Filmmaker and former seafarer Seth Andrew Blanca brings a chilling maritime tale to Cinemalaya 2025 with Kung Tugnaw ang Kaidalman sang Lawod (Cold as the Ocean Runs Deep), a 15-minute analog drama-horror short film screening under the Short Film Category. 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 an ordinary seaman who, desperate to send money to his girlfriend, borrows from the ship’s Second Officer after his own wages fall short. As the days pass, anxiety gnaws at him while the officer presses for repayment. His attempts to appease the situation only deepen his dread, until an unseen presence begins creeping through the ship’s corridors and walls. With a voice but no face, this ominous entity watches from the shadows, waiting, a manifestation of the seaman’s guilt and fear that tightens its grip with every passing moment.
Blanca, who spent three years at sea, draws on his personal experience to craft this atmospheric and psychologically charged story. The film explores debt, isolation, and the unseen weight carried by seafarers, blending realism with haunting horror elements. Blanca is best known for his award-winning Kung sa Diin ang Suba Tarabuan (Down the River We Meet), which earned Best Jury Prize at PeliKULAYa LGBTQIA+ Short Film Competition and several international honors. His work continues to explore human vulnerability against vast, uncontrollable forces.
The cast includes Ryan Galleca, Lheo Fernando Fonseca, Anthony Ken Bucasas, Seth Andrew Blanca, Ma. Erica Seidel, Eddie Odicta Jr., Giovani Borja, Elester Saquilabon, and Winston Farinas. Behind the camera, Blanca not only directs but also serves as cinematographer, sound designer, and composer, with production design by Giovani Borja and Eddie Odicta, and editing by Ma. Erica Seidel.
Other Cinemalaya 2025 short film entries are Ascension from the Office Cubicle by Hannah Silvestre, Figat by Handiong Kapuno, Hasang by Daniel de la Cruz, Kay Basta Angkarabo Yay Bagay Ibat ha Langit by Marie Estela Paiso, I’m Best Left Inside My Head by Elian Idioma, 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.
Meanwhile, full length entries include Bloom Where You Are Planted by Noni Abao, Cinemartyrs by Sari Dalena, Habang Nilalamon ng Hydra ang Kasaysayan by Dustin Celestino, Child No. 82 by Tim Rone Villanueva, Paglilitis by Cheska Marfori and Raymund Barcelon, Open Endings by Nigel Santos and Keavy Vicente, Padamlágan by Jenn Romano, Raging by Ryan Machado, Republika ng Pipolipinas by Renei Dimla, and Warla by Kevin Alambra.
