MANILA -- Ten films from the Philippines have been shortlisted in this year’s ASEAN International Film Festival Awards (AIFFA) to be held August 2 to 4 at Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia.

“Normally, there were only five to seven films that were previously shortlisted,” filmmaker Rain Yamson told ABS-CBN News. “This year, we are very happy that we are bringing in 10 films.”

Yamson is the liaison officer of AIFFA since 2013, when the biennial awards were first presented. In 2021, however, no awards were handed out because of the pandemic.

The list for this year's AIFFA includes Yamson’s “Angkas,” Carlo Obispo’s “The Baseball Player,” Louie Ignacio’s “Broken Blooms,” Christian Paolo Lat’s “Ginhawa,” Roman Perez, Jr.’s “Kaluskos” and “Sitio Diablo,” TM Malones’ “Kargo,” Vince Tañada’s “Katips,” Ralston Jover’s “Latay” and Joel Lamangan’s “Walker.”

“I’m very happy and privileged that I’ve been with AIFFA since the beginning in 2013,” said Yamson. “I was able to meet different filmmakers around the region. I was even able to get a film project in 2019, because I met a director from Brunei.”

The title of Yamson’s film was “Academy,” produced by a princess of Brunei. “It was shown there,” he said. “The film industry in Brunei is not as big as the Philippines. They don’t have as many filmmakers as ours.”

For the 2023 AIFFA, Yamson is bringing 33 artists and filmmakers, the second biggest delegation that was brought to the festival. In 2015, there was a delegation of 35 that included the Gutierrezes, Piolo Pascual and superstar Nora Aunor.

The artists and filmmakers who confirmed to join include Tañada, Jerome Ponce and John Rey Rivas for “Katips,” Merryl Soriano, Joem Bascon and Jolo Estrada for “Angkas,” Tommy Alejandrino for “The Baseball Player,” and Coleen Garcia for “Kaluskos.”

Perez and Kiko Estrada will join for “Sitio Diablo,” Rico Barrera for “Latay,” Max Eigenmann and Tim Malones for “Kargo,” Lat for “Ginhawa” and Benjamin Alves for “Angkas.”

Director Louie Ignacio is returning this time for “Broken Booms,” after he won Best Director for “Area” with Ai-Ai de las Alas in 2019. Joining him in “Broken Blooms” are Jacob Jesuitas and Teri Malvar.

Carlo Obispo previously won twice for the Asian Spirit Award at the AIFFA. He is returning this year for “The Baseball Player.”

“With the Philippines, it never fails,” Yamson bragged. “We always win an acting award. With the 10 films, a lot of artists are really good for this batch.”

Celebrity guests this year include Ella Cruz, who was chosen as one of the presenters, with director Vince Tañada.

Filipino artists who won trophies at the AIFFA included Cherie Gil, who graced the festival twice – first in 2017 when she won Best Actress for director Peque Gallaga’s coming-of-age drama, “Sonata” and in 2019, Gil was requested to become a presenter.

Aunor returned in 2017 since she had to present the Lifetime Achievement Award, which she won in 2015.

The very first AIFFA winner was Alessandra de Rossi for her Cinemalaya film, “Sta. Niña,” in 2013.

Ricky Davao won Best Supporting Actor for Bor Ocampo’s “Dayang Asu (Dog Nation)” in 2015 and Kristofer King for Howard Yambao’s “Kristo” (2019).

“We have a lot of similarities with the ASEAN filmmakers,” noted Yamsuan. “We can easily collaborate with them.

“In Malaysia, when Jericho Rosales went there in 2013, he had hundreds of Malaysian fans because of the success of ‘Pangako sa ‘Yo.’

“You would see the placards carried by those who met him at the airport. Even the immigration officers posed for a picture with Jericho.

“I was also surprised when I invited Marlo Mortel in 2017, he also has fans and followers in Malaysia because of ‘Be Careful With My Heart’.”

AIFFA festival director Livan Tajang announced there are more than 120 “brilliant” entries for the films shown in the region the last three years from January 2020 to December 2022.

The Philippines has the most number of entries that were shortlisted for AIFFA this year.

“I will not be surprised if the Philippines also goes home with the most number of trophies,” Tajang said.

A new addition to AIFFA this year is the SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) Short Film Competition for university students around ASEAN.

“SDG is set by the United Nations to encourage our younger generation to create short films about the environment,” Tajang informed. “This is and collaboration between AIFFA and Agent Public Relations Network.”

The reason AIFFA is doing the awards biennially is that there are some countries, like Laos and Brunei, where they don’t have many feature films.

There will be a new award to be given this year, the ASEAN Spirit Icon Award for the personality that helps filmmakers in the region.

The winners will bring home the distinguished hornbill trophy of the AIFFA. “The hornbill is a sacred bird for hundreds of generations in the state of Sarawak,” said Tajang. “It’s a protected bird and you cannot kill it. It symbolizes uniqueness.

“The state crest of the Sarawak government is a hornbill. So when we thought about the trophy, we asked, ‘What would reflect Sarawak but in a stylized form?”

The AIFFA awards night will be held on August 4, Friday.