Bloom of Youth: The winners of the 8th Sine Kabataan Short Film Festival
Bloom of Youth: The winners of the 8th Sine Kabataan Short Film Festival
Last Friday, September 5, in the first week of the Philippine Film Industry Month, the 8th Sine Kabataan Short Film Festival unveiled the winners among its official youth-made entries at the Red Carpet Cinemas, Shangri-La Plaza in Manila. Organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), this nationwide film festival presented a diverse showcase of short films from young filmmakers aged 18-23 all across the regions.
The lineup of the final 10 films was born out of an extensive process that started with more than 200 film concept submissions, out of which only 20 shortlisted projects went through an intensive Story Development and Pitching Lab and a subsequent film pitching showcase with the Sine Kabataan Selection Committee. From there, only 10 projects were given a production grant of ₱200,000 each to see their visions come to life.
Entries traversed different genres, mediums, and sensibilities, ranging from live-action experimental to dialogue-free animated, standard narrative pace to meditative stride. They also encompassed the heart of the Filipino youth, with many finding roots beyond Metro Manila and all being stories about uniquely youth-centered issues or political crises through the eyes of the youth.
Sino ang Kabataan?
Three out of the ten emerging filmmakers of the festival found their projects awarded accolades.
Cedrick Valenzuela’s drama short When It Rained Malunggay Leaves, about a young woman (Gabby Padilla) who revisits old familial wounds when she returns home to be with her mother (Tanya Gomez) for Undas, was one of the festival’s big winners, taking home three awards: Best Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Short Film.
“Honestly, ‘di talaga kami nag expect ng anything during the awards night because of how tight the competition was,” says the film’s director Valenzuela. “Lahat ng entries ay magagaling and kahit sino ang manalo, I think everyone would [have been] happy with the outcome. Kaya until now ‘di pa rin nag sisink in sa amin na we just won three awards.”
Valenzuela started developing the script about a year ago, when he moved out of his family home to work in Metro Manila. He saw his being alone and being far away from his mother as a chance to examine their relationship and see her as not just a maternal figure but as her own person, thus birthing the foundation of the story he would soon come to tell.
“Noong una, I really wanted to make a film that would depict this complicated relationship in a very realistic way, yung tipong makakarelate lahat sa mga painful experience I’ve had growing up,” Valenzuela expounds on the themes of the film. “Pero along the process of making the film, naging maayos ang relationship namin ni mama kaya naging nasa perspektibo na ng paghilom yung pelikula.”
He credits this evolution of his relationship with his mother as the catalyst for one of the most notable aspects of the film: its meditative pace. The development of Valenzuela’s personal relationship had informed the calmness of When It Rained Malunggay Leaves, making it evoke the feeling of renewal and utilize malunggay as a nourishing, healing symbol whose presence permeates throughout the film.
On the flipside of emotion, Jon Owen Lepiten’s Sunog sa Sugbo, the festival’s other big winner, is an incisive and angry dramatic short about a young man (Elj Seth Tababa) who is forced to set fire to a slum in exchange for money after his own home is burned down. It won Best Direction, Best Cinematography, and the Special Jury Prize.
“It feels very overwhelming and at the same time very rewarding to just even be recognized,” gushes the film’s director Lepiten. “We didn’t expect anything, but I believe that it’s truly deserved after seeing what the people behind the film [have] gone through.”
Lepiten also sees his film’s three wins as an overall win for Cebuano cinema and a great opportunity to bring the issues of displacement within Cebu to the forefront. “We are known for our festivities like the Sinulog, but we often overlook the margins, where social disparity is very apparent,” Lepiten explains. “Beyond the beats, drums, and faith is a city burning, literally and figuratively, in the pursuit of modernization.”
He also expounds on the connection of the Sinulog Festival, a prominent background proponent of the film, to the social issues within Cebu. “It’s heartbreaking that beyond the loud festivities where we welcome tourists to enjoy our city, there are Cebuanos that do not have a home in their own land and can only cling to what little faith or resilience they have to keep going—which includes taking on jobs that are due to the desperation brought about by poverty,” Lepiten laments.
Last but not the least, the recipient of the Special Mention, Michael Angelo Pogoy’s Coding si Papa, about a young boy (Zed Xyrus Martin) who tries to come up with enough money so his father can take a day off to see him perform a poem dedicated to him, is the most outwardly heartwarming of the festival’s three winners.
The film’s director Pogoy sees the film as a love letter to his father Manny, and to all parents who sacrifice in silence. “My mentor Direk Jules Katanyag mentioned that love letter films are always the [ones] with the biggest heart. I am proud to say that it’s the core of our film, and it’s the very main reason why a lot of [audiences] resonated with it—because we didn’t lose the heart in the [process of making the film],” Pogoy says. “Seeing my love letter film on [the] big screen feels surreal. Hindi ko inaasahang aabot ako dito, at sobrang grateful [ako] kay Lord at sa lahat ng mga Santong dinasalan ko for hearing all of my [months-long] prayers.”
Pogoy also enthused about seeing the love and appreciation levied upon the film, crediting the audience response and Special Mention accolade to the hard work of the cast and crew.
List of Winners at the 8th Sine Kabataan Short Film Festival
Here is the full list of winners from the 2025 Sine Kabataan Short Film Festival:
Best Short Film
WHEN IT RAINED MALUNGGAY LEAVES by Cedrick Valenzuela
Special Jury Prize
SUNOG SA SUGBO by Jon Owen Lepiten
Special Mention
CODING SI PAPA by Michael Angelo Pogoy
Best Direction
Jon Owen Lepiten (SUNOG SA SUGBO)
Best Cinematography
Kirk Bryant Nuñez (SUNOG SA SUGBO)
Best Screenplay
Cedrick Valenzuela (WHEN IT RAINED MALUNGGAY LEAVES)
Best Editing
Vince Maliksi (WHEN IT RAINED MALUNGGAY LEAVES)
The 8th Sine Kabataan Short Film Festival entries will have free screenings in select FDCP regional Cinematheques this September, particularly in Iloilo, Davao, Negros, and Nabunturan. Visit the official Cinematheque pages for more details.
