TV director and storyteller Kevin Alambra makes his full-length feature debut with Warla, a bold crime drama premiering at Cinemalaya 2025. The festival runs from October 3 to 12, 2025, with screenings at Red Carpet Cinemas in Shangri-La Plaza, Ayala Malls Cinemas, and Gateway Cineplex.
The film follows 19-year-old Kitkat, a transgender woman who finally finds the sense of family she’s been yearning for in an unlikely group, a gang of transgender women led by Joice, who kidnap foreign men to fund their gender-affirming surgeries. While Kitkat embraces the love and belonging the group provides, she begins to struggle with the morality of their actions and the true cost of fitting in.
Luningning, Barbie Ann, and the rest of the gang carry deep emotional scars from a lifetime of rejection and transphobia, viewing the surgeries as their salvation. For Kitkat, however, transitioning is not the measure of her womanhood. As their crimes escalate, she must make a choice that could either solidify her place within this chosen family or break it apart forever.
Loosely inspired by a true story, Warla examines how women who have long been targets of violence and discrimination can transform into perpetrators as they carve out power in a world that has denied them dignity.
Kevin Alambra, who has built a career in real-life storytelling since 2014, is best known as a head researcher and director for Maalaala Mo Kaya and co-creator of the internationally recognized docuseries The Last Manilaners. He has also directed episodes for Zoomers, which earned recognition at the Content Asia Awards 2024. Alambra cites his former professor, celebrated filmmaker Jose Javier Reyes, as a key influence in shaping his cinematic vision.
The cast features Jervi Wrightson, Lance Reblando, Serena Magiliw, Valeria Ortega, Jacky Woo, and Dimples Romana. The screenplay is written by Arah Jell Badayos, with cinematography by Neil Daza.
Warla is poised to spark conversations on chosen family, identity, and the extremes people will go to reclaim agency over their lives.
Other full length entries include Child No. 82 by Tim Rone Villanueva, Bloom Where You Are Planted by Noni Abao, Habang Nilalamon ng Hydra ang Kasaysayan by Dustin Celestino, Padamlágan by Jenn Romano, Paglilitis by Cheska Marfori and Raymund Barcelon, Open Endings by Nigel Santos and Keavy Vicente, Republika ng Pipolipinas by Renei Dimla, Cinemartyrs by Sari Dalena, and Raging by Ryan Machado.
Meanwhile, the short film competition features entries such as Ascension from the Office Cubicle by Hannah Silvestre, Figat by Handiong Kapuno, Hasang by Daniel de la Cruz, I’m Best Left Inside My Head by Elian Idioma, Kay Basta Angkarabo Yay Bagay Ibat ha Langit by Marie Estela Paiso, Kung Tugnaw ang Kaidalman sang Lawod by Seth Andrew Blanca, Please Keep This Copy by Miguel Lorenzo Peralta, Radikals by Arvin Belarmino, The Next 24 Hours by Carl Joseph Papa, and Water Sports by Whammy Alcazaren.
