“THE DIPLOMAT HOTEL” - Written and Directed by:
Christopher Ad Castillo. Gretchen Barretto plays a reporter, Victoria Lansang, who gets disgraced when a hostage situation she is mediating in ends horribly on national TV. She now seeks to redeem her reputation by leading her documentary crew to spend one night and tell the story of what really happened at the haunted and mysterious Diplomat Hotel in Baguio City. Joel Torre plays the faith healer-cum-cult leader who used to own the hotel and who Gretchen interviews. Ad. Castillo, son of the late Director Celso Ad. Castillo, says his film tackles the “horror of the human psyche” and likewise aims to be a commentary about mass media where “people are quickly dispensable.” Also in the cast are Art Acuña, Mon Confiado, Alvin Anson, Sue Prado, Chanel de la Torre, Nico Antonio, Abe Pagtama, and introducing Sarah Gaugler.
“NUWEBE” - Written and Directed by Joseph Israel Laban, he got the idea from a documentary he did for GMA News TV's Front Row. The film is told in docu style, about one of the youngest mothers in Philippine history, Krista (played by child actress Barbara Miguel). At the age of 9 got pregnant from the repeated sexual abuse of her own father Moises (Jake Cuenca), giving birth when she was only 10 years old. A case of a child begetting a child, there’s even a scene in the movie showing her going into labor and giving birth. Krista shows a level of resilience not common for someone so young. She even refuses to see herself as a victim. Her mother Dolores (Nadine Samonte) is torn between her love for her child and her love for her husband, as she couldn’t believe her own husband abused their child who’s not even a teenager yet. She even brought the girl to a faith healer, Loleng (Anita Linda), and thought she’s just possessed by an evil spirit.
“TRANSIT” - Written and directed by Hannah Espia, this is about Filipino OFW’s who learn that their children are about to be deported to the Philippines by the Israeli government. Ping Medina is Moises, a Filipino single parent who works as a caregiver in Herzliya, Israel. On his son’s 4th birthday (Mark Justine Alvarez), together with their Filipino neighbors, Janet (Irma Adlawan) and her daughter Yael (Jasmine Curtis Smith), they learn that children of foreign workers will be deported. Afraid of this new law, Moises and Janet decide to hide their children from the immigration police by making them stay inside their house all day. Shot on location in Tel Aviv, Israel, the movie also employs Israeli actors to play some important parts in the story.
“REKORDER” - Written by Mikhail Red and Ian Victoriano, directed by Mikhail Red, this is the story of a former 1980's film cameraman (played by Ronnie Quizon) who lost his job and has become a movie pirate. He routinely smuggles a digital camcorder into movie theaters in order to illegally record films. One night he records something controversial. The footage goes viral and he becomes the target of a cat and mouse chase. Mikhail Red, the son of veteran filmmaker Raymond Red, incorporates different forms of the digital medium and “found footage” for the movie. It features shifting perspectives from the handheld video camera of the main character to cell phone video from bystanders, to laptop webcam shots, to the various internet viral videos that will be shown as part of the film’s story, and even shots from security surveillance. Also in the cast are Earl Ignacio as Ronnie’s employer, child star Belinda Mariano as Ronnie’s daughter, plus Suzette Ranillo, Mike Lloren, Abe Pagtama and Joe Gruta.
