A Night To Remember: Winners of the first-ever FAMAS Short Film Festival
A Night To Remember: Winners of the first-ever FAMAS Short Film Festival
For the first time ever, the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences, or FAMAS, held its Short Film Festival Awards at the Music Museum in Greenhills on May 10, 2025. Emerging or established, student or working, the festival aimed to curate a diverse set of films that would highlight the bustling creativity often overlooked in these 7,641 islands.
The inaugural short film festival received over 500 entries from all over the country, and from these came the 27 official selections that were nominated in their respective categories—short film, student film, regional film, advocacy film, and documentary.
The full list of winners for the 2025 FAMAS Short Film Festival is presented below.
Best Student Film
KIYAW by Jericho Jeriel Bassig
Best Documentary Film
NO MAN LEFT BEHIND by Ella Mage and Emir Kahn Bautista
Best Regional Film
PAGTAGHOY SA HANGIN by Kyle Erika Saycon
Best Advocacy Film
BENEPISYO by Angelito J. De Guzman
HELLO, MR. JENKINS by Gian Arre and Flo Reyes
Best Child Performer/Actor
Earl Quintana (PARAPO by Jhonn Bobier)
Best Actress
Mina Cruz (AS THE MOTH FLIES by Gayle Oblea)
Best Actor
Soliman Cruz (ANG HULING LIHAM by Miguel Potestades)
Best Production Design
Harley Alcasid (ONE DAY, THREE AUTUMNS by Bridget Rabo Ng-Ting)
Best Music & Sound Design
Glemuel Rigo and Junelle Tecson (KIYAW by Jericho Jeriel Bassig)
Best Editing
Gayle Oblea and Noah del Rosario (AS THE MOTH FLIES by Gayle Oblea)
Best Cinematography
Jhonn Bobier, Lance Allen, and Justine Mark Uy (PARAPO by Jhonn Bobier)
Best Screenplay
KITA MO ‘TO? by Adam Dominic Dumaguin
Best Director
PARAPO by Jhonn Bobier
Best Picture
AS THE MOTH FLIES by Gayle Oblea
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