120 film workers inoculated vs COVID-19 so far, MMDA’s Abalos says

A total of 120 workers in the entertainment industry have been vaccinated against COVID-19 after the pandemic aggravated the film industry, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said Monday.

This was after MMDA, which organizes the Metro Manila Film Festival, partnered with the Movie Workers Welfare Foundation (MOWELFUND) for the COVID-19 immunization program of movie industry workers. MOWELFUND is a non-government organization serving marginalized members of the movie industry.

"Most of them are working behind the camera, those assisting in lighting, scriptwriters and also most of them are included in the A1, A2, and A3 category," MMDA chairman Benhur Abalos Jr. said in a mix of Filipino and English during the Laging Handa briefing.

"It is difficult for this industry because over one and a half years, movie houses are closed during the pandemic and we want to help them recover," he added.

Celebrities and entertainment workers are included in the government's A4 priority group for vaccination or economic frontliners.

In a previous statement, MMDA said around 300,000 film industry workers were directly affected by the pandemic.

"These include producers, cinemas, theater employees, ticket sellers, etc. However, if we include other businesses which are dependent on the movie industry, the total number of individuals affected stands at 500,000,” MMDA said. — Consuelo Marquez/RSJ, GMA News