Cinemalaya kicks off 22nd edition; Ruby Ruiz draws early best actress buzz

The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival officially opened its 22nd edition with the premiere of “Enjoy Your Stay,” a Philippine-Swiss drama about an undocumented Filipina worker in Switzerland, while actress Ruby Ruiz is drawing early Best Actress buzz for her performance in “Status: Rejected,” one of the nine full-length entries in the festival.

The opening ceremony on Aug. 6 brought together filmmakers, actors, cultural leaders and film enthusiasts for this year’s celebration of independent cinema, which runs until Aug. 18.

Directed by Swiss filmmaker Dominik Locher and Filipino screenwriter-filmmaker Honeylyn Joy Alipio, “Enjoy Your Stay” stars Mercedes Cabral as Luz, an undocumented Filipina cleaner in Switzerland who lives under the threat of deportation while trying to reunite with the daughter she left behind in the Philippines.

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The 99-minute film opened this year’s festival, which carries the theme “Reel Reflections” and features nine full-length and 10 short films in competition.

During the opening ceremony, Cinemalaya Foundation President Laurice Guillen highlighted the importance of human storytelling amid the rise of artificial intelligence.

“Only a human being can answer the question that matters most: Why this story? Why now?” Guillen said, adding that the greatest possibility of being a filmmaker lies not in the camera or computer but in “a human heart that still recognizes another human heart.”

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As the festival continues amid heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon, or habagat, actress Ruby Ruiz is drawing early attention for her performance in “Status: Rejected,” one of this year’s nine full-length competition entries.

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Ruiz plays Virginia “Biring” Divinagracia, a 69-year-old widow who dreams of traveling to the United States to reunite with her son but faces repeated visa rejections.

In the film, Biring turns to the digital world after her fourth U.S. visa denial and enters an online romance with an American stranger named Steve.

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“Status: Rejected” is the feature directorial debut of Vahn Leinard C. Pascual, the youngest director in this year’s full-length competition. The film also stars Beverly Salviejo, Yani Villarosa and Alessandra De Rossi.

Pascual said the film was inspired by his own grandmother and was intended as a tribute to Filipino grandmothers whose dreams and emotional lives can often go unseen.

“I have often wondered how many of our grandmothers carry this kind of rejection in silence—from the world, from the people they love, or from the expectations they have placed on themselves,” he said.

“Through Biring, I wanted to give form to the emotional lives they continue to hold in silence […] My grandmother taught me that the deepest pain is not rejection or failure but the quiet ache of becoming invisible. This film is for her,” added the filmmaker. /*edv *