The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival opens its doors once again with the theme “Cinemalaya 21: Layag sa Alon, Hangin, at Unos.” To continue its quest to tell bold stories that captivate the hearts and minds of Pinoy movie enthusiasts, Cinemalaya 2025 promises to be the vessel for high quality storytelling that amplifies the diverse voices in Philippine cinema.
The festival will run from October 3 to 12, 2025 at the Red Carpet Cinemas, Gateway Cineplex, and select Ayala Malls Cinemas (Ayala Malls Manila Bay, Market! Market!, Ayala Malls Circuit, and U.P. Town Center).
Cinemalaya 2025 full-length features:

Bloom Where You Are Planted
Directed by Noni Abao
Three land activists contend with their volatile notions of home amid terror and red-tagging in Cagayan Valley.

Child No. 82 (Son of Boy Kana)
Directed by Tim Rone Villanueva
At a wake, a persevering high school student must prove that he is the 82nd child of the country’s biggest action-fantasy movie star in hopes of seeing his father one last time.

Habang Nilalamon ng Hydra ang Kasaysayan
Directed by Dustin Celestino
Four Filipinos confront the slow erasure of memory and truth in a country devoured by misinformation.

Cinemartyrs
Directed by Sari Dalena
Recreating forgotten massacres from Philippine history, a young filmmaker begins shooting at a site where thousands of men, women, and children were slaughtered. But the angry spirits are awakened and the lives of her team and the local villagers are put at risk.

Open Endings
Directed by Nigel Santos
Four queer women in their 30s who are exes-turned-best-friends navigate adulthood, love, friendship, chosen families, and everything in between.

Padamlagan
Directed by Jenn Romano
Five days before the proclamation of Martial Law, the Colgante Bridge collapses in Naga, forcing a father into a desperate search for his missing son.

Paglilitis
Directed by Cheska Marfori
Years after experiencing sexual harassment at her workplace, a former executive assistant is persuaded by a passionate lawyer to file a case against her rich and highly respected boss.

Raging
Directed by Ryan Machado
A young man’s quest for truth and justice intertwines with a plane crash mystery, uncovering a sinister plot that propels his desire to be heard but also threatens his community.

Republika ng Pipolipinas
Directed by Renei Dimla
When the local government threatens to evict her from her own land, a farmer renounces her Filipino citizenship and builds her own micronation.

Warla
Directed by Kevin Z. Alambra
Kitkat, a 19-year-old transgender woman, finds the family she’s been longing for in a gang of sisters who kidnap foreign men to fund their gender-affirming surgeries, until their crimes force her to question the true cost of belonging.
Cinemalaya 2025 short films:

Ascension from the Office Cubicle
Directed by Hannah Silvestre
Thelma, an exploited call center agent, grows increasingly enamored by the late night host of the local lottery draw.

Figat
Directed by Handiong Kapuno
While the world is lost in screens, a young Kalinga girl – untouched by the pull of technology – brings a handmade instrument to class, carrying the voice of her ancestors and inspiring a quiet yet powerful return to cultural pride.

Hasang
Directed by Daniel de la Cruz
One summer, a young boy witnesses his grandmother slowly transforming into a tilapia.

Kay Basta Angkarabo Yay Bagay Ibat Ha Langit
Directed by Maria Estela Paiso
A young girl turns into a fish and recounts the territorial aggression being experienced by the fisherfolk in her hometown Zambales.

Kung Tugnaw ang Kaidalman Sang Lawod
Directed by Seth Andrew Blanca
In his desperation to send money to his girlfriend, a debt-stricken seafarer takes his superior’s help, only to sense an unknown presence tightening its hold on him.

Please Keep This Copy
Directed by Miguel Lorenzo Peralta
Across a white void, old pages come to life and speak. A cacophony of archival voices of rebellious youth in a private all-boys Catholic high school during a moment of political turmoil breaks through, seeking liberation as lines break out of formation and colored ink spills out of the pages.

Radikals
Directed by Arvin Belarmino
A young rookie from a bizarre chicken-dance group faces a heckler after being the worst dancer at a performance — leading him to a series of strange events that reveal what the group does to their weakest link.

The Next 24 Hours
Directed by Carl Joseph E. Papa
After a sexual assault, a young woman navigates a cold and bureaucratic system over the course of 24 hours, fighting to reclaim her safety and sanity while battling the manipulations of her assailant.

Water Sports
Directed by Whammy Alcazaren
Two sad boys harness the power of their love in an attempt to survive a world devastated by climate change.

I’m Best Left Inside My Head
Directed by Elian Idioma
Alec Dominguez, a 20 something year old multi talented, multi-awarded-golden-boy- adopted by the–owners–of–gay-philantrophists has a reunion with his old buddies from his original home, The Dominguez Orphanage.
Tickets prices are P350 (regular) and P250 (students). You can purchase tickets at participating cinemas, Shangri-La, Gateway, and select Ayala Malls Cinemas.
You may also avail of the Festival Pass for P3,500. Full mechanics on how to avail the Festival Pass can be found here.
For screening schedules, refer to Cinemalaya’s list:



























The festival officially opens on October 3, 2025 at 7:00 PM at the Red Carpet Cinemas in Shangri-la Plaza with the opening film The Elysian Field from director Pradip Kurbah. Tickets for the opening film are free and will be given away 3 hours prior to the screening at the Red Carpet Cinemas on a first-come-first-served basis.
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Photos and videos courtesy of Cinemalaya Foundation