TWO faculty members of the Mariano Marcos State University bagged multiple awards in the Tan-ok ni Ilocano Film Festival 2023 held on February 24 at the Ferdinand E. Marcos Stadium.

Melver Ritz Gomez of the College of Arts and Sciences and Dr. Romel Pascua of the College of Teacher Education partcipated in the short narrative and short documentary categories, respectively.

Gomez and his team bagged the best picture, best director awards, as well as best cinematography, scoring, screenplay, and editing trophies. The short film narrates the story of Tisang who deals with her past and searches for answers about her karkarma or second soul.

Analiza Ponce, who played the main character, also got the best actress award.

Pascua and his team from Lamina Production won the best director for the film “Aweng.” It was also awarded the best scoring, cinematography, and documentary.

The movie provided insight into the age-old practice of calling farmers to work using a “tangguyob”, a trumpet made of carabao horn, and an antique drum made of cow skin.