6 Pinoy films in 19th Far East Film Festival in Italy

MANILA, Philippines - Three indie films — Die Beautiful by Jun Lana, Mercury is Mine by Jason Paul Laxamana and Seklusyon by Erik Matti — are competing in the 19th Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy, April 21 to 29.

Die Beautiful stars Paolo Ballesteros (Best Actor in the 29th Tokyo International Film Festival and 42nd Metro Manila Film Festival). Pokwang and Bret Jackson topbill Mercury is Mine (winner of Special Jury Prize and Best Screenplay in the 12th Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival). Seklusyon won eight awards in the 42nd Metro Manila Film Festival, including Special Jury Prize for its lead star Rhed Bustamante and Best Director for Matti.

Fifty four other Asian films are in competition: Cambodia (1), China (6), Hong Kong/China (3), Hong Kong (7), Indonesia (1), Laos (1), Japan (13), Malaysia (1), South Korea (13), Taiwan (4), Thailand (3) and Vietnam (1).

In the Restored Classics Section, three films from the so-called second Golden Age Era of Philippine Cinema will be showcased: Mario O’Hara’s Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos (1976, starring Nora Aunor, Christopher de Leon and Bembol Roco); Mike de Leon’s Kung Mangarap Ka’t Magising (1977, starring Hilda Koronel and Christopher de Leon); and Lino Brocka’s Cain at Abel (1982, starring Christopher de Leon and Philip Salvador).

The three classics films were re-mastered and restored by ABS-CBN Film Restoration Project team in 2016 and were premiered in Cinema One Originals, REELive the Classics and Cinemalaya, respectively, also last year.