January 1, 2025 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Organizers of the 50th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) have addressed questions over the inclusion of veteran actress-comedienne Eugene Domingo in a tribute video aired during its awards night or Gabi ng Parangal.
Clips of the segment went viral on social media, after netizens mistakenly assumed that Eugene was part of an “In Memoriam” presentation dedicated to actors and actresses who have already passed away.
The MMFF executive committee has since issued a statement explaining that the tribute was intended to honor both living and deceased icons of cinema who have been part of the festival’s 50-year legacy.
“We’ve noted concerns regarding the video tribute featuring Ms. Eugene Domingo at the recent Gabi ng Parangal. This was intended as a tribute to luminaries both living and passed, and who have contributed to the MMFF over its 50-year history — not an In Memoriam segment,” MMFF’s statement read.
The organization asserted that the tribute also featured other notable figures in Philippine cinema such as Joseph Estrada, Christopher de Leon, Hilda Koronel, Ruel Vernal, Amy Austria, Vilma Santos, Charo Santos and Nora Aunor.
“We hope this clears up any misunderstandings and allows us to focus on celebrating the film industry’s achievements,” the committee concluded.
Photos courtesy of MMDA, Quantum Films.
Eugene appeared in two MMFF entries this year, co-starring with Vice Ganda in “And The Breadwinner Is…” and appearing in the Judy Ann Santos and Lorna Tolentino starrer “Espantaho.”
While “And The Breadwinner Is” received the Gender Sensitivity award and Vice Ganda received a Special Jury Prize, Domingo was not nominated for her role despite being submitted in the Best Supporting Actress category, as confirmed by ABS-CBN News.
Her non-inclusion in the list of nominees, along with “Uninvited” actor Aga Muhlach and director Dan Villegas raised questions if not objection from fans and supporters.
This prompted Noel Ferrer, MMFF spokesperson, to address the issue in a social media post. “YOU MAY AGREE OR DISAGREE WITH THEIR CHOICES … but the integrity of each and every member of the Jury since we took charge in 2016, especially on this 50th Edition of the MMFF cannot be assailed.
“They have exhaustively deliberated and decided on the nominees and the winners from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. yesterday (Dec. 27). No leaks, definitely no cooking show … only the jury chair and the MMFF executive director knew the results, not even I or any member of the execom. Rest assured, there was due process and the judgment was fair and sound AND FINAL!!!” he wrote.
On the other hand, Dennis Trillo and Judy Ann both earned their MMFF acting awards for the third time after bagging the prestigious Best Actor and Best Actress awards for their respective performances in the prison drama “Green Bones” and the supernatural horror flick “Espantaho.”
Twenty years ago, both Judy Ann and Dennis starred in the MMFF entry, “Aishite Imasu 1941: Mahal Kita.”
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