros, 23, won NT$200,000 for his one-minute film, Finding the Beauty of Life in Taiwan, after the competition drew 283 entries from 22 countries.

His mother encouraged him to enter while she was battling cervical cancer.

“Actually, during that, she pushed me to join a competition. My mom was actually battling for cervical cancer,” Baleros told the DAILY TRIBUNE in an interview on 18 August.

For Baleros, the competition was never simply about winning.

His mother had a bigger hope for him — that he would return to Taiwan, continue building his life there and use his experience to reach other international students and immigrants struggling with homesickness and uncertainty.

“And her greatest wish, my mom’s greatest wish for me, is to be in Taiwan and to win this competition,” he said.

She wanted his story to remind people living far from home that they were not alone.

“And also, like, trying to learn things slowly. And also, at the same time, like, all of the struggles, there’s always a brighter day ahead of you,” Baleros said.

It was a message that came from a mother who had spent much of her life putting her children first.

Baleros said his mother had wanted to study business and become an economist but was unable to pursue those plans after having him and his brother.

“So I’m trying to continue and fulfill her dreams,” he said.

That was one reason he chose business administration despite his strong interest in media.

He had been involved in journalism in high school, participating in television and radio broadcasting and dreaming of becoming a news presenter or reporter.

“I get to love it. At first, no, because I’m really into media,” he said of business.

His passion for media eventually found another outlet: filmmaking and content creation.

He began making videos while living abroad, documenting his experiences in the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan. What started as a hobby became something more meaningful as friends encouraged him to keep creating.

“When they told me, ‘Ivan, post more videos because we feel like this is giving us good vibes,’” he recalled.

His mother saw that passion and pushed him to take it further.

Baleros’ mother died on his birthday last year, before the awarding ceremony.

“She passed away on my birthday last year,” he said.

She had been expected to attend after learning that her son had become a finalist.

Baleros said his mother’s condition had improved when she learned the news.

“That’s why I’m forever grateful for MOFA. Because somehow, there’s a silver lining,” he said.

But the silver lining came with a devastating loss.

His mother would not be there to see him receive the recognition she had encouraged him to pursue.

Still, Baleros believes she was there in some way.

“But I really think that she was there during the coronation night,” he said.

The award became intertwined with his grief — and with the promise he had made to his mother.

Her final birthday wish gave him a direction when he was struggling to cope.

“She said that whatever happens, if you win or not win the competition, I wish that you will go back to Taiwan,” Baleros recalled.

“And you will continue your life there because she knows that I feel happy here. That I feel accepted here.”

For Baleros, returning to Taiwan became more than a personal choice.

It became a way of honoring her.

“So, that’s how I coped with the situation. Because at the same time, I fulfilled my last wish for her,” he said.

“And at the same time, I’m fulfilling my dream.”

He booked a flight back to Taiwan soon after her death.

Baleros had arrived in Taiwan carrying the homesickness of a young Filipino far from home. Through friendships with Taiwanese people, he gradually found confidence and a sense of belonging.

That transformation became the heart of his winning film.

His story was no longer simply about discovering Taiwan.

It was about discovering himself.

And behind that journey was a mother who continued to believe in him even while confronting her own illness.

Asked what he likes most about Taiwan, Baleros did not mention its food or tourist destinations.

“First is the people,” he said.

The people, he explained, were the ones who made his experience meaningful during his time as an exchange student.

For Baleros, that sense of acceptance was precisely what his mother wanted him to find.

She wanted him to return to the place where he felt happy. She wanted him to continue his life. And she wanted his story to tell others that being far from home did not mean being alone.

His mother did not live to see the film win.

But her voice remains in the story.

And every step Baleros takes in Taiwan now carries with it the final wish of the woman who first told him to take that step.