Filipino Ryza Cenon won the Yakushi Pearl Award at this year's Osaka Asian Film Festival (OAFF) held over the weekend. She won for her work in "Mr. and Mrs. Cruz."
Ryza Cenon (Osaka Asian Film Festival/MANILA BULLETIN)
The movie hinges on deep conversations about love, commitment and marriage between the two main characters. Raffy and Gela are doing soul-searching after his fiancee became a runaway bride while she had just given up her relationship with her husband of two years. They cross paths in Palawan and eventually enjoy each other's company.
Another Filipino who won at this year’s OAFF is Mikhail Red for his work on “Neomanila,” about a teenage orphan recruited by a notorious death squad. The director bagged the Most Promising Talent Award.
Jury statement on Red: “Mikhail Red blends and reconstructs a criminal genre film with fresh characters and their unexpected journey related to our cruel and helpless world, proving he is one of the most promising talents in Asia.”
The other winners are:
Grand Prix (Best Picture Award)
“No. 1 Chung Ying Street”
Hong Kong｜Director: Derek Sung-kee CHIU
Best Actress Award
Iijima Shuna
Japan｜Bad Poetry Tokyo
ABC Award
“Take Me To the Moon”
Taiwan｜Director: HSIEH Chun-Yi
Japan Cuts Award
“Kushina, what will you be”
Japan｜Director: HAYAMI Moet
Housen Short Film Award
“Cycle-Cycle”
Japan｜Director: KANAI Junichi