The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) will hold the first-ever Film Education Convention (FilmEC) from September 17 to 18 at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde in Manila.

The FilmEC is a two-day convention which brings together film creatives from the academe and in the industry, in line with the FDCP’s continuous efforts to champion film education in the country.

The convention features screenings of selected student short films, panel discussions, plenary talks, film book sales, and networking opportunities for film students and educators.

FDCP Chair and Chief Executive Officer Jose Javier “Direk Joey” Reyes explained that the activity-filled event aims “to gather both teachers and students of film to converge, get to know one another and engage in conversations that will break barriers of language or institutional representation.”

The Academic Film Society has created an organizing committee, comprised of nine members from various AFS-registered universities and colleges to assist in preparing for and promoting the event.

They consist of Alec Berame, DLS-CSB; Patrick Campos, University of the Philippines Film Institute; David Corpuz, Mapúa University; Hector Barretto Calma, iACADEMY; Catherine Cequeña, Adamson University; Kareen Gancio, West Visayas State University; Maricon Montajes, UP Mindanao; Stanley Rovira, University of Makati; and Christina Stella Ustaris, Far Eastern University.

FDCP Project Development Officers Korina Dela Cruz, Jen-Lopez Marcos, and Marie Ira, Education Head Rica Arevalo, and Education Consultant Seymour Sanchez also attended the AFS meeting.

The FDCP will also host a series of pocket events, which includes student film screenings, talkback sessions, and film workshops in universities and Cinematheque Centres nationwide, to promote the convention.

AFS has curated a selection of student short films followed by talkback sessions with the filmmakers at Cinematheque Centre Manila last July 19 and at University of Makati on August 27, with more locations to be announced before the convention.

FDCP and the Filipino Screenwriters Guild (FSG) will also continue their regional screenwriting workshop for beginners. Five slots per region are open to AFS members in Iloilo, Negros, and Davao, aged 18 years old and above, with no professional screenwriting experience.

“We’re here to learn, immerse, and understand film education in the Philippines, exposing newcomers to real-world filmmaking,” Direk Joey stressed.

AFS member-schools have access to the FDCP’s Student Film Assistance Program (SFAP) and Film School workshops and specialized training programs, references, artifacts, and films available under its media library, mentors and resource persons for film education component, film exhibition platforms including Cinematheque Centres nationwide and JuanFlix: The FDCP Channel, FDCP ratings and permits, school event promotions, and other benefits.