by Boy Villasanta
ABS-CBN News
July 23, 2008

Despite their popular appeal and astounding critical acclaim from viewers, cineastes and ordinary moviegoers, it seems that at least two of this year’s official entries to the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival were snubbed by the jurors.

Two of the most talked about and perhaps highly regarded and predicted as runaway winners in Sunday’s Cinemalaya’s awards night at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil’s “Boses” and Paul Alexander Morales’ “Concerto,” didn’t even receive a single citation.

What were the criteria applied by the board of judges? How did each of the film fare with the jury? How did the eclectic composition of the panel of judges affect the results of the contest?

According to Lito Zulueta, a writer and film critic, each one of the judges was asked to prepare short list of the possible films to be deliberated on.

“Isinama ko ang ‘Boses’ at ‘Concerto.’ Pero sa deliberation, nawala na sila,” confessed Zulueta.

When “Boses” premiered last week, a lot of well-meaning Filipino movie enthusiasts were raving about its excellence in many elements of the film. Even historian and entertainment analyst Nestor U. Torre was all praises for the distinct quality of Ongkeko-Marfil’s creation.

“Boses” is a foray on child abuse as pre-teen mute Onyok, is inflicted pains, physical and otherwise by his father, one of his cruelties is making his back an ashtray, was taken to a youth center which takes care of battered kids until he learns to play the violin and ventilates his youthful angst on music.

“Concerto,” on the other hand, is an epic-like mosaic of the strife between the Japanese soldiers and Filipino guerillas in the outskirt of Davao City during the tail-end of the outbreak of the Second World War but the tension is subdued and solved when a piano concert is held in the yard of a Filipino family.

Was there a common, unified standard applied to judging the bests during the 4th Cinemalaya?

“Of course, the criteria were already there. We just had to see the films and judge them according to our standards,” explained Zulueta, an active member of the Manunuri nf Pelikulang Pilipino.

Aside from Zulueta, other members of the panel of judges were film actor Cesar Montano; Ansgar Vogt, Berlin International Film Festival programmer; Kim Ji-Seok, co-founder and program director of the Pusan International Film Festival and Max Tessier, Asian and Japanese cinema expert and artistic consultant for international film festivals including Cannes Film Festival.

Did the different cultural backgrounds of the jurors also determined their choices?

“In any contest, there are winners and there are losers,” said Tessier, a Frenchman. “I like ‘100’ a lot. It doesn’t look digital. And the overall production is impressive,” he commented.

Just the same, “Jay,” a commentary on digital breakthrough and the media directed by Francis Xavier Pasion, won Best Film. “It rises above the limits of digital technology and examines the role of media in society,” stressed Zulueta.

According to the jury, “’Jay’ was chosen as Best Film for its sheer originality, its energetic story-telling, its mastery of digital technology itself, and its very revealing take on the media and the uses and abuses of the truth…”

Baron Geisler won Best Actor for “Jay.” When he went up the stage, he was leaping in joy but when he read his prepared speech, his voice and body were already trembling. “I dedicate this award to my colleagues in show biz. Mahal na mahal ko ang show biz,” said Baron partly.

Geisler essays the role of a gay broadcast journalist who is faced up with dilemmas in the field.

Mylene Dizon who brought home the Best Actress trophy was ecstatic about her honor. “Gusto kong ihandog ito kay Lord at sa anak ko. Nagpapasalamat ako kay Chris (Martinez, who won Best Director and Best Screenplay) dahil kahit na hindi niya ako masyadong kilala, kinuha niya ako for the role,” she revealed.

Dizon portrays a woman who is coming to terms with death as she is stricken by a terminal cancer.

Pasion confessed he was happy Baron behaved well during the shoot, a comment which elicited awe and laughter from the audience including the giggling Geisler. Later, the director was teary-eyed in his acceptance speech and said he was just a director following instructions from God.

Tara Illenberger, an editor-director, was also emotional in the beginning of her speech but got composed when he dedicated her film, “Brutus,” which won a Special Jury Prize, to the leader of the cultural minorities in Mindoro where the opus was filmed.

Meanwhile, Ongkeko-Marfil accepted the decision of the board of judges with an open mind. “Ganyan lang talaga ang buhay,” she said.