Davao City — Digital film Imburnal by Dabawenyo director Sherad Sanchez copped the best picture award during the recent CinemaOne Originals Film Festival awards night held at the Dolphy Theatre inside the ABS-CBN Broadcast Center in Quezon City.
Shot in Davao City, Imburnal is a tale of two young boys living in San Antonio and their initiation to manhood while living an impoverished life in the city.
The film took home the cash prize of 200,000 pesos.
Sherad also won the best screenplay award while local Dabawenyo filmmakers Mark Limbaga, Jose Bagane Fiola, Joel Geolamen and award-winning filmmaker John Torres took home the best cinematography award also for their work in Imburnal.
The film did not boast of major star power utilizing instead locals living in the shooting area as actors in the film.
“This is truly a powerful film,” Limbaga said after hearing the news of Imburnal’s win. “This is not like any other film you often see,” he added in vernacular.
Imburnal also won the Lino Brocka digital local grand prize at the recent Cinemanila Film Festival held last October with no less than President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo handing over the film award to Sherad during the awarding ceremonies in Malacaang Palace.
Sherad was the same force behind the award-winning film Huling Balyan ng Buhi, which was shot in Arakan Valley in North Cotabato and in and Marahan, Davao City. Balyan bagged the 2006 best picture award also at the CinemaOne originals. It also earned Sherad accolades from various film festivals in Germany, France and India.
Now on its fourth year, CinemaOne originals digital film festival is an annual project of ABS-CBN’s CinemaOne channel. It is aimed in producing quality digital films coming from a new breed of Filipino filmmakers. (PIA)
