‘Filipinana,’ ‘The Remotes’ Win Top Prizes at QCinema Project Market in The Philippines – Global Bulletin

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The QCinema Project Market, the industry initiative that accompanies The Philippines’ QCinema International Film Festival, revealed its winners list on Tuesday delivering almost $500,000 of grants and in-kind support. The prizes followed a two-day networking and pitching event on Nov. 18 and 19 for 19 feature-length fiction film projects from Southeast Asia.

Two projects received the QCinema Project Market – Philippines Co-production Grant, with both collecting $55,000 (PHP3 million). They were: “The Remotes” from director-producer John Torres; and “Filipiñana,” by director Rafael Manuel. “Filipinana,” a black comedy set on a golf course, won a second prize on the night worth another $18,000.

At the recent Asian Project Market in Busan it had also been a multiple prize winner. Two film projects also received the QCinema Project Market – Philippines Co-production Grant worth $27,000 (PHP1.5 million) each: “The Boy and the Fight of Spiders (Diwalwal)” by director Jarell Serencio and “Ella Arcangel: Ballad of Tooth and Claw” an adaptation of the comic book series of the same name, by director Mervin Malonzo. It was the only animation project in the roster.

QCinema Project Market – Southeast Asia Co-production Grant worth $35,000 each was given to “The Sea is Calm Tonight” by Vietnamese director Le Bao and two film projects from Singapore — “The Drought” and “Trinity” from directors Nelson Yeo and Boo Junfeng, respectively. “The Sea is Calm Tonight” won two further awards at QCinema: one providing color grading support, the other worth $9,000. “QCinema Project Market has been met with warm welcome and overwhelming interest from the country and the region and we hope to be able to continue this as an annual integral program inside QCinema,” said QCinema artistic director Ed Lejano.

Animal hospital series, “For the Love of Pets” has been licensed by National Geographic for broadcast in the U.S. The network has picked up both seasons in a license deal with Escapade Media. The Context Media series is narrated by Australian star Jai Courtney and recently started its second season on the country’s Nine Network.