The QCinema Project Market, the official film industry initiative of the QCinema International Film Festival (QCinema), announced the film project winners of its inaugural run in its awarding ceremony held yesterday evening at the Novotel Hotel Araneta City in Cubao, Quezon City in conjunction with the QCinema International Film Festival’s 2023 edition.
The winners were awarded with monetary support and co-production grants amounting to P 26 Million in total.
Now on its eleventh year, QCinema International Film Festival goes beyond the screening of some of the best of Filipino and world cinema by enriching the film festival experience with the inauguration of the first QCinema Project Market which aims to provide a hub where talent and opportunities can meet, especially for production and project funding.
QPM hosted a two-day networking and pitching event last November 18 to 19, 2023 for 19 feature-length fiction films from Southeast Asia. Film project representatives attended one-on-one meetings with local and international producers and production and post-production company representatives.
The QCinema Project Market concluded with the announcement of the recipients of the project market’s first set of major awards and special grants and awards. Receiving the QCinema Project Market – Philippines Co-production Grant worth around $55,000 (3M PHP) each were “The Remotes” from director-producer John Torres and “Filipiñana” by director Rafael Manuel.
Two film projects also received the QCinema Project Market – Philippines Co-production Grant worth $27,000 (1.5M PHP) each. These are “The Boy and the Fight of Spiders (Diwalwal)” by director Jarell Serencio and “Ella Arcangel: Ballad of Tooth and Claw” from the comic book series of the same name, by director Mervin Malonzo. It was the only animation project in the roster.
QCinema Project Market – Southeast Asia Co-production Grant worth $35,000 each was given to “The Sea is Calm Tonight” by Vietnamese director Le Bao and two film projects from Singapore — “The Drought” and “Trinity” from directors Nelson Yeo and Boo Junfeng, respectively.
In support of the QCinema Project Market’s goal of encouraging the creation of innovative and globally relevant films and the fostering of synergy in the Southeast Asian region, special awards were given by film industry partners including development and post-production grants.
