'Kalel, 15' star Elijah Canlas wins Best Actor at 17th Asian Film Festival


“Kalel, 15” star Elijah Canlas won the Best Actor award in the recent 17th Asian Film Festival in Rome, Italy.

The Ideal First Company, who produced the film, announced the news on its social media accounts on Thursday.

“CONGRATULATIONS Elijah Canlas for winning the BEST ACTOR award at the 17th Asian Film Festival in Rome, Italy for Jun Robles Lana's KALEL, 15! You make the IdeaFirst Company family and the #GameboysTheSeries global community very proud!” the post read.

Jun Robles Lana, director of the film, also congratulated Canlas for winning the award.

“The great thing about Elijah is that he’s a chameleon. When he takes on a role, he becomes the character, and you can’t imagine it being played by anyone else. He’s a gifted storyteller and he really works so hard at it. Congraaats, @elijahcanlas_!!!” Robles wrote in a Twitter post.

Canlas expressed gratitude to Lana for “trusting” him with the film.

“This means the world to me. Thanks, direk! For trusting me and squeezing the best out of me. I promise to always work hard,” he said.

“Kalel, 15” is about a young Catholic boy living with troubled parents and later on diagnosed with HIV. It stars Elijah Canlas, Jaclyn Jose, Gabbi Padilla, and the late veteran Eddie Garcia, among others.

The Asian Film Festival presents a selection of “the best Asian research and independent cinema with great attention to the beginnings and young directors of the rich newcomers section,” according to its Facebook description.