No Sh** Babae sa Septic Tank dominates Cinemalaya 7

Ace comedienne Eugene Domingo adds another trophy to her growing collection bringing home the coveted Best Actress Award at the recently concluded Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival.

Culminating a very successful run despite the barrage of foreign flicks such as “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2,” Cinemalaya 7 honored the festival’s best films in a ceremony held Sunday night at the Main Theater of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). The event was hosted by Paolo Bediones and Angel Aquino.

Domingo won the award for her movie “Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank,” which also emerged as the night’s night’s biggest winner; picking up five Balanghay trophies—Best Film, Best Director (Marlon Rivera), Best Screenplay (Chris Martinez), Audience Choice Award, and Best Actress.

“Kung hindi pa ako nakakain ng tae, hindi pa ako mananalo!” the comedienne joked at the beginning of her acceptance speech, which she also translated to English for international guests.

In the film, Eugene was literally submerged into a septic tank.

Jurors cited the movie for being “a reflexive film that looks with a lot of bite at itself” while Eugene Domingo was cited “for her expert handling of a multi-faceted character, always with tongue-in-cheek attitude.”

After thanking her co-stars and acknowledging the members of Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), Eugene then addressed the controversial statements made by short-film director Rafa Santos. In a television interview Santos said theater actors are “better to work with” because “you can feed them Skyflakes three meals a day and pay them in cat food.”

“Rafa… we forgive you. We are all united here,” Eugene told the young director who was among the audience.

Edgar Allan Guzman on the other hand, was named Best Actor (New Breed) for his role in the sex-comedy Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me, while in the Directors’ Showcase Category Bembol Roco (Isda) and Raquel Villavicencio (Bisperas) won the best actor and actress respectively.

In the Directors’ Showcase category, Jeffrey Jeturain’s Bisperas raked in five awards, including Best Film, Best Production Design, Best Cinematography, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress for Julia Clarete.

Meanwhile, Niño, directed by Loy Arcenas, bagged four awards in the New Breed category, including Special Jury Prize, Best Supporting Actress (Shamaine Buencamino), Best Supporting Actor (Art Acuna), and Best Production Design.

A total of 23 films competed in the festival this year: four under the Directors Showcase Category, 10 under Short Films Category and nine under the Full Length (New Breed of Directors) Category. All the winners received Balanghai trophies and cash prizes.

The jury for this year’s film fest was composed of National Artist Salvador “Badong” Bernal, Vesoul Festival CEO Jean Marc Thérouanne, Theater actor and director Mario O’ Hara, Filmmaker and writer Dr. Clodualdo del Mundo and Hong Kong International Film Festival representative Jacob Wong.

Cinemalaya is an all-digital film festival that aims to discover, encourage and honor cinematic works of Filipino filmmakers that boldly articulate and freely interpret the Filipino experience with fresh insight and artistic integrity. Cinemalaya will move over to UP Diliman’s Cine Adarna on July 26 to August 5.

Here is the complete list of winners of the 7th Cinemalaya Awards Night:

New Breed (Full-Length) Category

Best Film – Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank

Best Actress – Eugene Domingo (Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank)

Best Actor – Edgar Allan Guzman (Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me)

Best Supporting Actress – Shamaine Buencamino (Niño)

Best Supporting Actor – Art Acuña (Niño)

Best Director – Marlon Rivera (Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank)

Best Screenplay – Chris Martinez (Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank)

Best Cinematography – Arvin Viola (Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa)

Best Production Design – Laida Lim (Niño)

Best Editing – Lawrence Fajardo (Amok)