QCinema 13: Film City

Welcome to the “Film City,” the 13th edition of the QCinema International Film Festival!

This year’s festival theme shines a spotlight on Quezon City’s vital role in the history and present of Philippine cinema, celebrating its legacy as the country’s creative capital while unveiling our most dynamic lineup yet.

Many of this year’s selections turn the lens back on the art itself—cinema about cinema, stories about storytellers, and the power of moving images to shape how we see the world.

Opening the festival is Couture by Alice Winocour, starring Angelina Jolie—a captivating film within a film that explores creation, identity, and reinvention.

Joining it are other titles that share this meta-cinematic spirit:Summer’s Camera by Divine Sung (South Korea),Blue Heron by Sophy Romvari (Canada, Hungary, USA),Divine Comedy by Ali Asgari (Iran, Italy, France, Germany, Turkey), and Once Upon a Time in Gaza by Tarzan and Arab Nasser (Palestine, France).

Programs

Asian Next Wave

A wave of new voices shaping Asian cinema.
Here are the films competing in Asian Next Wave, QCinema International Film Festival 2025’s main competition section

• A Useful Ghost by Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke 🇹🇭🇫🇷🇸🇬🇩🇪

  Grand Prix, Cannes Critics’ Week 2025; Thailand’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards
• Diamonds in the Sand by Janus Victoria 🇯🇵🇲🇾🇵🇭

  White Mulberry Award for Best Debut Film, Udine Far East Film Festival 2025
• Family Matters by Pan Ke-yin 🇹🇼

  Southeast Asian premiere; Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film, New York Asian Film Festival
• Ky Nam Inn by Leon Le 🇻🇳

  Southeast Asian premiere
• Lost Land by Akio Fujimoto 🇯🇵🇫🇷🇲🇾🇩🇪

  Southeast Asian premiere; Special Jury Prize, Venice Horizons section, Venice Film Festival 2025
• Luz by Flora Lau 🇨🇳🇭🇰

  Nominee for Grand Jury Prize (World Cinema – Dramatic), Sundance Film Festival 2025
• Open Endings by Nigel Santos 🇵🇭

  Southeast Asian premiere; Best Ensemble Performance, 21st Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival
• Renoir by Chie Hayakawa 🇯🇵

  Nominated for the Palme d’Or, 78th Cannes Film Festival
• The World of Love by Yoon Ga-Eun 🇰🇷

  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of the Roberto Rossellini Jury Award and Audience Award, Pingyao International Film Festival

Asian Next Wave showcases some of the most exciting Asian films of the year, from emerging filmmakers at the onset of their careers as storytellers.

QCShorts International

Celebrating the Art of the Short Film!
The QCShorts International 2025 lineup features 21 titles — including 6 world premieres from QCinema grantees:

• Hoy, Hoy, Ingat! by Norvin de los Santos
• Ours Was A Timeless Night Burning by Lauviah Caliboso
• RUNO! by Racquel “Lysa” Catolico & Jazmine Gin Pateña
• Si Kara: Ang Babaye Nga Nag Daba-Daba by Dale
• Surface Tension by The Serrano Sisters

Titles from around the world:

• Yelo by Gab Rosique 🇵🇭
  World Premiere, QCinema grantee
• A Metamorphosis by Lin Htet Aung 🇲🇲
  Winner, Rotterdam; Official Selection, NYFF
• Agapito by Arvin Belarmino & Kyla Danelle Romero 🇵🇭 🇫🇷
  Cannes & TIFF Honorable Mention
• As If To Nothing by Pek Jia Ho & Ang Jia Jung 🇸🇬
• Baby Fat by Margarita Mina 🇵🇭🇺🇸
  World Premiere; NBR Student Grant
• Before the Sea Forgets by Lê Ngọc Duy 🇸🇬
  Cannes Directors’ Fortnight selection
• Grandma Nai Who Played Favorites by Chheangkea 🇰🇭🇫🇷🇺🇸
  Winner, Sundance & Provincetown
• Honey, My Love, So Sweet by JT Trinidad 🇵🇭
  Premiered at Locarno
• In the Valley by Lim Han Loong 🇲🇾
  Premiered at Busan
• Little Rebels Cinema Club by Khozy Rizal 🇮🇩
  Berlinale & Raindance winner
• My Plastic Mother by Amar Haikal 🇮🇩
  Premiered at Leeds
• Please P(r)ay Attention by Vasupol Suwanjuta 🇹🇭
  Premiered at Busan
• Sammi, Who Can Detach His Body Parts by Rein Maychaelson 🇮🇩
  Berlinale, Krakow & NYAFF awards
• Visiting Heaven Gate by Nghiêm Quỳnh Trang 🇻🇳🇨🇿
  Special Mention, ShorTS IFF
• Vox Humana by Don Josephus Eblahan 🇵🇭🇺🇸🇸🇬
  TIFF & multiple international wins
• When the Blues Goes Marching In by Beny Kristia 🇮🇩
  Winner, Minikino Film Week

