by Mark Tristan J. Quimque
Cast and crew of Ambiance Productions with award-winning director Brillante Mendoza
Cagayan de Oro City – Sangil bagged the best short film and best cinematography awards for the student category during the Awards Night of CINEMAGIS – 7th Digital Short Film Festival in Northern Mindanao on January 24, 2015. It is the only festival entry outside Cagayan de Oro City in this category.
CINEMAGIS is an annual short film festival in Northern Mindanao organized by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Xavier Center for Culture and the Arts (XCCA) of Xavier University. The various activities of the festival, including a Brillante Mendoza film exhibit and workshop, were held on January 21-24 at SM, Cagayan de Oro City. CINEMAGIS picks the best representatives of Region X to the CINEMA REHIYON, a national film festival organized by the National Committee on Cinema of NCCA.
Sangil was produced by Ambience Productions headed by its director and screenwriter Christian Alan E. Toring, a first year BS Mechanical Engineering (BSME) student of MSU-IIT. The crew members and cast of Ambiance Productions are likewise freshman MSU-IIT students: Frederick Irving Rico (cinematographer, editor); Mark John Caballero (musical director, sound scorer, and editor); Jacques Russel Saladaga (art director); Winslyn Vega and Paul Andrew Mancia (story); Robert John Omandam (costume); and Justin Cabiara, Raven dela Cruz, John Benz Umbay, and Mitz Tapi-on (actors).
The film centers on a poor, young male student (Cabiara) whose character is depicted through the lens of the present society. At the start, he is portrayed as an introvert, socially awkward, and is often seen oddly checking out an attractive college girl (dela Cruz) from afar like a stalker. Only after being confronted for his odd behavior towards the girl will a revelation of his true character and intentions happen.
During the 3rd Peace Film Festival (PFF) held here in MSU-IIT last December 1, 2014, Sangil was among the top short film entries. The film garnered the following awards: People’s Choice, Second Best Film, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor.
The 3rd PFF was organized by the Institute for Peace and Development in Mindanao (IPDM) of MSU-IIT, in partnership with the Civil Peace Service Program of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP).
Topics : sangil cinemagis short film festival