A locally-produced short film “Buding, Ang Babayi Mga Naglutaw (Buding, The Woman who Floated)” won the first Jury Prize in the Bamasa Film Festival Stories of the Islands during the closing and awarding ceremonies on Nov. 7.
“For its playful, humorous and magical dissection of truth, time and perception through the filmic language rendered with technical polish and spirited performances, the jury prize of Bamasa Film Festival 2020 is awarded to Buding,” the citation read.
“The Film truly examines and critiques the art of storytelling, that sometimes it reveals more about ourselves than the truth we attempt,” it added.
“Buding” director Mark L. Garcia, on his Facebook post, said he is surprised and humbled by this latest blessing.
“This is for all the cast, production staff, family, and friends who continued supporting our film,” he said.
“Buding” is about three persons who reported to a police station and claimed to have seen a woman floating in the sea. All scenes in the film were shot in Sagay City.
Garcia said their version of the story dissects the peculiar case with different angles, starting from what happened before Buding was seen “floating”.
“It started with just a simple dream, and now it’s taking us to different places (virtually because of COVID). It’s been wonderful and heartwarming,” Garcia said as he shared the award to all aspiring filmmakers.
“Thank you so much Bamasa Film Festival! Let’s keep on believing in the stories from the regions,” Garcia added.
Bamasa is a film festival in Bantayan Island. It is an avenue for quality films to be screened and appreciated by all through its annual thematic programming. The festival is presented by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Film Development Council of the Philippines, and Studio Evision. – CGC