Also Showing: QCShorts International (Exhibition)

• A Very Straight Neck by Neo Sora 🇯🇵🇨🇳
  Best Auteur Short, Locarno
• An Orange from Jaffa by Mohammed Almughanni 🇵🇸🇵🇱
  Oscar Shortlist; Grand Prix, Clermont-Ferrand
• God is Shy by Jocelyn Charles 🇫🇷
  Cannes Critics’ Week
• Razeh-del by Maryam Tafakory 🇮🇷🇬🇧🇮🇹
  European Film Award nominee; Locarno winner
• We Were the Scenery by Christopher Radcliff 🇺🇸🇨🇦
  Sundance & Dokufest winner

New Horizons

Fresh perspectives take the spotlight in New Horizons!

• Amoeba by Siyou Tan 🇸🇬🇳🇱🇫🇷🇪🇸🇰🇷
  Winner of the Cinephilia Critics’ Award and Youth Jury Award at Pingyao.
• Blue Heron by Sophy Romvari 🇨🇦🇭🇺🇺🇸
  Film within a film, Winner of the Swatch First Feature Award at Locarno and Best Canadian Discovery at TIFF.
• Brand New Landscape by Danzuka Yuiga 🇯🇵
  SEA premiere, first shown at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight.
• Chronology of Water by Kristen Stewart 🇺🇸🇫🇷🇱🇻
  SEA premiere, debuted at Cannes Un Certain Regard.
• DJ Ahmet by Georgi Unkovski 🇲🇰🇨🇿🇷🇸🇭🇷
  SEA premiere, Audience and Creative Vision awards at Sundance.
• Lucky Lu by Lloyd Lee Choi 🇨🇦🇺🇸
  SEA premiere, Cannes Directors’ Fortnight selection.
• Manas by Marianna Brennand 🇧🇷🇵🇹
  Asian premiere, Winner of the Director’s Award at Venice Giornate degli Autori.
• On Your Lap by Reza Rahadian 🇮🇩
  KB Vision Audience Award and FIPRESCI Award at Busan.
• The President’s Cake by Hasan Hadi 🇮🇶🇺🇸🇶🇦
  World premiere at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight; Audience Award, Caméra d’Or, and Iraq’s Oscar entry.

As a competition section, New Horizons highlights debut and second features that challenge conventions and expand the language of global cinema.

RainbowQC

Celebrating Diverse Queer Voices!
Selected for the RainbowQC competition are:

• 3670 by Park Joon-Ho 🇰🇷
  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of Best Actor, Disruption Support, CGV, and WAtcha’s Awards at the Jeonju International Film Festival;
• Bel Ami by Geng Jun 🇫🇷 🇹🇼
  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of Best Cinematography, Editing, Leading Actor, and Audience Choice (Narrative Feature) at the Golden Horse Awards;
• Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingoes by Diego Céspedes🇨🇱
  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of Un Certain Regard at Cannes and Chile’s Oscar entry for Best International Feature;
• On the Road by David Pablos 🇲🇽
  Asian premiere; Winner of Queer Lion and Venice Horizons at the Venice International Film Festival;
• Skin of Youth by Ash Mayfair 🇻🇳 🇸🇬 🇯🇵
  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of the Special Jury Award at the New York Asian Film Festival;
• Strange River by Jaume Claret Muxart 🇪🇸 🇩🇪
  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of the Golden Puffin at the Reykjavik International Film Festival;
• Summer’s Camera by Divine Sung 🇰🇷
  film within a film; Winner of the Wavemaker Grand Jury Prize at the Seattle International Film Festival;
• The Little Sister by Hafsia Herzi 🇫🇷 🇩🇪
  Southeast Asian premiere; Winner of Queer Palm and Best Actress at Cannes.
  RainbowQC is QCinema’s LGBTQIA+ section, celebrating diverse queer stories and perspectives in an ever-evolving world.

Screen International

The Screen International section, one of the QCinema International Film Festival’s most awaited, features acclaimed titles fresh from the global festival circuit.

