MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Now on its 18th installment, Piling Obrang Vidyo (POV) of University of the Philippines (UP) Cinema comes back as an intercollegiate film competition featuring both new and recognized short films by various student filmmakers. Encouraging the youth to connect with the community through powerful audio-visual storytelling has always been the goal of the student film festival. Hence it has expanded its celebration of student filmmaking through its new program called Pelikolektibo, an alternative film school.
Amidst the restriction of the pandemic, POV XVIII embraces the theme, “Sa Lansangan,” that recalls the significant space that normally empowered the youth to form and share Filipino narratives that serve and inspire.
There will be 15 short film finalists with different genres. These shortlisted pictures by the festival’s special committee would be reviewed by an esteemed board of judges which include Jason Tan Liwag (film critic), Therese Malvar (actress), Carla Pulido Ocampo (filmmaker), and Ligaya Villablanca (filmmaker).
The select films will not be exhibited on the big screen like usual, but it will bring these student short films online for free as a response to the limitation and challenges of traditional film viewing in theatre spaces and to issues of access that troubles Philippine cinema.
The finalists will compete for major and special awards such as Piling Obrang Vidyo (Best Film), Best Direction, Best Production Design, Best Performance, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Design, Best Editing, and Best Music among others.
The winning films of major awards will receive trophies, certificates, and cash prizes amounting to Php 15,000.
Piling Obrang Vidyo XVIII is an online film festival showcasing a one-week intercollegiate film competition from Mar. 12-18, 2022, and a high school virtual film camp that runs weekly from February to April 2022.
The short films of POV will be screened online and available for free via MOOV of Cinema Centenario, while Pelikolektibo conducts its workshop series for the selected high school students within the organization.
UP Cinema invites the public to the 18th Piling Obrang Vidyo Film Festival and to join the festival’s Discord Server to get direct updates and interact with the film community.
Piling Obrang Vidyo XVIII is sponsored by MOOV of Cinema Centenario, UP Diliman – Office for Initiatives in Culture and the Arts (UPD-OICA), Witty Will Save The World, Co., Bellfrei Spa, Gardenia, Project 8 Projects, and TBA Studios.
Its organization partners include Dakila, FEU Film Society, Mapúa •MOVE, PLM Independent Film and Arts, Sinepanghalina, UP Cebu Tug-Ani, Ateneo Film Society, Benildean Film Works, Thomasian Film Society, UP College of Arts and Letters – Freshie, Shiftee, and Transferee Council (UP CAL FSTC), UP College of Mass Communication – Freshie, Shiftee, and Transferee Council (UP CMC FSTC), Cinema ’76 Cafe, Cinema ’76 Film Society, Mapúa University Senior High School Student Council (Mapúa SHSSC), UP Diliman – University Freshie Council (UPD UFC), and UP School of Economics Student Council (UP SESC).
Piling Obrang Vidyo is presented by UP Cinema, a student film organization based in the College of Mass Communication of the University of the Philippines Diliman that promotes progressive and alternative cinematic practices in various film disciplines such as filmmaking, film appreciation, and film criticism.
This year’s POV media partners include adobo magazine, Archers Network, Asian Film Festivals, Benildean Press Corps, BLOG-PH.COM, Klik Media Group, Radyo Katipunan (New Wave), Sine Liwanag, and UPD Kalasag.
For more information, visit Piling Obrang Vidyo’s official Facebook page or follow them on Twitter and Instagram
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