Cinemabuhay final entries named

MANILA, Philippines - The PLDT Smart Foundation (PSF) and Cinemabuhay announce the five finalists for the 2009 Cinemabuhay. They are Daplis by Richard Legaspi; Sagrado Profano by Alvin Yapan; Slinky by Ryan Nikolai Dino; Slow Fade by Rommel Sales; and The Next President: Ang Lupet by Audie Gonzales.

“We had an especially great set of entries this year. We wish we could choose them all,” said Albert Martinez, PSF executive director for Film.

“Our hope is to encourage Filipinos to keep making movies so that we can tell our stories, our hopes, fears and dreams to the world,” said Butch Meily, PSF president. The PSF makes an annual award of P1-M for a script by a new filmmaker.

Previous awardees have included Numbalikdiwa in 2007 and Cul de Sac, 2008. Numbalikdiwa was written and directed by Bobby Bonifacio. Cul de Sac was written and directed by Juan Miguel Sevilla. Its actors included Sam Milby, Jodi Santamaria and Chin-Chin Gutierrez.

PSF is one of the major philanthropic institutions in the country and is supported by PLDT and Smart Communications, the leading fixed line, wireless and information and communications technology companies in the Philippines. PSF aims to assist in the country’s overall development with particular emphasis on three major areas — education, livelihood and community.