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MMFF 2017 Selects First 4 Entries, Draws Flak From Erik Matti, 3 Execom Members Resign

Last June 30, the Metro Manila Development Authority announced the first four qualified entries to the Metro Manila Film Festival 2017. The choice of entries includes big commercial movies like Coco Martin’s Ang Panday, Vice Ganda’s The Revengers, Vic Sotto’s Love Traps #FamilyGoals and Jennylyn Mercado’s Almost Is Not Enough. On the same day, three members of the MMFF Executive Committee resign in protest of the selection.

Director Erik Matti also criticized the selection process of the festival. He told PEP that he has no issue if the film festival is “for commercial purposes,” but he says that the criteria should be changed. He adds, “Okay, we only want movies that are commercial, that we feel is commercial. But to hide behind the vision, which is artistic excellence, to push for cultural, global appeal..”

Erik Matti: More Than Hypocrisy

According to the report, Matti’s film Buy Bust, which starred Anne Curtis, was one of the films submitted for consideration. His film was not chosen, along with several others like Smaller and Smaller Circles, a film adaptation of a Palanca award-winning novel and a musical adaptation of Nick Joaquin’s The Portrait of an Artist as a Filipino.

Matti himself said that he did not want to submit his film but his producers insisted. While he saw the changes in MMFF 2016, when he saw the 2017 composition, he immediately realized that his film had no chance. More and more, he says that the emphasis has always been a commercial appeal.

He also clarified that he had nothing against the selected entries. He says he is disappointed with the selection committee and the selection process. When asked if he will submit his finished film again in October, he gave a definite no.

The first four films were chosen from submitted scripts and not yet finished films. In October, another round of selection will be done, this time looking at finished films.

3 Execom Members Quit: Ricky Lee, Roland Tolentina, Kara Alikpala

Three out of the 24-member Executive Committee chose to resign because of what is happening. According to Business World, renowned screenwriter Ricky Lee saw no point in him staying because he was not seeing a continuation of the reforms that were started in the MMFF 2016.

Member of the academe Roland Tolentino, on the other hand, said: “The MMFF script selection is proof of the real divide between commerciality and quality and commercial interests are powerful… it is also proof that there’s no interest in removing the distinction between indie and mainstream [films]. Indie was removed.”

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