‘Asiong Salonga’ bags major awards at 2011 MMFF

Black-and-white film “Manila Kingpin: The Asiong Salonga Story” took home several awards, including the best picture and best director awards, during the 37th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) Awards Night on Wednesday.

The film, which stars Laguna Governer ER Ejercito as the gang leader “Asiong” Salonga,” received a total of eight awards, abs-cbnnews.com reports.

It won the best picture, best director (Tikoy Aguiluz), best supporting actor (John Regala), best screenplay (Roi Inglesias and Rey Ventura), best production design, best musical score (Nonong Buencamino), best original theme song (“La Paloma” by Ely Buendia), and best cinematography (Carlo Mendoza) awards. The film also bagged the prestigious Gatpuno Villegas Cultural Award.

“Manila Kingpin: The Asiong Salonga Story” is a biopic based on the life of Nicasio Rodriguez Salonga, more notoriosly known as the gang leader Asiong Salonga.

PEP.ph remarked that “it’s the only purely action movie in Metro Manila Film Festival, and the entire film is in black and white.”

The film was enmeshed in controversy a week before the film fest when its director, Amable “Tikoy” Aguiluz, demanded that his name be deleted from the movie credits.

Meanwhile, the best actress award went to Maricel Soriano of Regal Film’s “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”, which was disqualified from other major categories for violating the film fest’s rules. Dingdong Dantes of “Segunda Mano” won the best actor award.

Other winners in the 37th MMF are as follows:

2nd Best Picture:
Enteng ng Ina Mo

3rd Best Picture:
Shake, Rattle and Roll 13

Best Supporting Actress:
Eugene Domingo (My Househusband)

Best Child Performer:
Bugoy Cariño (Shake, Rattle & Roll 13)

Best Original Story:
Shake, Rattle & Roll 13: Lunod

Best Screenplay:
Roi Iglesias and Rey Ventura (Asiong Salonga)

Best Visual Effects:
Riot, Inc. (Ang Panday 2)

Best Make-Up:
Enteng ng Ina Mo

Best Cinematography:
Carlo Mendoza (Asiong Salonga)

Gender Sensitivity Award:
My Househusband, Ikaw Na!

The MMFF is the annual prestigious film fest held in Manila which focuses on locally-produced films.