This year’s lineup includes:

• Couture by Alice Winocour 🇺🇸
  Opening film;
• Divine Comedy by Ali Asgari 🇮🇷 🇮🇹 🇫🇷 🇩🇪 🇹🇷
  a film within a film;
• Father Mother Sister Brother by Jim Jarmusch 🇺🇸 🇮🇹 🇫🇷 🇮🇪 🇩🇪
  Golden Lion winner, Venice Film Festival 2025;
• Hamnet by Chloé Zhao 🇺🇸 🇬🇧
  Winner of the People’s Choice Award at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival;
• History of Sound by Oliver Hermanus 🇬🇧 🇺🇸 🇸🇪 ;
• Little Amélie by Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han 🇧🇪
  Winner of the Audience Award at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival;
• Once Upon a Time in Gaza by Tarzan and Arab Nasser 🇵🇸 🇫🇷
  film within a film, Winner of Best Director at the Un Certain Regard section of the 78th Cannes Film Festival;
• Sirat by Oliver Laxe 🇪🇸 🇫🇷
  Jury Prize at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and Spain’s Oscar entry for Best International Feature Film;
• The Mastermind by Kelly Reichardt 🇺🇸;
• The Portuguese House by Avelina Prat 🇪🇸 🇵🇹 ;
• The Things You Kill by Alireza Kahatami 🇹🇷 🇨🇦 🇫🇷 🇵🇱
  Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic at the Sundance Film Festival and Canada’s Oscar entry for Best International Feature Film.

Before Midnight

Tales of the fantastic, the supernatural, and everything that stirs as night falls on humanity.
Before Midnight returns with:

• Ugly Stepsister by Emilie Blichfeldt 🇳🇴🇵🇱🇸🇪🇩🇰.
• The Garden of Earthly Delights by Morgan Knibbe 🇳🇱🇵🇭🇧🇪
  Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Sound and Best Editing at the Netherlands Film Festival;
• Rabbit Trap by Bryn Chainey 🇺🇸🇬🇧;

QC Selects

A selection of exciting new films for cinema lovers of all stripes.

• Call My Manager by Erik Matti 🇵🇭
• Human Resource by Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit
  Thailand
• The Kings of the World by Laura Mora
  Colombia, France, Luxembourg, Mexico, Norway
• Lakambini, Gregoria De Jesus by Arjanmar Rebeta, Jeffrey Jeturian 🇵🇭
• Rental Family by Hikari 🇺🇸
• The Richest Woman in the World by Thierry Klifa
  France, Belgium
• Shadow Transit by Pedring Lopez 🇵🇭

Rediscovery

Rediscovery brings timeless masterpieces back to the big screen for a new generation with these beloved titles:

• Almost Famous by Cameron Crowe 🇺🇸;
• Linda Linda Linda by Nobuhiro Yamashita 🇯🇵 ;
• Showgirls by Paul Verhoeven 🇺🇸.

Dokyu Days

A selection of documentaries, highlighting true stories from all over the world.

• 10s Across the Borders
  Chan Sze-wei
  2025 | Philippines, Singapore, Germany, UK
• 2000 Meters to Andriivka
  Mstyslav Chernov
  2025 | Ukraine, USA
• Below the Clouds
  Gianfranco Rosi
  2025 | Italy
• The Road to Sydney
  Benito Bautista
  2025 | Philippines
• The Treasure Hunter
  Giacomo Gex
  2025 | UK, Philippines, Mexico
• The Voice of Hind Rajap
  Kaouther Ben Hania
  2025 | France, Tunisia, USA, UK, Cyprus, Saudi Arabia, Italy

Focus on Sandra Hüller

Co-presented with the @goetheinstitut_philippinen , Focus On: Sandra Hüller spotlights the extraordinary range of the acclaimed German actress.
Included are:

• Requiem by Hans-Christian Schmid 🇩🇪
• The Zone of Interest by Jonathan Glazer 🇬🇧 🇵🇱
  Cannes 2023 Grand Prix, Best International Feature and Best Sound at the 2024 Academy Awards;
• Toni Erdmann by Maren Ade 🇩🇪 🇦🇹 🇲🇨 🇷🇴 🇫🇷 🇨🇭
  FIPRESCI Prize at Cannes 2016, Nominee for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2017 Academy Awards;
• Two to One by Natja Brunckhorst
• Anatomy of a Fall by Justine Triet 🇫🇷 Palme d’Or and the Palm Dog Award Cannes 2023, Best Original Screenplay, 96th Academy Awards.

Partner Cinemas

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