“Tonton” won Best Picture while “Tililing” bagged the most number of awards at the closing event of the 2nd Bacolod Film Festival held at SM City Bacolod Cinema 1 Saturday night.
The local film competition, held Nov. 27 to 29, highlights the exceptional filmmaking talents emerging from Bacolod City and Negros Island Region.
“Tonton,” directed by Charlene Tupas, is a short film about a woman who runs a roadside eatery where each day feels like a repeat of the last, while her partner, Tonton, lingers around her like a draining shadow.
It bested seven other short films and took home three other awards — Best Actress (Maria Victoria Mendoza), Best Cinematography (Giles Gelvoleo) and Best Production Design (Rowena Tupas).
Dranreb Cimatu was awarded Best Director for “Tililing” which features a group of friends meeting at Bacolod Public Plaza for a casual outing and found their joyful plans shattered by a sudden scream.
“Tililing” also won Best Screenplay (Kiefer Occeño), Best Supporting Actress (Errol Filoteo), Best Costume Design (Zabiel Nemenzo), Best Make-up (Swoop Diaz) and Audience Choice Award.
The Jury’s Choice Award went to “Tuyaw Alisbong,” a musical drama set in the searing farmlands of Negros, while the Jury’s Special Award for Best in Ensemble Acting was given to “Balay Alibangbang,” a story of four boys in the crowded streets and narrow alleys of Bacolod, surviving on wits, scraps, instinct and brotherhood.
Other awards were Best Actor Oliver Villavert (“We Can Really Only Ever Be One”), Best Supporting Actor Aladin Dato (“Tuyaw Alisbong”), Best Original Story “Bagong Bayan” (Balay Bantala Films), Best Editing Aldwin Juson (“We Can Really Only Ever Be One”), Best Musical Score Lex Chavez (“Tuyaw Alisbong”), Best Sound Jay Baluno (“We Can Really Only Ever Be One”), and Best Special Effects “Bagong Bayan” (Balay Bantala Films).
Mayor Greg Gasataya, who chairs the Bacolod Film Festival Council, reaffirmed the city’s commitment and support in nurturing the local film industry.
“The city is assuring you that the support will continue next year and for the years to come to ensure that in the fourth quarter of every year, the Bacolod Film Festival will be the destination of film enthusiasts, filmmakers and those from the creative industry of Bacolod,” he said in his message.
For three days, the eight films, produced under the theme “Panan-aw: Local Frames, Global Change,” were screened in two malls.
This year’s jury is composed of Chris Millado, founder and festival director of Cinemalaya; Katrina Ross Tan, a filmmaker and educator who established the Makiling Film Lab and pelikuLAB; Rolando Tolentino, cultural studies scholar, film critic and member of Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino; Tito Valiente, public anthropologist, film critic and former chair of Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino; and Butch Ibañez, film producer and general manager of Solar Films.
The Bacolod Film Festival 2025 is supported by institutional partners Negros Cultural Foundation, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Film Development Council of the Philippines, Movie and Television Review and Classification Board and House of Representatives. | PNA
