Directors slam non-submission of PH entry to Oscars

MANILA — Filipino directors slammed on Friday the non-submission of a Philippine entry to the foreign film category of the 94th Academy Awards, or the Oscars.

In a statement, the Directors’ Guild of the Philippines (DGPI) expressed “great disappointment” with the Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP), the group responsible for submitting films for consideration in the international category.

“To our knowledge, this will only be the second time the Philippines has not submitted an entry to the Oscars, dismaying given that the Oscar eligibility rules in this pandemic year have accommodated streaming and online jury voting, making a push from our local producers more feasible,” it said.

The organization of directors pointed out that all eight entries in the 2020 Metro Manila Film Festival would have been eligible, as well as other acclaimed films exhibited overseas.

The DGPI mentioned in particular MacArthur Alejandre's 'Tagpuan,' Erik Matti's Venice-winning 'The Missing 8,' Antoinette Jadaone's Tallinn-premiering 'FanGirl' & Avid Liongoren's Fantasia-awarded 'Hayop Ka!'

“This missed opportunity offers a good chance to review our country’s processes on submission of Philippine entries to the Oscar Awards,” it said.

DGPI then publicly invited film workers to “discuss and create a private sector, industry-led initiative in resolving procedures for our future Oscar entries.”

“As our industry struggles to rise above survival, some changes are necessary,” the organization said.

The FAP has yet to release a statement regarding its non-submission of an entry for the international feature film category of the Oscars.

The Oscars released its list of 93 eligible films on December 6. The shortlist of 15 finalists will be announced on December 21, to be followed by the list of the final five nominees in February.