Cinema One Originals films Mater Dolorosa, Big Boy at Rotterdam filmfest

MANILA, Philippines - Two Cinema One Originals films Mater Dolorosa (2012) and Big Boy (2011) make their international premiere at the 42nd edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) at Rotterdam, Netherlands.

The films directed by Adolf Alix Jr. and Shireen Seno will be presented at the 12-day festival, which kicked off last Jan. 3 and will culminate on Feb. 3, along with other feature films coming from 60 countries.

Seno’s Big Boy will be showcased at the “Bright Future” section where fresh filmmakers show their first or second feature films while Alix’s Mater Dolorosa will be under the “Spectrum” section which shows recent feature length work by experienced filmmakers and artists who provide an essential contribution to international film culture. His film will also compete for IFFR’s The Big Screen Award.

Mater Dolorosa tells the story of Lourdes, portrayed by Gina Alajar, a crime family matriarch who runs several underground businesses including carnapping, gambling and drug smuggling with her children played by Carlo Aquino, Cogie Domingo, and Alessandra de Rossi. This is Alix’s 21st feature film; he released Donsol, his first film in 2006. Gertjan Zuilhof, programmer of IFFR, noted that Alix’s “level of craftsmanship is extremely high and his rapport with the actors shows great experience and self-assurance. His style in directing gives the film a classic appeal.”

Mater Dolorosa and Big Boy will be screened five times each at selected cinemas in Netherlands during the festival. IFFR is one of the largest audience and industry driven film festivals in the world with a listed audience of 274,000 and more than 2,700 film professionals in 2012. It is approximately comparable in size to other major European festivals such as Cannes, Venice, Berlin and Locarno.