Joanne Cesario is lone Philippine representative to the upcoming Locarno Film Festival's Pardi di domani international competition.
Her short film "Here, Here" is one of 43 short films selected from over 2,200 entries from all over the world.
"Here, Here" reimagines the coastal town of Lobo, Batangas, years after a foreign extraction company began its mining operations. Koi, a fresh graduate in his 20s returns home after more than two years to accompany his mother, Tonet, in waiting for the form.
"We'd like to thank again everyone who supported the film, from the crew to our audiences in the past local screenings. We'd also like to extend our deepest gratitude to all of the spaces, places, and people that we encountered throughout the creation of this short film," it read in the film's Facebook Page.
The shorts will be available for viewing online from Aug. 5 to 15 during the special edition Locarno 2020 – For the Future of Films, with theatrical screenings in Locarno and Muralto in Switzerland. Twelve titles will be in the national competition, while the rest will compete for international awards.
The international jury to judge the entries and award the Pardino d’oro and Pardino d’argento are visual artist, filmmaker and human rights activist who lives and works in the Philippines Kiri Dalena; Senegalese writer and director Mamadou Dia; and Senior Programmer at the South by Southwest Festival (SXSW) in Austin, Texas Claudette Godfrey.
The website states the final line-up includes emerging filmmakers from 34 countries around the world: from the USA to the Philippines, from Finland to the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Switzerland of course. The short films selected involve "extreme variations of genre, subject matter and aesthetic, shaping a multi-faceted sample of auteur filmmaking."