The 2011 Cinemanila International Film Festival recently released the list of finalists for its International & Southeast Asian (SEA) Competitions.

International Films in Competition:

1. Gangor (2010) by Italo Spinelli (Italy)
2. If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle (2010) by Florin Serban (Romania)
3. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (2011) by Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Turkey)
4. Poetry (2010) by Chang-dong Lee (South Korea)
5. Siglo ng Pagluluwal (Century of Birthing) (2011) by Lav Diaz (Philippines)
6. Sun-Beaten Path (2011) by Sonthar Gyal (China)
7. Toomelah (2011) by Ivan Sen (Australia)

Southeast Asian Films in Competition:

1. Boundary (2011) by Benito Bautista (Philippines)
2. Eternity (2010) by Sivaroj Kongsakul (Thailand)
3. The Mirror Never Lies (2011) by Kamila Andini (Indonesia)
4. Water Hands (2011) by Vladimir Todorovic (Singapore)
5. Golden Slumbers (2011) by Davy Chou (Cambodia)

The following awards will be given in the International Competition:

Lino Brocka Prize
Grand Jury Prize
Best Director
Best Actor
Best Actress

Previous Lino Brocka Prize winners — since Cinemanila’s inception in 1999 — include Garin Nugroho (Indonesia), Colour of Paradise by Majid Majidi (Iran), Firefly Dreams by John Williams (Japan), Atanarjuat by Zacharias Kunuk (Canada), What Time Is It There? by Tsai Ming-liang (Taiwan), Uzak (Distant) by Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Turkey), Vibrator by Ryuichi Hiroki (Japan), The President’s Last Bang by Im-Sang Soo (South Korea), Kubrador by Jeffrey Jeturian (Philippines), The Edge of Heaven by Fatih Akin (Turkey), Hunger by Steve McQueen, Sketches of Kaitan City by Kazuyoshi Kumakiri (Japan).

In the Southeast Asian Competition, a Best Film prize will be awarded. Past awardees of this relatively new category — launched in 2007 — include Mukhsin by Yasmin Ahmad (Malaysia), Confessional by Jerrold Tarog and Ruel Dahis Antipuesto (Philippines), Talentime by Yasmin Ahmad (Malaysia), and Ang Damgo ni Eleuteria by Remton Siega Zuasola (Philippines).

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The 13th Cinemanila will be held from November 11 to 17, 2011 at the Market! Market! Cinemas in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City. Around 80 international and local films will be screened in a span of 7 days, from the current toasts of the local indie scene to the award-winners and favorites of prestigious festivals such as Cannes, Berlin, Rotterdam, Sundance, and Pusan. The festival will also feature workshops, seminars, and master classes. For more info, or jpegs for a release, please contact cinemanila.press@gmail.com and cinemanila@gmail.com or go to www.cinemanila.org.ph.

For updates, join the Cinemanila International Film Festival Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/246306172084819/ and follow Cinemanila on Twitter at http://twitter.com/CinemanilaIFF .

The 2011 Cinemanila International Film Festival is presented by the City of Taguig under the leadership of Mayor Lani Cayetano, and the Cinemanila International Film Festival Foundation, together with Market! Market! Cinemas, in cooperation with Fully Booked, Bonifacio Global City, Cinema One, Manila Bulletin, Business World, TBWA\Mangada Santiago Puno, Outpost Visual Frontier, Solid Video Corporation, Scenema Concepts International, Click the City, Pep.ph, Spot.ph, Web Philippines, Goethe Institut, the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen, the Embassy of Greece, the Embassy of Italy in Manila, the Australian Embassy, the Film Development Council of the Philippines, Jeonju Film Festival, Asiatica Mediale, and Murray n D’Vine.