MANILA (UPDATED) — On its 50th year, the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) on Tuesday announced the first five films participating this year. 

There were a total of 39 scripts submitted and instead of the usual four, the MMFF Executive Committee decided to choose five films based on their submitted scripts.

The ABS-CBN Film Productions, Inc. & The Ideafirst Company’s “And The Bread Winner Is…” starring Vice Ganda and Eugene Domingo leads the first five entries. The film is directed by award-winning filmmaker Jun Robles Lana.

Screen grab: Facebook/MMFFBelow are the five entries:

1. “And The Breadwinner Is …” by ABS-CBN Film Productions, Inc. & The IdeaFirst Company starring Vice Ganda and Eugene Domingo

2. “Green Bones” by GMA Pictures starring Sofia Pablo and Dennis Trillo

3. “Strange Frequencies: Haunted Hospital” by Reality MM Studios, INC., starring Jane de Leon, Enrique Gil, Alexa Miro and MJ Lastimosa

4. “Himala, Isang Musikal” by Kapitol Films/Unitel starring Aicelle Santos and Bituin Escalante

5. “The Kingdom” APT/Mzet and MQuest starring Vic Sotto and Piolo Pascual

Vice Ganda announces new film ‘And the Breadwinner is…’

The announcement of the five script-based entries was made during the grand launch of the 50th Metro Manila Film Festival with the theme “Sine Sigla sa Singkwenta.”

Tuesday’s launch was hosted by Jake Ejercito and Isabelle Daza. The event was attended by MMFF Executive Committee led by Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Don Artes, members of entertainment media and guests including First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos.

Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan was also present and delivered the opening remarks.

Last year, only 800 plus cinemas were opened and the Cinema Exhibitors Association of the Philippines (CEAP) will look into the possibility of opening 900 cinemas for this year’s MMFF.

Aside from the much-awaited MMFF 50, a number of events leading to the annual festival have been lined up such as masterclass workshops for students in Manila, Cebu, Davao, celebrity golf tournaments, the launch of a coffeetable book, and more.

“Hindi ko po masasabing pressure, pero we are elevating the bar, hindi lang sa kalidad kung ‘di sa box office. Hopefully, kami ay umaasa mapapabalik natin ‘yung mga nakapanood noong nakaraang taon and hopefully mas marami pa ngayong taon,” Artes said.

The annual parade of stars will be on December 15. The MMFF Sponsor’s Night will happen on December 21 and the Gabi ng Parangal will be held on December 27. Filipino-American visual artist Jefrë will craft this year’s trophy for the MMFF Awards night.