GR Ranking to be revealed on August 12 (Wednesday) at 12:45am PHT / followed by the GR Accolades at 1:00am PHT Note that this is not in any way related to the official Cinemalaya 2026 results and is solely based on the preference of Goldwin Reviews. This is made to show appreciation to the artists behind each category.

Status: Rejected (Cinemalaya 2026) Directed by: Vahn Leinard Pascual Maraming status tayong pwedeng pagdaanan sa buhay. Pwedeng single, married, in a relationship, it’s complicated. Ngunit ang isa sa pinaka-mahirap sigurong status na makuha ay ang rejection. Yung akala mo ay abot kamay mo na, ngunit hindi mo pala maaaring makuha. Mapapatanong ka kung bakit. Imbes na sagutin nang derechahan, ipapakita ng pelikulang ito ang mga dahilan. You get to see a glimpse of their life,

2 Valid IDs (Cinemalaya 2026) Directed by: Ma-an Asuncion-Dagñalan Nakakainip. Ang tagal. Pabalik-balik. Marahil ganyan ang komento habang pinapanood ang pelikulang ito. Totoo naman talaga. Nakakapagod makita ang isang 59-year-old na maglakad ng mga IDs. Ngunit ang mas masaklap pa diyan ay para bang sanay ka na sa mga aberyang nangyayari. Dahil paulit-ulit na lang, nakakamanhid na sa pakiramdam. Nung una, maninibago ka pa pagpasok sa hospital. Andaming pasyente na may k

Kaka sa Yawan / Brothers by the River (Cinemalaya 2026) Written & Directed by: Alpha Habon Minsan sa buhay, hindi mo malalaman kung ano ba talaga ang kulang hangga’t hindi mo pa ito tuluyang nararanasan. Tulad ng pelikulang ito, saka mo lang lubos na mauunawaan ang ganda kapag umabot ka na sa dulo. Hindi mo aakalaing may marka pala itong maiiwan. Napaka-cute panoorin ng mga bata sa kung ano man ang kanilang ginagawa. Ang mga linyahan nila ay makulit ngunit makabuluhan.

Mag-iina / The Mothering (Cinemalaya 2026) Directed by: Giancarlo Abrahan Usually, when a film is overwhelmingly creative and extremely experimental, its artistry tends to overshadow its message. But this time around, the message takes center stage, and the artistry becomes the vehicle that drives it forward. It’s entertaining at first. You hear the Alta people casually speaking in English. Everyone is visually attractive. The shots are stylish, with views from higher floor

A . NI . MÁL (Cinemalaya 2026) Written & Directed by Dustin Celestino Malakas ang simula. Nakakapagod sa gitna. Nakakapanlumo sa dulo. Kapag nakita mo ang mga unang eksena, hindi mo alam kung ano ba ang bubungad sa’yo. Ang kamera ay may sinusundan na nilalang. Parang horror dahil sa tunog. Parang documentary dahil sa anggulo ng kamera. Akala mo wala masyadong mangyayari, ngunit itong sandali pala na ito ang siyang huhubog sa buong pelikula. Ang nilalang pala na ito ang siya

Ganggang (Cinemalaya 2026) Written & Directed by: JL Burgos Hindi natural ang batuhan ng mga linya. Pang-theatrical minsan ang aktingan. Para silang nasa entablado. Parang may cue bago magsalita ang bawat isa. Minsan, mukhang reenactment ang dating ng mga eksena. Stable ang shots, pero ang hirap makatutok. Andaming kaagaw ng mga karakter sa eksena. Hindi sila nakaka-enganyong sundan. Hirap silang mag-focus sa mga bagay bagay. Madalas mawala ang direksyon. Hindi maka-focus s

Tirik / To Set Upright (Cinemalaya 2026) Directed by: May-i Guia Padilla Kapag nasa sasakyan sila, mukhang 3D printer ang mga tao. Ang hirap nilang seryosohin. Parang fantasy comedy ang pinapanood mo. Dahil alangan silang tingnan, sa mga usapan ka nalang aasa — ngunit pati rito ay pumapalya sila. Parang nagpapatawa sila kapag nagsasalita, pero hindi naman pala. Naghihintay ka ng punchline, pero walang dumarating. Kakarampot lang ang nakukuha mo sa pinagsasabi nila. Minsan

Hand of God (Cinemalaya 2026) Written & Directed by: Mark Duane Angos Bola o baril ba ang iyong hahawakan? Hindi ito isang pangkaraniwan na tanong lalong lalo na kapag bata ang pinag-uusapan. Nasa panahon tayo ngayon kung saan ang karahasan ay tila nagiging normal na. Palabas man o realidad, makikita mo ito kahit saan. Sa kabila ng laganap na karahasan, nasa ating mga kamay pa rin ang pagpili kung ano ang nais nating bigyan ng kapangyarihan. Pinipili ng pelikulang ito na ma

