Broken Blooms film producer, engineer Benjie Austria of BenTria Productions is overwhelmed for the continous recognition of his film and the actors locally and internationally. Just recently, Jeric Gonzales won best actor at the Harlem International Film Festival in New York.
Then on Feb. 22, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts recognized 33 artists and works at its annual Ani ng Dangal awarding ceremony at the Malacañan Palace spearheaded by President BongBong Marcos and first lady Louise Araneta-Marcos, Jeric Gonzales is one of the actors who received the prestigious Ani ng Dangal trophy for the same film Broken Blooms.
The event recognizes individuals and works in the different disciplines — architecture, cinema, dance, drama, literature, music, visual arts, and broadcast arts — that have won accolades in international competitions and awards in the past year.
Austria shared his reaction to the media over this recent triumph of Broken Blooms. "Syempre happy at overwhelmed ako na nagkaroon nang international recognition award as best actor in Harlem, New York so thank you sa government na naacknowledge sa malacanang thru NCCA since this is a first venture project under BenTria Productions".
Broken Blooms was already shown in numerous film competitions abroad and has garnered more than 10 international recognitions and awards. Jeric Gonzales won his first international award for Luisito Lagdameo Ignacio' at Harlem International Film Festival.
This was followed by two best actor awards from India, at the Mokho International Film Festival and Tagore International Film Festival. Another award came from the Montelupo International Film Festival in Italy. The film also swept awards at the Saskatchewan International Film Festival in 2022.
This is the first film venture of Austria who is worth praising and commending because he definitely has an eye for a groundbreaking project that helmed their actors into perfection gaining more attention and recognition here and abroad for its one-of-a-kind storyline and impecable casting and director. Surely, this is not just a one hit wonder for this film outfit, we can expect more note-worthy films from them in the future.
Included in the stellar cast are award-winning actress Therese Malvar, sought-after Kapuso actors Royce Cabrera and Jeric Gonzales, Norman “Boobay” Balbuena, Lou Veloso, Mimi Jureza, Rico Barrera, Cherry Malvar, Cecil Yumul, Rosette Aquino, and veteran actress Jaclyn Jose.
The film portrays the real-life hardships of Filipino families in today's modern setting and how relationships are tested because of the situations they are in. Broken Blooms is directed by Louie Ignacio and produced by BenTria Productions.