The 2023 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) is the 49th edition of the annual Metro Manila Film Festival. During the festival, no foreign films are shown in Philippine theaters (excluding IMAX and 4D theaters).[b]
Entries
Feature films
The first four official entries were announced in July 2023, selected from 26 scripts submitted by 32 production companies.[2][3]
The festival's selection committee usually chooses eight entries in total, but in October 2023 a second batch of seven entries were announced, for a total of ten. After the fourth, fifth, and sixth highest-rated submissions all received the same score, 93.3%, the committee decided not to break the tie, according to its chairman, Jesse Ejercito.[4] There were 30 finished films submitted, the highest number to date.[5]
Casts of the film festival's entry films at the Parade of Stars in Navotas
The Parade of Stars took place on December 16, 2023. The annual parade passed through in four key cities of CAMANAVA area, first time in the history of the festival.[7] The parade began at the Navotas Centennial Park and ended at Valenzuela People's Park.[8] The route had a length of 8.77 kilometers (5.45 mi). The casts of all ten participating films joined the motorcade.[9]
The Gabi ng Parangal (transl. Awards Night) of the 2023 Metro Manila Film Festival was held at the New Frontier Theater in Quezon City on December 27, 2023.[10] The ceremony was hosted by Giselle Sanchez and Eisel Serrano.[11] The program was broadcast live at One PH of Cignal TV.[12]GomBurZa received the most awards.[13]
The board of jurors who determined the winners are led by director Chito S. Roño and actress Lorna Tolentino as chairpersons.[14]
Major awards
Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface, and indicated with a double dagger (‡). Nominations are also listed if applicable.[15]
For this edition, four films were given Best Picture awards due to the festival having ten official entries.[16]
The combined box office gross for the films of the festival had surpassed ₱700 million by January 2, 2024,[17] and ₱1 billion five days later.[18]Rewind reportedly is the top earning film. The next three are Mallari, GomBurZa, and Firefly.[19]
Misinformation
There was a post by the Facebook page Pinoy History which circulated online which showed the supposed box office gross figures for each of the film entries for the opening day of the film festival. Pinoy History has 1.3 million followers on Facebook.[20][21] The post claimed that Rewind earned ₱110 million even though no film in Philippine cinema history has earned ₱100 million on its premiere date alone.[22] The MMDA has disavowed the figures calling it "fake news" and the administrator who made the post was removed from the Pinoy History's managing staff.[22]
Other events
MMMF Auditorium inauguration
On December 14, 2023, the 152-seater MMFF Auditorium located at the MMDA Building in Pasig was inaugurated.[23]
2024 Manila International Film Festival
2024 Manila International Film Festival
Date
(2024-01-29) (2024-02-02)January 29 – February 2, 2024 (Festival dates) February 2, 2024 (2024-02-02) (Award Gala)
The inaugural edition of the Manila International Film Festival (MIFF) took place in the United States from January 29 to February 2, 2024 and will feature the entry films of the 2023 MMFF. The MIFF took place at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood, Los Angeles and the Directors Guild of America on Sunset Boulevard.[17]
^The Festival was originally scheduled to end on January 7, 2024, but was given a one-week extension due to extreme demand and the gross receipts exceeded ₱1 billion.
^Asis, Salve (December 17, 2023). "Parade of Stars, nakabalik na sa normal" [Parade of Stars, back to normal]. Pilipino Star Ngayon (in Filipino). The Philippine Star. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
^PEP Troika (December 27, 2023). "MMFF entry Rewind, doble ang kita sa second day--source" [MMFF entry Rewind, earnings doubled on the second day--source]. PEP.ph (in Filipino). Philippine Entertainment Portal, Inc. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
