QCinema International Film Festival

The Quezon City International Film Festival (QCinema) is an annual film festival held in Quezon City, Philippines.

Background

The Quezon City International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Quezon City, Philippines which previews new films of all genres, including special screenings of international films. The film festival is held annually and aims to address the development and promotion of filmmaking among city residents.

It features a broad spectrum of local and international films of all genres, through its various sections, both competition and non-competition. It is highlighted by films that receive substantial grants from the Quezon City Film Development Foundation (QCFDC).

The festival provides production grants of up to ₱2 million (US$30,000~) to select independent filmmakers which are culled from hundreds of submissions from all over the country. Their films debut at the festival, together with either documentaries or short films, which also receive production grants from QCFDC, as well as various international films under different sections.

In its few years of existence, its status has been elevated from just a city-oriented project to the stature of a major international film festival, gaining significant public awareness and highly regarded in the international film festival circuit.

History

2013

QCinema was launched in 2013 by the QCFDC, which was created through a local ordinance making Quezon City the only local government unit in the Philippines to have its own Commission for all its film-related programs and activities.

The QCFDC is headed by Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista and is supervised by the office of Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte. Quezon City is where some of the leading media industries and educational institutions are based and is also considered as the country’s filmmaking capital.

The first-ever festival was held at Trinoma Mall Cinemas from October 3 to 5, 2013. Only three filmmakers made it to the Circle Competition and given a seed grant of ₱800,000 (US$10,000~). The films were selected for promoting nationalism, gender sensitivity, freedom, and excellence, among others. The three-day event wrapped up with an attendee record of 3,000 individuals.

Included in the event was the screening of nine of the 2013 New Breed films of the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival which were awarded by QCFDC with post-production grants of ₱100,000 (US$1,000~) each. There were also film workshops and talkback sessions with filmmakers, as well as the awarding of special recognition to the three winners and grantees.

2014: From Flashbacks to Fast Forward

In 2014 (2nd edition), the film festival was split into the competition and non-competition section. The theme of the film festival was “From Flashbacks to Fast Forward,” which highlighted Quezon City’s celebration of its diamond jubilee year.

Thirty-eight films were included in the line-up, including eleven films given grants by the QCFDC. A production grant of ₱2 million (US$30,000~) was given to the film “Alienasyon." The Quezon City Experience (QCX) anthology, a collection of short films that were created that depicts the life in the city, was also introduced. Five filmmakers received production grants worth ₱150,000 (US$2,000~). Five independent features were also selected as recipients of post-production grants of ₱150,000 (US$2,000~). The films were selected to compete for the Pylon Awards.

The Screen International section was also added for highlighting foreign films while the Children’s Classics section was developed in partnership with the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB).

Other festival features included a Park Chan- Wook trilogy, a filmmakers’ forum and an exhibit of the works of Cecille Baun, a renowned prosthetic make-up artist who also received the Lifetime Achievement Award during the opening rites for her outstanding contributions to the film industry.

There was a significant improvement in the film fest's attendance as some 5,000 festival-goers took part in the event held from November 5 to 11, 2014 at the cinemas of Trinoma Mall.

2015: Indie-Genius: Next Wave of Philippine Cinema

In its third year, QCinema carried the theme, “Indie-Genius: Next Wave of Philippine Cinema” in recognition of the surge of Philippine films being made, many of which are winning a number of awards in international film festivals. Some 60 movies were shown throughout the festival along with few complimentary film forums and workshops.

Eight entrants of the Circle Competition received the QCinema grant of ₱1 million. The DoQC International Documentary Competition was also launched, giving birth to five documentaries with a production grant of ₱200,000. Likewise, the “RainbowQC” section was added, screening films with stories that show different faces of sexuality and sensuality.

Three award-winning films comprised the “Screen International” section while the “Special Children’s Screening” also featured three children’s films. It also paid a special tribute to Director Gaspar Noé in its “Director in Focus” section and screenwriter Lualhati Bautista in a separate section.

Other sections were “Music Genius” (films about music legends), “Special Halloween Screening,” “Throwback Ticket” (Digitally Restored movies in partnership with ABS-CBN Film Restoration), “Indie Nacional” (homegrown award-winning films), Reloaded (past Circle Competition winners), “QCX Anthology,” “Asian Cinerama” (outstanding films recognized by the Asian Film Awards Academy).

Film discourses included “Reality Bites” featuring DoQC and Circle Competition filmmakers, “Classic Films and Cult Movies,” “From Concept to Development of Final Draft,” and “Global Film Platform.”

The film festival opened with the film “Pinoy Action Hero” which paid tribute to the actor Rudy Fernandez.

There was a huge leap in the attendance with a 10,000 headcount in its three venues, which are the cinemas at Trinoma, Gateway Mall, and Robinsons Galleria. The festival was held from October 22 to 31, 2015.

2016: One City. To The World.

As QCinema turned four, it was evident that the film festival had grown in leaps and bounds. QCinema screened some top-caliber 60 movies and organised complimentary film forums and workshops.

Aside from the “Circle Competition,” which features seven full-length films that received grants of P1,000,000, and “QC Shorts,” which received production grant of P100,000 each, a new category within the competition section was launched. The “Asian Next Wave” section showcased the works of Asian filmmakers with less than three directorial features.

It continued with the tradition of featuring films lauded in the international festival circuit through its “Screen International” section; and vibrant and diverse narratives of LGBTQ experience in its “RainbowQC”.

The festival also paid tribute to Polish film director and screenwriter, Krzysztof Kieślowski in its section “Tribute to Kieślowski”; and to Filipino film master Mike de Leon its section “Focus on Mike de Leon.”

Other sections included Back Throwback (digitally remastered films in partnership with ABS-CBN Film Restoration), Cinema Rehiyon (regional titles), Pinoy Spotlight (social realist films). The festival was opened by “The Handmaiden”.

Free film seminar were also given to the public, conducted at the Quezon Memorial Circle’s Quezon City Experience (QCX). These were “Animation Nation”, “Road to QCinema: The Filmmakers’ Journey”, Perspectives on National Cinema”, “Charting the Course of Regional Cinema”, and “Wide Wild World of Web Criticism”.

QCinema drew over 15,000 attendees spread across its four venues - Trinoma, Gateway Mall, Robinsons Galleria, and U.P. Town Center - and was held from October 13 to 22, 2016.

2017

For its 5th year, and its biggest, till date, QCinema bested all other film festivals in the country in a survey conducted by PinoyRebyu amongst film critics bloggers. It was acknowledged as the festival to beat in terms of local and international offerings.

QCinema 2017 featured four competition sections - “Circle Competition,” where seven film grantees were given P1 Million grant each; Short Film Competition, where five short films were given post-production grants; “Asian Next Wave,” which featured emerging Asian filmmakers; and “Rainbow QC,” which presented a full spectrum of LGBTQ features from around the world.

The festival opened with "Loving Vincent" and closed with the restored version of "Batch ’81.” Other sections included Screen International, Trilogy, Digitally Remastered, Before Midnight, and Special Screenings.

It also held a film conference, in partnership with the Film Development Council of the Philippines, an LGBT Night, Filmmakers' Night, Networking Night, Closing Night, and Awards Night.

The film festival was held at Gateway, Trinoma, Robinsons Galleria, U.P. Town Centre, and Cinematheque Centre Manila. It was held from October 19 to 28, 2017.