MMFF parade returns to Manila

MANILA, Philippines - Paying homage to where it all came from, the 42nd Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) kicked off yesterday with its annual Parade of Stars in Manila.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) general manager Thomas Orbos, MMFF 2016 overall chairman, said the parade being held in Manila was part of the changes made for the annual film festival this year.

“We returned the MMFF to Manila, where it all began,” he said. 

Before the MMFF started in the late 1970s, the Manila city government organized the Manila Tagalog Film Festival in 1966, which ran for 10 days before the city’s anniversary on June 24 and featured only locally made films.

Orbos also stressed that the changes made in the film festival this year are meant to rekindle enthusiasm in Filipino moviegoers.

He earlier said the selection of eight full-length films that would compete in the two-week festival, from Dec. 25 to Jan. 3, 2017, was also part of the reforms in the selection process.

“The direction I think our selection committee members are looking at is to make a mark in the global arena of cinema. We give them our support and we respect their independence in their selection,” he said.

The floats of the eight entries – “Die Beautiful,” “Sunday Beauty Queens,” “Oro,” “Seklusyon,” “Vince, Kath and James,” “Ang Babae sa Septic Tank 2: #ForeverIsNotEnough,” “Kabisera” and “Saving Sally” – all joined the parade, which passed through the streets of downtown Manila.

 Manila Tourism and Cultural Bureau head Liz Villasenor called the gesture a tribute to former president and now Mayor Joseph Estrada, who was once an actor.