2021 Cinemalaya

17th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival

Official festival poster
Location	N/A (Virtual event)
Film titles	13
Festival date	(2021-08-06) (2021-09-05)August 6 – September 5, 2021
Language	English, Filipino
Website	Official Website
Cinemalaya chronology
2022 2020

The 17th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival was held from August 6 to September 5, 2021. Only short films were featured for this edition for the second consecutive year, with entrants streamed online due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. Entrant films were made available in the streaming platforms KTX.ph and Vimeo. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Entries

The following are the final thirteen short films eligible for Best Picutre from at least 200 submissions. They were announced in June 2021. ^{[3] [4]}

The winning film is highlighted with boldface and a dagger.

Short films

Title	Director(s)
Ang Sadit na Planeta	Arjanmar H. Rebeta
Ang Mga Nawalang Pag-asa at Panlasa	Kevin Jay Ayson
Ate OG	Kevin Mayuga
Ang Pagdadalaga ni Lola Mayumi	Shiri Francesca D. De Leon
Beauty Queen†	Myra Aquino
Crossing	Marc Misa
Kawatan Sa Salog	Ralph John Velasco
Kids On Fire	Kyle Nieva
Looking For Rafflesias and Other Fleeting Things	James Fajardo
Maski Papano	Che Tagyamon Glenn Barit
Namnama en Lolang	Jonnie Lyn Dasalla
Out of Body	Enrico Po
The Dust in Your Place	David Olson

Awards

The awards ceremony was held online on August 19, 2021. ^[5]

Short films

• Best Short Film – Beauty Queen by Myra Aquino
  • Special Jury Prize – Ang Sadit na Planeta by Arjanmar H. Rebeta
  • Audience Choice Award – Ang Sadit na Planeta by Arjanmar H. Rebeta
• Best Direction – Kyle Nieva for Kids on Fire
• Best Screenplay – Kids on Fire
• NETPAC Award – Ang Sadit na Planeta by Arjanmar H. Rebeta

References

1. "Cinemalaya 2020 goes digital due to COVID-19 pandemic, announces short film finalists". The Philippine Star. July 6, 2020. Retrieved November 1, 2025.
2. "Cinemalaya goes digital again in 2nd pandemic year". BusinessWorld. July 15, 2021. Retrieved November 1, 2025.
3. Llemit, Kathleen (August 20, 2021). "LIST: Cinemalaya 2021 winners; films now available for streaming". The Philippine Star. Retrieved November 1, 2025.
4. Priela, Joe (June 21, 2021). "13 Finalists for Cinemalaya 2021 announced". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved November 1, 2025.
5. Jairus, Matias (August 19, 2021). "Beauty Queen named Best Film in Cinemalaya 2021". BusinessWorld. Retrieved November 1, 2025.