The main competition of the 16th Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, which includes 10 short features from upcoming and celebrated independent filmmakers just recently named its winners today with a virtual awarding that was streamed on Facebook and Kumu, its official streaming partner.

This year is exceptionally historic for its first ever virtual festival as challenged by the ongoing lockdown in most parts of the country. It also exhibits short features as participants of its main competition instead of the usual full-length selection. With its theme of Stream Consciousness, 10 short films vied for six categories to challenge our minds and perception of our environment and experiences.

Cinemalaya was able to sail through with its critically-curated selection that put a spotlight on the short narratives and its impact and wonders that fit in its compact length. Carla Pulido Ocampo’s Tokwifi led this year’s main competition going whome with two wins, including Best Film.

Here are the winners of this year’s main competition:

Best Film: Tokwifi by Carla Pulido Ocampo

Best Direction: Martika Ramirez Escobar, Living Things

NETPAC Jury Prize: Tokwifi by Carla Pulido Ocampo

Special Jury Prize: Ang Pagpakalma sa Unos (To Calm the Pig Inside) by Joanna Vasquez Arong

Best Screenplay: Pabasa Kan Pasyon by Hubert Tibi

Audience Choice: Quing Lalam Ning Aldo (Under the Sun) by Reeden Fajardo

Cinemalaya 16 runs from August 16, 2020. You may still purchase your preferred bundle on Vimeo for as low as P75 to P350 that can include 100+ Full Films, 20+ full length features, 20+ webinars, and more. 

For the full program list, you may visit www.cinemalaya.org