Local film goers will get to enjoy a limited run of several movies that played in the Cannes Film Festival and other high-profile international film festivals this October

Every year, QCinema brings award-winning movies that local filmgoers would otherwise not have any access to. In the sixth edition, 2018 Palme d’Or winner "Shoplifters" by Hirokazu Kore-eda will open QCinema on October 21, while Sundance title "Piercing" starring Christopher Abbott and Mia Wasikowska will close the festival in spooky fashion.

This year, the festival will feature 40 films from both competition and non-competition sections.

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Above Circle Competition

Under Circle Competition, five independent features of new and seasoned homegrown storytellers will vie for the award. The films are Samantha Lee’s “Billie & Emma,” Timmy Harn’s “DOG DAYS,” Dan Villegas’ “Hintayan ng Langit,” Gutierrez Mangansakan’s “Masla A Papanok,” and Dwein Baltazar’s “Oda sa Wala.” Each of them were given grants of one and a half million pesos for production.

On the other hand, the Asian Next Wave section will showcase once more award-winning works from across the continent. This year, the films in competition are Yeo Siew Hua’s “A Land Imagined,” Bi Gan’s “Long Day Journey Into Night,” Anoocha Boonyawatana’s “Malila: The Farewell Flower,” Huang Hsin-yao’s “The Great Buddha+,” Ashleigh Mayfair’s “The Third Wife,” and Kamila Andini’s “The Seen and Unseen.”

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Above RainbowQC

In sponsorship with the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), QCinema will also provide a platform for noteworthy cinematic craftsmanship of a wide array of LGBT international films for its RainbowQC section. Among the featured films are Filipe Matzembacher and Marcio Reolon’s “Tinta Bruta,” John Tengrove’s “The Wound,” Marcelo Martinessi’s “The Heiresses,” Christophe Honoré’s “Sorry Angel,” Yann Gonzales’ “Knife + Heart,” and Yen Tan’s “1985.”

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Above Screen International

In the non-competition side, Screen International presents five films that have made the rounds in major international film festivals, most notably in Cannes. The lineup includes Lee Chang-dong’s “Burning,” which won the 2018 FIPRESCI Award at Cannes;  Agnés Varda and JR’s “Faces Places”; Gaspar Noé’s “Climax,” where Noé won the biggest prize at Cannes’ 2018 Directors’ Fortnight, the C.I.C.A.E. Award; Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Cold War,” where Pawslikowski won 2018 Best Director at Cannes; and Phuttiphong Aroonpheng’s “Manta Ray,” which won the 2018 Best Film at Venice Horizons.

Iconic films of the 70’s and 80’s that have been digitally restored will be shown in the “Digitally Remastered” section of the festival. Watch out for Bob Fosse’s “All That Jazz,” Herbert Ross’ “Footloose,” and John Badham’s “Saturday Night Fever.”

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Above French Classics

QCinema will also pay tribute to the richness of French cinema with the “French Classics” section. The films in the section are Henri-Georges Clouzot’s “Diabolique,” Roger Vadim’s “And God Created Woman,” and Pierre Rissient’s “Five and the Skin.” 

Films from China, Austria, France, and Denmark, and Japan will take the spotlight at the “Special Screenings” section. The films are “Elephant Lying Still” by Hu Bo, “Ala Changso” by Sonthar Gyal, “Tomcat” by Klaus Händl, “La Priére” by Cédric Kahn, and “Come On, Irene” by Keisuka Yoshida.

The festival also has a free screening of children’s films from Denmark. They will include Ask Hasselbach’s “Antboy,” Renée Simonsen’s “Karla’s World,” and Esben Toft Jacobsen’s “The Great Bear.”

Finally, documentary films “All Grown Up” from Wena Sanchez and “Pag-ukit sa Paniniwala” from Hiyas Baldemor Bagabaldo will comprise the “DocQC” section of QCinema. The section also provided seed grants of 300,000 pesos to the filmmakers.

QCinema is the official film festival of Quezon City, touted as the “City of the Stars.” This year, it will run from October 21 to 30, 2018 at Gateway Mall (Cineplex 10), Robinsons Galleria (Robinsons Movieworld), and Ayala Malls Cinema in Trinoma and U.P. Town Center. They will also have screenings of local films from October 24 to 30 at SM Fairview, SM Megamall, SM Manila, and SM Southmall.

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