



Original. The word, and all its permutations, has been a significant part of the festival name for the last 13 years. Originality has always been the one thing Cinema One Originals has championed and pushed for.



“I Am Original” is the tagline of the 14th Cinema One Originals. It is both a declaration, by the filmmakers and the performers, and a promise, that this year’s films will not be merely awesome but rather flawsome, a word coined to exemplify this year’s festival. Originality is never about perfection. Perfection is boring. Originality is about freshness of voice, an unwavering sense of self and the uniqueness of being human, flawed but awesome.



In the spirit of celebrating and upholding Filipino originality, Cinema One Originals will be supporting another kind of local outside of cinema through its partnership with the local ecommerce website, www.karton.ph. The wide and diverse range of authentic and handcrafted Filipino products at Karton.ph range from gourmet and artisanal food and beverages; to natural and organic wellness and beauty products; to books, home décor, paintings, accessories, bags and more. Some of these proudly Pinoy made products from the website will be on sale during the festival.



One of this year’s Cinema One Originals filmmakers is making his third film for the festival. Two are returning to the festival a second time. Two are stalwarts of the independent scene, one making his long-awaited second film, the other making his ninth. Another is making his second feature after a much-acclaimed debut. Three are making their first features.



Crime seems to be a common thread in most of this year’s films but from very different vantage points and perspectives.



Victor Neri, director Keith Deligero, and Jay Gonzaga of A Short History of A Few Bad Things



“A Short History of a Few Bad Things” by Keith Deligero (Cinema One Originals 2016 Best Director for “Lily”) may be the most straightforward, a noir procedural that has sociopolitical underpinnings.





Director Joseph Abello, Elora Españo, Acey Aguilar, and Joem Bascon of Double Twisting Double Back



"What Home Feels Like” director Joseph Abello fancifully describes his second film “Double Twisting Double Back,” set in the world of gymnastics, as a sports crime film.







In “Hospicio,” Bobby Bonifacio’s belated return to filmmaking, is a sort of sequel to his “Numbalikdiwa,” that begins with a botched crime and ends in the hospice of the title, which turns out to be haunted.





Paglisan director Carl Papa and Junjun Quintana



Carl Papa (director of Cinema One Originals 2015 Best Picture “Manang Biring”) returns with another animated feature, “Paglisan,” about a couple struggling to keep their marriage alive in the wake of one of them suffering from early onset dementia.



EJ Jallorina, Iyah Mina, Arron Villaflor and director Rod Singh of Mamu And A Mother Too



In Rod Singh’s “Mamu And A Mother Too,” a middle-aged transgender finds herself becoming surrogate mother to her transgender niece. And In John Lapus’ “Pang MMK,” a young man visits his estranged father’s funeral with unexpected results.





Neil Coleta, director John Lapus, Nikki Valdez, and Zeppi Borromeo of Pang MMK







And on the further, stranger end of the spectrum, Whammy Alcazaren’s (director of the 2013 Cinema One Originals film “Islands”) almost indescribable “Never Tear Us Apart” somehow manages to make sense of combining Third World espionage with old country folklore.







Even weirder is Rayn Brizuela’s “Asuang,” which comes on like an odd superhero inversion. And in Charliebebs Gohetia’s “Bagyong Bheverlynn,” a heartbroken woman hears that a super typhoon with the same name is fast approaching and realizes it’s a typhoon made of her own feelings and the only way to stop it from wreaking havoc on the country is to find happiness.





Bagyong Bheverlynn lead Rufa Mae Quinto, director Charliebebs Gohetia, EA de Guzman, and Jude Matthew Servilla



Cinema One Originals is under the festival partnership program of the Film Development Council Of The Philippines (FDCP). Catch all the films On October 12-21 in TriNoma, Glorietta, Gateway, Santolan Town Plaza, Powerplant; in Cinelokal theaters—SM North Edsa, SM Megamall, SM Manila, and SM Sta. Mesa, and in alternative cinemas—FDCP Cinematheque Manila, Up Cine Adarna, Cinema ’76, Black Maria Theater and Cinema Centenario.



Ticket prices are atP200 each in major and alternative cinemas and P150 for students and at SM CineLokal theaters.



Festival passes are available ktx.abs-cbn.com. Visit @CinemaOneOriginals (FB), @c1origs (Twitter) and @c1originals (IG) for more updates. #C1ORIGINALS #IAMORIGINAL