Cinemalaya


The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, more commonly known as Cinemalaya, is a film festival in the Philippines held annually traditionally at the Cultural Center of [the Philippines Complex] as well as well as other select cinemas since 2011.
Established in 2005, Cinemalaya's aim is the development and promotion of Filipino independent films. The film festival is organized by the Cinemalaya Foundation, Inc. with the support of the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Econolink Investments, Inc.
The organizing committee, headed by veteran Filipino director and actress Laurice Guillen, oversees the production of the films and the festival.

History

The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival is a film competition and festival that supports Filipino filmmakers. Cinemalaya's first edition was held in 2005 with the main competition meant for filmmakers who have made less than three commercial feature films. It also began with a short film competition. The organization of Cinemalaya was first proposed as early as 2004. The Cultural Center of the Philippines is among the original main proponents of Cinemalaya.
The Cinemalaya's traditional main venue has been the Cultural Center of the [Philippines Complex|CCP Complex] in Pasay.
In 2010, the festival was opened to veteran filmmakers under the Directors Showcase competition with the main competition branded as the New Breed category. The Directors Showcase lasted until the 2014 edition.
Entrant films began concurrently screening in select Ayala Malls cinemas starting the 2011 edition.
From its inception in 2005 until the 2013 edition, Cinemalaya was held annually in July. The schedule was moved to August in 2014 to avoid competition from "big Cinema of [the United States|Hollywood] films".
Only short films was featured in the 2015 edition. The main competition was revived in the 2016 edition with the short film competition being the only other category.
Cinemalaya was held virtually for the first time in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was held online again in the next year. Both editions focused on short films.
The film festival returned to on-site screenings in the 2022 edition.
From the 2023 edition due to the due to renovation work of the CCP complex, the main venue of the Cinemalaya has been moved elsewhere within Metro Manila. It is projected that Cinemalaya will only be able to return to the CCP Complex in 2028 at earliest.
By 2025, Cinemalaya faced financial difficulties with the 2025 edition "streamlined" due to reduced funding from the CCP which is still renovating its complex. The schedule was also shifted to October from August. Fortunately, The 21st Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival took place in October 2025 in Metro Manila, showcasing Filipino independent films. The festival was shifted from August to October and streamlined due to funding changes, with events held at Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong.

Funding

Each director receives a seed grant to produce their feature films. In the early years, each received a grant of. In the 2023 edition, filmmakers received a record high grant of each.

Competitions

  • Main competition – known as the New Breed category from 2010 to 2014 is the primary competition for Cinemalaya for new Filipino filmmakers
  • Director's Showcase – Held from 2010 to 2014, the competition was open to veteran filmmakers
  • Short film competition – category for short film submissions. The 2015, 2020, and 2021 editions solely held the short film competitions.