Some industries in the country have started regaining ground amid the Coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis, but not the Filipino film and audiovisual (AV) industry. It has been over seven months since the lockdown was imposed, yet only 20 percent of the film and audiovisual industry has gradually resumed operations.

The festive and communal spirit of the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP) continues this year with its fourth edition, albeit in a virtual platform. Despite the limitations due to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, PPP4 will bring the film festival experience online with at least 145 titles.

By the end of the month, on October 31 to be exact, the 4th Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP) will commence in an all-new online edition as a response to the restrictions on the operations of cinemas due to the pandemic situation.

Since last year, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has been at the forefront of “Sine Sandaan” celebration — the representation of our industry’s journey, from the pioneers and trailblazers to the game changers who have led us to where we are today.

Just as we closed the year-long celebration of the Centennial Year of Philippine Cinema on September 11, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) kicked off “Sine Sandaan: The Next 100.”

The year-long celebration of the Centennial Year of Philippine Cinema officially came to a close on September 11. Since the Sine Sandaan grand launch on September 12, 2019, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) held events and launched programs to mark the milestone of One Hundred Years of Philippine Cinema.

For us, celebrating Philippine Cinema means more than commemorating its significant strides and history; it is honoring the path laid out to us by enriching the industry and stakeholders we have now so that they can take further steps to progress and development. We keep this in mind as we welcome September 2020 which marks the official closing of the commemoration of the Philippine Cinema Centennial.

Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the projected loss of the film and audiovisual entertainment industry this year is more than P100 billion with over 760,000 workers in content and live audiovisual industries displaced. We wanted the government to know this critical impact to the industry so that it may provide additional support.

One of my top priorities as head of the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) is to help push for a law that would set standards on the working conditions of our film and audiovisual workers.

The Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland is one of the oldest A-list film festivals in the world. In its 73rd year, Locarno carried on with its tradition of being a prestigious platform of auteur cinema by featuring yet another quality out-of-the-box program of arthouse films.