QCinema unveils a wide lineup of films for its sixth year

A Japanese film that took the grand prize at the Cannes Film Festival takes the spotlight in the sixth edition of the QCinema International Film Festival (QCinema).

The Quezon City film festival opens its first day with Hirokazu Kore-eda's Palme d’Or-winning “Shoplifters,” which tells the story of a family of criminals scraping a living in downtown Tokyo. Their story takes an interesting turn when they adopt a little girl despite their impoverished livelihood.

As part of the Halloween celebration, “Piercing,” which stars Christopher Abbott and Mia Wasikowska, will be the closing film to end the ten-day festival in spooky fashion. It tells of a man who checks himself into a hotel room to accomplish his long-time dream—executing a perfect murder.

QCinema offers over 40 films worldwide ranging from award-winning films to fresh stories from emerging filmmakers.

Competition section

QCinema's Circle Competition is the section for independent features from new and seasoned homegrown storytellers where select films are given production grants of P1.5 million each.

Films that were given grants are Samantha Lee’s “Billie & Emma,” Timmy Harn’s “DOG DAYS,” Dan Villegas’ “Hintayan ng Langit,” Gutierrez Mangansakan II’s “Masla A Papanok,” and Dwein Baltazar’s “Oda sa Wala” that focus on the intricacies of life, love, and history.

Among the new features to be showcased at the Asian Next Wave section are Yeo Siew Hua’s “A Land Imagined,” which won the Golden Leopard Award for best film at the Locarno International Film Festival; Bi Gan’s “Long Day Journey Into Night,” which won the ICS Cannes Award and will be shown in 3D in select establishments; Anoocha Boonyawatana’s “Malila: The Farewell Flower,” Huang Hsin-yao’s “The Great Buddha+,” Ashleigh Mayfair’s “The Third Wife,” and Kamila Andini’s “The Seen and Unseen,” which won the Tokyo Filmex Grand Prize.

In sponsorship with the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), QCinema will also give visibility to noteworthy cinematic craftsmanship with a wide array of LGBT international films for its RainbowQC section. Among the featured films are Filipe Matzembacher and Marcio Reolon’s “Tinta Bruta,” John Tengrove’s “The Wound,” Marcelo Martinessi’s “The Heiresses,” Christophe Honoré’s “Sorry Angel,” Yann Gonzales’ “Knife + Heart,” and Yen Tan’s “1985.”

Non-competition section

Documentary films “All Grown Up” from Wena Sanchez and “Pag-ukit sa Paniniwala” from Hiyas Baldemor Bagabaldo will comprise the lineup of festival's documentary section, DocQC. The section also provided seed grants of P300,000 to the filmmakers.

Several critically acclaimed films worldwide will be showcased in the Screen International section.

The lineup includes Lee Chang-dong’s “Burning,” which won the 2018 FIPRESCI Award at Cannes;  Agnés Varda and JR’s “Faces Places”; Gaspar Noé’s “Climax,” where Noé won the biggest prize at Cannes’ 2018 Directors’ Fortnight, the C.I.C.A.E. Award; Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Cold War,” where Pawslikowski won 2018 Best Director at Cannes; and Phuttiphong Aroonpheng’s “Manta Ray,” which won the 2018 Best Film at Venice Horizons.

Iconic films of the 70’s and 80’s which have been digitally restored will be shown in the Digitally Remastered section. Among the highlights are Bob Fosse’s “All That Jazz,” Herbert Ross’ “Footloose,” and John Badham’s “Saturday Night Fever.”

QCinema pays tribute to the richness of French cinema by highlighting memorable titles in the French Classics section, including Henri-Georges Clouzot’s “Diabolique,” Roger Vadim’s “And God Created Woman,” and Pierre Rissient’s “Five and the Skin.”

Five films from China, Austria, France, and Denmark, and Japan will take a spotlight at the Special Screenings section The five films featured are “Elephant Lying Still” by Hu Bo, “Ala Changso” by Sonthar Gyal, “Tomcat” by Klaus Händl, “La Priére” by Cédric Kahn, and “Come On, Irene” by Keisuka Yoshida.

The festival also has a free screening that will feature children’s films from Denmark. They will include Ask Hasselbach’s “Antboy,” Renée Simonsen’s “Karla’s World,” and Esben Toft Jacobsen’s “The Great Bear.”

Festival screenings

QCinema will run from October 21 to 30, 2018, at Gateway Mall (Cineplex 10); Robinsons Galleria (Robinsons Movieworld); and Ayala Malls Cinema in Trinoma and UP Town Center. Local screenings will run from October 24 to 30, 2018 at SM Fairview, SM Megamall, SM Manila, and SM Southmall.

QCinema is the official film festival of Quezon City, touted as the “City of the Stars.” It was established in 2013 by the Quezon City Film Development Commission (QCFDC) helmed by Mayor Herbert Bautista and Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte.

Since its humble beginnings in 2013, QCinema has grown bigger, gaining traction in local and international film circuits for its roster of film entries. In 2017, it was recognized as one of the best film festivals in the country.

For more information, visit qcinema.ph.

Press release from QCinema