14 March 2013 - The Philippine Film “Aparisyon” (The Apparition) by Filipino-American filmmaker Vincent Sandoval won the Lotus Prix du Public de la Ville de Deauville (Lotus Audience Award of the City of Deauville) at the 15th Annual Asian Film Festival held in the northwestern city of France from March 06 to 10.
The award was given for the first time ever since the creation of the Festival in 1999, and was given by the City of Deauville to the film which impressed the audience the most.
The independent drama by Vincent Sandoval was lauded by the City of Deauville for “its profound reflection on sin, guilt, faith—rooted in a specific historical and political context, highlighted by a sophisticated mise-en-scène (directing)”.
The 15th Asian Film Festival of Deauville showcased nine films from the continent “with the most economic and artistic dynamism” in the world, Asia. Entries included “ID” (India) by Kamal KM which won Best Film, “Four Stations” by Boonsong Nakphoo (Thailand) and “Mai Ratima” by Yoo Ji-tae (South Korea) shared the Jury Prize, and “Taboor” by Vahid Vakilifar (Iran) which received the International Critics’ Prize.
Asian Ambassadors accredited to France attended the Festival, including the Ambassadors of Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, India, and Philippine Ambassador Cristina G. Ortega. The Embassies of China and Sri Lanka were likewise represented.
A Déjeuner des Ambassadors (Lunch of Ambassadors) was hosted by Deauville Mayor Philippe Augier at the Hôtel Royal Barrière, where Ambassador Ortega personally met Vincent Sandoval, and extended to him the Philippine Embassy in Paris’ encouragement and full support.
Ambassador Ortega also assured the young filmmaker of imminent success, gathering from Deauville film enthusiasts’ positive reviews of his film. Vincent Sandoval promised to visit the Ambassador when he visits Paris after the Festival.
The film, topbilled by an all female cast: Fides Cuyugan-Asensio, Mylene Dizon, Jodi Sta. Maria, and Raquel Villavicencio, is an internationally acclaimed indie film, with awards from the 2012 Busan Film Festival, the 2012 Hawaii International Film Festival, and received rave reviews at the 2012 Vancouver Film Festival.
“Aparisyon” also won the Balangai Award for Best Sound and was nominated for Best Film (New Breed Full Length Category) in 2012 by Cinemalaya.
Vincent Sandoval is a US-based Filipino filmmaker who has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of San Carlos in Cebu City and an MBA from New York University.
In 2009, he founded the IndioBravo Film Foundation in New York, which screens independent Filipino films to US audiences. His film Señorita was an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner in 2010, and later competed at the 64th Annual Festival del Film Locarno. Señorita is the third Filipino feature to compete at the festival, following Celso Ad Castillo’s Burlesk Queen in 1978 and Brillante Mendoza’s Masahista in 2005.
Philippine filmmakers have always left a mark at the Deauville Asian Film Festival: in 2012, the Deauville Jury Prize was awarded to “Bahay Bata” by Edwardo Roy Jr. and in 2010, a special tribute or “Hommage” was made by the Deauville Asian Film Festival in honor of Brillante Mendoza. This year, Mendoza’s critically-acclaimed “Thy Womb” was shown as a feature film. Vincent Sandoval’s “Aparisyon” claims another victory for the Philippines. END