'Immigrants and Cigarettes' featuring Fil-Aussie named best film in Korean awards

A short film — “Immigrants and Cigarettes” — featuring Filipino-Australian actor Felino Dolloso recently won the best film award at the "Korean Film Festival" in Sydney, Australia.

 

Directed by Mike Kang, the movie tells the story of a cleaner (Dolloso) at a migrant resource

center who makes it his mission to help out other minorities, only to end up being tired of them.

 

One of the more visible Asian faces in Australian television, theater, and film, Dolloso was born in the Philippines and migrated to Australia as a child.

 

“Being Filipino or Asian is a positive for me. I’d like to think I didn’t get an acting role because of my skill, so it drives me more to work harder on improving as an actor,” Dolloso said in an e-mail interview with GMA News Online.

 

Another Dolloso film and directed by Kang, “It’s About Survival,” will be shown at Australia’s

Colourfest Film Festival next month. The movie is about Chip, a middle-aged office jock who is reunited with his estranged gay son. Chip despises his son’s sexuality and attempts to beat homosexuality out of him.

 

Started in 2010 by Gary Paramanathan as an alternative film event Colourfest is an annual

multicultural film festival that focuses on culturally diverse stories. It aims to challenge the negative portrayals and stereotypes in Australian television and film by showing “more authentic and inclusive” images of the country’s culturally diverse population.

 

“It’s About Survival” is one of 12 short films that will be screened on these venues and dates: