Popular directors have entered the chat!

MANILA -- Baby Ruth Villarama (“Sunday Beauty Queen”), Julius Alfonso (“Deadma Walking”), JP Habac (“I’m Drunk, I Love You”), and Rod Marmol (“Cuddle Weather”) were shortlisted from 141 entries for the Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival.

Only seven of the established and emerging filmmakers that made the shortlist will be featured officially in the festival, and will each get a P3,000,000 Puregold production grant.

"We are very impressed with the diverse range of film entries we've received for the full-length category,” said Puregold president Vincent Co.

He added, “Our Selection Committee managed to curate an inspiring shortlist of projects that promise to captivate and provoke deep thought. We look forward to showcasing these remarkable ‘panalo’ stories and celebrating the unique perspectives they bring to the Puregold CinePanalo Film Festival.”

The 16 shortlisted projects and their respective directors are:

• • “Ahon,” Rafael Mina
• • “Co-love,” Jill Singson Urdaneta
• • “Dopamine,” Sigrid Polon
• • “Fleeting,” Catsi Catalan
• • “Food Delivery,” Baby Ruth Villarama
• • “Journeyman,” Christian Paolo Lat & Dominic Lat
• • “Olsen’s Day,” JP Habac
• • “Perlas sa Silangan,” TM Malones
• • “Princess Maryam,” Julius Alfonso & Eric Cabahug
• • “Reel Boyz,” Rod Marmol
• • “Sepak Takraw,” Mes De Guzman
• • “Si Sol at si Luna,” Dolly Dulu
• • “Stuck on You,” Reeden Fajardo
• • “Tagsibol,” Tara Illenberger
• • “Waiting Shed,” Noel Escondo
• • “Washing Machine,” BC Amparado

The official Selection Committee of the festival, which included Ivy Hayagan-Piedad, senior marketing manager of Puregold, festival director Chris Cahilig, well-known directors Jeffrey Jeturian and Emmanuel dela Cruz, and Lyle Gonzales and Sonny Bautista from Republic Creative Creations, Inc., selected the shortlist.

The seven filmmakers who will take part in the 2025 Puregold CinePanalo will be revealed once the selected filmmakers directly pitch their proposals to the Selection Committee in the upcoming weeks.

The final selection of seven films will be screened at the Gateway Cineplex 18 from March 14-25, 2025.