Dgte professor wins worldwide Film competition

A poignant story about a young boy coming to terms with tragedy through faith earned a Filipino independent filmmaker the Cross Culture Media's first-ever "Impact the World" Filmmaker Award. Jonah Añonuevo Lim, a faculty member at the College of Mass Communication of Silliman University in Dumaguete City, bested contestants from around the world. The four finalists all came from the United States.

Jonah submitted his 15-minute film "Kaibigan (My Friend)" last May as his entry for the competition along with an essay about how films impact the world. The entries were based on the essay, acting, cinematography, audio quality, casting, writing, originality, relevance, set and location, and portrayal of Biblical principles. He has just recently received his trophy and cash prize after getting a phone call and an email from the organizers a few weeks earlier.

The award-winning film "Kaibigan (My Friend)" which is based on a true story is about a young boy who lost his best friend in an accident and how he came to terms with it through his faith. The film has previously been nominated for the Best Feature Film at the 2004 Sabaoth International Film Festival in Milan, Italy. It won the Best Foreign Film at the 2005 Christian WYSIWYG Film Festival in San Francisco, USA.

The actors in the film included theater artist and trainor Dessa Quesada, Silliman University students Chris Vidad, Keanu Medalla and Carlo Bollos, Rehabilitation Medicine Dr. Lynn Larena-Olegario, Silliman University Church Pastor Haniel Joses Taganas, and dorm manager Princeton Apura. The production staff is composed of five Mass Communication students who were enrolled in Television Production in 2004. They are: Mary Ann Sybil Arbilon, Chloe Franken, Laarni Limaco, Leah Mae Beatingo, and Victoria Tan.

The competition is sponsored by Cross Culture Media (CCMTV.org), an organization in Indianapolis, Indiana in the US. "Catch the Vision, Impact the World" is the phrase that summarizes its goals. According to its website, the response for the competition has been tremendous. Most films submitted were independent short films done by filmmakers of all ages and cultures, and submissions came from different parts of the globe.

Jonah has been teaching film and media courses at Silliman University since 1996. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication degree (Film) from the University of the Philippines-Diliman, Master of Communication Management degree (Media Management) from the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication in Greenhills, and Master of Fine Arts in Film and Television Production degree (Production) from Chapman University in California, USA. He was a juror at the 2004 Sabaoth International Film Festival. He is also the author of "Creative Imaging: An Introduction to Film," a reference book in film appreciation which is endorsed by the Philippine Association of Communication Educators.

He is currently looking for producers to finance his first digital full-length film "Sagip sa Ika-7 Hakbang." The film is about dyslexia, a neurological learning disability in processing graphic symbols like letters or numbers. He hopes the film will be used to disseminate information about this learning disability.

"The award was really a surprise to me. I never thought that a film from a 'third world' country could win in a worldwide competition because the technology in western countries are a lot more advanced," Lim said of his win. He hoped that with this award "a lot of people would like to see my film…so they can be blessed and be inspired."