Jaclyn Jose started her acceptance speech with, “I don’t know what to say. I’m so surprised! I just went here to walk on the red carpet with my daughter. Thank you to Cannes, thank you so much. Thank you to the jury. Thank you for liking our film.”
“Thank you also to Brillante Mendoza. I was just following whatever he tells me to do. He is such a brilliant director–a genius in the Philippines, and now, here in your country,” she added.
She also dedicated her award to the Filipino people. She said, “I would also like to share this recognition to all the Filipinos who are here, to my daughter, to Brillante, to my countrymen, to the Philippines. Thank you so much, France, for loving our work.”
Among those she was up against were Hollywood stars Charlize Theron and Kristen Stewart and French actresses Isabelle Hupert and Marion Cotillard.
The film tells the story of a poor Manila neighborhood stall holder who sells drugs on the side with her husband to make ends meet. The couple gets arrested, leaving their four children to try and buy their parents’ freedom from corrupt policemen.
Here’s the full list of winners of 2016 Cannes Film Festival:
Palme d’Or: “I, DANIEL BLAKE”, Ken Loach
Grand Prize: “It’s Only the End of the World,” Xavier Dolan
Jury Prize: “American Honey,” Andrea Arnold
Best Director: (tie) Cristian Mungiu, “Graduation” (“Bacalaureat”); Olivier Assayas, “Personal Shopper”
Best Actress: Jaclyn Jose, “Ma’ Rosa”
Best Actor: Shahab Hosseini, “The Salesman”
Best Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi, “The Salesman”
Camera d’Or (best first feature): “Divines,” Houda Benyamina
Best Short Film: “Timecode,” Juanjo Gimenez
