MANILA – iflix, Southeast Asia’s leading Internet TV service, offering subscribers unlimited access to tens of thousands of hours of entertainment for a low monthly price, is thrilled to host #madeINDIEphilippines, an exciting independent film industry showcase and forum, featuring the country’s most acclaimed distinguished industry players.
#madeINDIEphilippines, held recently at Black Market, welcomed hundreds of influencers, media, and indie enthusiasts to the event’s panel discussion featuring a multitude of the country’s top film makers, producers and distributors – Sigrid Andrea Bernardo, Victor Villanueva, Sari Dalena, Armi Cacanindin, Wincy Ong, Albert Almendralejo, Mark Meily, and Bianca Balbuena. Attendees also enjoyed performances by renowned movie scorers and indie musicians Mikey Amistoso of Ciudad, Jazz Nicolas of Itchyworms, and BP Valenzuela, as well as a live DJ set by The Diegos.
Featuring an in-depth discussion of the future and direction of Philippine independent cinema, #madeINDIEphilippines is a testament of to iflix’s commitment to support the independent film industry by providing local filmmakers and distributors a new, dynamic platform to showcase their films.
With the largest library of Philippine independent cinema available in the region, iflix offers members many highly sought after award-winning independent film titles including Ang Kwento ni Mabuti, Ang Huling Cha Cha ni Anita, Dagitab, Thy Womb, and Kinatay to name a few.
Quark Henares, Head of Production and Development for iflix Philippines, commented: “We are thrilled to showcase so many internationally-acclaimed, masterpiece films to our Filipino audiences. This is yet another testament of our commitment to bring the best in Philippine independent cinema to a global audience.” In addition, he stated that iflix now carries a library of over 50 #madeIndiePhilippines films.
For his part, director Mark Meily said the move will bring the best Pinoy films to the world. Meily’s first film, Crying Ladies, won the 2003 Best Picture at the Metro Manila Film Festival and was the Philippines’ official entry to the 2005 Oscar Awards. His third film, Baler, was shown at New York’s MoMA. His work has won numerous awards in the field of Television, Film and Advertising. “A filmmaker’s aspiration is to have the biggest audience possible,” Meily noted. “It is timely. I am grateful that our films are being given a chance to be seen by more people.”
The forum disclosed issues on the new ruling of the Metro Manila Film Festival to include creative excellence in the judging for the festival’s finest. Currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Film at the New York University under a Fulbright-Hayes scholarship, Sari Delena remarked, “Lumaki tayo lahat sa MMFF. It’s a refreshing change, with a criteria for creative excellence. I am for this change. The challenge is to stick to the criteria.”
Meanwhile, one of the local film world’s leading producers, Bianca Balbuena, made a call for more producers and good marketing teams to support the indie film industry.
Now available in Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines, iflix will continue to roll out its world-class service to additional key Southeast Asian markets in the coming months. With over 1 million members in the region, iflix offers consumers the largest library of top Hollywood, Asian regional, and local TV shows and movies available in Southeast Asia. Each subscription allows users to access the service on up to five devices including phones, laptops, tablets, and television sets, for viewing wherever, whenever. iflix subscribers can also download TV shows and movies from iflix’s extensive library for offline viewing. The service is priced at only PHP 129 per month in the Philippines for unlimited access with no ads!
For new subscribers, iflix offers a complimentary 30-day trial with dull access to its world-class service, features and content, with no credit card or payment details required. Go to www.iflix.com to register.
