Following Jaclyn Jose’s Best Actress win at the Cannes International Film Festival, one more accolade is given to the film Ma’ Rosa. Its director, Brillante Mendoza, was recognized as Best Director at the 54th Gijón International Film Festival in Spain.
Thank you to the 54th Gijon Intl Film Fest for the Best Director award for #MaRosa
— Brillante Mendoza (@brillante_ma) November 26, 2016
Mendoza is the sole Filipino winner in the festival. He was selected by an international jury chaired by Judith Colell, a noted Spanish filmmaker.
Ma’ Rosa tells the story of husband and wife Nestor and Rosa who use a sari-sari store as a cover-up for a drug business. It stars Jaclyn Jose, Maria Isabel Lopez, Julio Diaz, Andi Eigenmann, Felix Roco, and Jomari Angeles.
The film was screened in Cannes’ In Competition, against films by noted directors like Pedro Almodovar, Jim Jarmusch, Sean Penn, and Paul Verhoven.
Lead star Jose won Best Actress, becoming the first Southeast Asian to win the award. Jose beat renowned actresses Charlize Theron, Kristen Stewart, Isabelle Hupert and Marion Cotillard.
Mendoza is an award-winning director whose films Serbis, Kinatay, and Taklub were screened in various editions of the Cannes. Serbis and Kinatay were nominated for the Palme d’Or, the festival’s highest distinction. Kinatay didn’t win the Palme d’Or, but it won the Best Director Award for Mendoza.
Besides the Cannes, Mendoza’ work was nominated in the past for the Golden Lion in the Venice Film Festival and the Golden Bear in the Berlin Film Festival.
Have you seen Ma’ Rosa? Share your thoughts below!
Follow When in Manila Koji for more stories like this!
