'Viet and Nam,' John Lloyd Cruz win top prizes at QCinema

Taking the top prize in its main competition, Asian Next Wave, was "Viet and Nam" by Truong Minh Quy.

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The QCinema International Film Festival celebrated its 12th edition by honoring a new slate of winning films in Quezon City.

The Vietnam-set film, which premiered in Cannes' Un Certain Regard, is produced by Epic Media and is a co-production between the Philippines, Vietnam, and other European countries.

The jury, composed of Babyruth Villarama, Gabor Greiner, Ming-Jung Kuo, and Nguyen Le, cited the film for "conjuring the haunting presence of trauma and memories that are embedded within the landscape, and tenderly following a romance that unfolds deep within the coal mines."

Another Vietnamese filmmaker, Duong Dieu Linh, won the Grand Jury Prize for her debut, "Don't Cry Butterfly." The film tells the story of a middle-aged wife who discovers her husband is having an affair and embarks on a mystical journey to seek a better life elsewhere.