Tayo Lang Ang Nakakaalam (Cinemalaya 2026) Directed by: David Corpuz Hindi madaling panoorin ang pelikulang ito. Dadaan ka sa matinding hirap at pagsubok. Masasagad ang pasensya mo. Gusto mong kaawaan ang mga karakter, ngunit minsan ay maiinis ka rin sa kanila. May mga desisyon sila na hindi ka sigurado kung ikatutuwa mo ba. Nais mo silang sumbatan at sigawan. Buong magdamag, nangingibabaw ang kalungkutan. Mahusay ang mga aktor. Unti-unti kang nalulunod sa kanilang pinagdar

Enjoy Your Stay (Cinemalaya 2026 Opening Film) Directed by: Dominik Locher Hindi mo kailanman iisipin na mga aktres itong pinapanood mo. Lahat sila ay ang mga totoong tao. Hindi mo na iintidihin kung paano ba sila umarte. Kaya sobrang nakatutok ka lang sa istorya. Sunod sunod ang mga kaganapan. Walang pasikot sikot. May tensyon at kaba sa bawat interaksyon. Pati kamera, hindi mapirmi. Panoy alog at parang kinakabahan din. Walang filter. Derechahan kung derechahan. Masikip s

Open Endings (Cinemalaya 2025) Directed by: Nigel Santos As viewers, we have our own biases on how we’d like a certain story to move forward. We want characters to behave in such a way that meets our expectations. But this film works wonders. It makes us forget that we are viewers who see things from the outside. We are transported into their living room, breathing the same air with them. Whenever they talk, we listen and we don’t judge. Whenever they fight, we are the first

Habang Nilalamon ng Hydra ang Kasaysayan (Cinemalaya 2025) Written & Directed by: Dustin Celestino The film starts with a black screen and ends with a white screen. Everything in between falls into gray areas. You can’t summarize it with just one color. It’s more nuanced than that. As complex as the characters, the story has many layers that you don’t initially see as you’re blinded by emotions. When things don’t go your way, it’s easy to get mad. But instead of dwelling on t

RANKING FOR CINEMALAYA 2025 SHORTS: 1️⃣ Hasang (Daniel de la Cruz) - A friend to the animals, humans, and the environment, this film can talk gibberish all day, yet you understand where they’re coming from and where they’re heading to. The final scene makes you wanna say “glug glug glug” which can mean it’s the end of the world… or we can still save the world. This film can exhibit creativity—without undermining its intended message. 2️⃣ Figat (Handiong Kapuno) - Seeing a k

Paglilitis (2025) Directed by: Cheska Marfori Nung nalaman mo kung ano ang nangyari sa bida, maaawa ka para sa kanya. Nung nakita mo ang kanilang sitwasyon, mauunawaan mo ang kanyang desisyon. Ngunit hindi sapat sa pelikulang ito ang awa at pang-unawa lang. Nung nag-aaway na sila, gusto mong mag-mura at magsabi ng shutang ina. Mula sa lungkot , napunta na ito sa galit . Ngunit hindi ulit sila nakuntento na magalit ka lang. Dapat ay may gawin ka rin. Kapag ang mabibigat na em

Cinemartyrs (2025) Directed by: Sari Dalena This movie can be a lot of things. Minsan, akala mo nasa loob ka ng isang classroom at nakikinig sa nonstop lectures ng professors. Minsan, parang nakahithit ka at napasama sa acid trip ng ibang tao. Despite the weirdness of it all, you ask for more. The actors look so committed with what they’re doing. You trust them that this movie is worth more than what it seems. As you wait, the weirdness is brought to the next level. For some

Bloom Where You Are Planted (2025) Written & Directed by: Noni Abao You might expect a documentary about 3 activists to be explosive and loud, but this one’s pleasantly different. The sceneries remind us of the beauty of living. Relationships are sacred. No matter how often they’re shown, thriving crops are always a better sight than witnessing a life suffering. The documentary is full of quiet and calm moments. But when they do speak, most answers rekindle a fire—which can a

Child No. 82 (Cinemalaya 2025) Directed by: Tim Rone Villanueva Having a loving mother, it’s quite ungrateful for the son to keep looking for his father, who abandoned them right from the start. There’s a blind fanaticism over the father—which takes a long while to get acknowledged. For that, it can be dragging at times. A conversation or two could’ve wrapped up the whole movie, yet they created an itinerary for the main character to accomplish. His journey has an on-and-o

Raging (Cinemalaya 2025) Written & Directed by: Ryan Machado No matter how good of an actor he is, Elijah Canlas just blends with the cinematography—and he is not to blame. Instead of empathizing with the main character, you criticize the fall of a heavy rain and the touch of a filthy mud. You become obsessed with the earthy elements, which will never be sufficient to compensate for real human experience. Instead of getting interested with the story and its character, the mor

Padamlágan (Cinemalaya 2025) Directed by: Jenn Romano From visuals to sound, this movie is technically beautiful. Transitions between photos and videos are seamless. The musical scoring is compelling. Together with the warm color grading, the cinematography is pleasing to the eyes. But can a film truly succeed without emotional connection? Lacking feelings and expressions, the lead character is being overshadowed by his surroundings. There are moments that could have been int