“BABAGWA (THE SPIDER'S LAIR)” - Written and directed by Jason Paul Laxamana who previously directed “Astro Mayabang”, this is about the web of lies that scheming people create in order to deceive unsuspecting victims in social media. It stars Alex Medina (“Palitan”) as Greg, an internet scammer who tricks people into depositing money into his bank account. He uses a fake Facebook profile with the picture of Bam (Kiko Matos). Greg flirts with a filthy rich woman, Daisy (Alma Concepcion), whom he meets online with the intention of swindling her. But he falls in love with her and is caught in a dilemma: would he still proceed with his scam or would he admit his true feelings for Daisy? Set in Angeles, Pampanga, the characters all speak in Kapampangan, with English subtitles. The movie also stars Joey Paras, Nico Antonio, Chanel Latorre, Garry Lim, Raqs Regalado, Marx Topacio, and Sunshine Teodoro
“QUICK CHANGE” - Written and directed by Eduardo Roy Jr. of “Bahay Bata”, he got the idea for his film while attending the wake of a transgender who died because of a collagen procedure that went horribly wrong. This is the story of Dorina (Mimi Juareza) who believes she is a woman imprisoned in a man’s body. She’s got herself a flourishing career in an illegal cosmetic surgery business. She becomes aware of the dangers of this trade when her colleague, Mamu (Felipe Martinez), is arrested for killing a transgender due to a botched cosmetic procedure. She is a mother figure to Hero (Migs Cuaderno), her eight year old nephew. She acts as a devoted wife to Uno (Junjun Quintana.) Between her job and her family, Dorina feels that she is one lucky woman. Until Uno falls in love with another transvestite (Francine Garcia.)
PUROK 7” - Written and directed by Carlo Obispo, this is a dramedy (drama-comedy) set in the countryside. It follows 14-year-old Diana (Krystel Valentino) and her younger brother (Migs Cuaderno) who live by themselves after their mother went abroad and their father (Arnold Reyes) abandoned them for another woman. Shot in a remote purok in Tarlac, where people display a positive outlook in life despite daily struggles, the film features the lighter side of “probinsiya” lifestyle as the main characters take advantage of the fun and thrills of the town fiesta. Obispo based the story on his own experiences and the characters on actual people he grew up with in Purok Siyete in Tarlac. Also in the cast are Angeli Bayani, Julian Trono, Jean Judith Javier, Carlon Matobato, Olive Nieto, Karen Haniel, Max Celada, Aaron Ching, and Sheenly Gener.
"DAVID F." - Directed by Emmanuel Quindo Palo, scripted by Palo with Liza Magtoto. It’s a fictionalized account of an African-American soldier, David Fagan, a member of the American regimen in the Filipino-American war in the early 1900s who deserted the U.S. troops and sided with Filipino revolutionaries. It spans three generations starting with the black American who sided with the Filipinos during the Fil-Am war. Sid Lucero and Art Acuña play the two Filipinos who will try to recapture Fagan to get the $600 reward money offered by the U.S. authorities. Eula Valdes plays the Filipina who married Fagan. The second story is set in the Japanese period during World War II with Rocky Salumbides playing a guerrilla. The third story is set in the present in Angeles City, with gay comedy bar singer-comedian Dax Martin trying to find his African-American soldier father who abandoned him. Mitch Valdes plays a prostitute and Will Devaughn plays another Fil-Am.
"DEBOSYON" - Written and directed by Alvin Yapan who did the award-winning “Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa”. Paulo Avelino plays Mando, a Bicolano devotee of Ina, Virgin of Peñafrancia, who injures himself while serving in the procession for the Blessed Virgin. He is nursed back to health by a mysterious woman, Salome, living at the foot of Mount Mayon. They fall in love with each other and Mando asks Salome to live with him in the town, but Salome holds a deadly secret (she has a twin snake) while Mando relies on his devotion to the Virgin of Peñafrancia to lift a curse that involves his life.
"INSTANT MOMMY" - Written and directed by Leo Abaya. This is the story of Bechayda (Eugene Domingo), a wardrobe assistant in the shooting of TV commercials who pretends to be pregnant so that her Japanese fiancé won’t leave her. Hollywood-based actor Yuki Matsuzaki plays Kaeru San, a 40-something Japanese businessman who is the love interest of Bechayda. He was previously seen in period films such as The Last Samurai (2003) and Letters From Iwo Jima (2006). Complications occur when Kaeru San discovers that Bechayda is just faking her pregnancy. The movie also stars Luis Alandy as the ex-boyfriend of Bechayda and Rico J. Puno as her father. Also in the cast are Archie Alemania, Shamaine Buencamino-Centenera, Nico Antonio, Tuesday Vargas, Matt Evans and Alchris Galura.
