Garcia, Alas bag awards at Cinemalaya

VETERAN ACTORS EDDIE Garcia and Ai-ai delas Alas won coveted awards at the Cinemalaya Film Festival, the annual festival that showcase and celebrates Philippine Independent Cinema.

For his realistic portrayal of an old, retired soldier who showed the real horrors of Martial Law in ML, the 14th Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival’s jurors named him the Best Actor, citing his “wickedly frightening portrayal - himself embodying the horrors of a dark past.”

This is Garcia’s third such trophy. He received the same awards for his roles in the past Cinemalaya’s entries ICU Bed 7 and Bwakaw.

The coveted Best Actress award went to veteran actress Ai Ai delas Alas. She was cited for her very realistic portrayal of a hateful woman trying to retain a modicum of humanity in School Service.

Meanwhile, internationallyacclaimed young actress Therese Malvar has added another award under her belt.

She made history in Philippine Cinema after she was hailed Best Supporting Actress for her impressive portrayal in the films Distance and School Service. This marks the first time an actress wins the award for two different roles in the same category.

Prior to her historical win in this year’s Cinemalaya, the 17-year-old Kapuso star also earned various recognitions from local and international award-giving bodies.

Therese was named as the Best Actress at the 2013 Cinefilipino Film Festival for Ang Huling Cha-cha ni Anita; Best Actress at the Cinema One Originals 2015, Outstanding Artistic Achievement Golden Goblet Award at the 2016 Shanghai International Festival, Screen International Rising Star at the 2016 New York Asian Film Festival and Best Actress at the 2016 Moscow International Film Festival for Hamog; and Best Supporting Actress at the Eddys 2018 (Entertainment Editors’ Choice Awards) for Ilawod.