Sa Pusod ng Dagat is a 1998

1998 in film

-Events:* February 14 - Sharon Stone marries Phil Bronstein.* Former child star Gary Coleman is charged with assaulting a young female bus driver at a California shopping mall.-Top grossing films:...

 Filipino

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

 film

Film

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

 directed by Marilou Diaz-Abaya

Marilou Diaz-Abaya

Marilou Diaz-Abaya is a multi-awarded film director in the Philippines.She is the founder and current president of the Marilou Diaz Abaya Film Institute and Arts Center, a film school based in Antipolo City, Philippines....

. Starring Jomari Yllana

Jomari Yllana

Jomari Yllana is a Filipino actor, model, concert producer and promoter....

 with Chin Chin Gutierrez

Chin Chin Gutierrez

Maria Carminia Lourdes Cynthia Arnaldo Gutierrez , better known as Chin Chin Gutierrez, is a Filipino actress and environmentalist.-Early life:...

 and Elizabeth Oropesa, it was released by GMA Films

GMA Films

GMA Network Films, Inc. is a film production company and a film studio established in 1995 by GMA Network, Inc. in the Philippines....

 and Film Experts, Inc.

The film, was critically acclaimed in local and international film festivals. It premiered on March 13, 1998.

Plot

In a remote fishing island in the 50's, Pepito (Jomari Yllana) grows up learning the trade of his mother, Rosa (Elizabeth Oropesa), the only midwife capable of delivering the newborn babies of their community. At first, the young son doesn't mind the unusual arrangement, but as he grows older, he begins to resist the role traditionally meant only for women.

In time, Pepito's coming of age intersects with the lives of other islanders whose beliefs and struggles become critical impetus to his maturity. Eventually, embarrassment and prejudices were overcame by acceptance and love between mother and son.

Awards and nominations

The film received nominations and awards from different local award-giving bodies. It got two Star Awards in 1999 for Cinematographer of the Year (Romeo Vitug) and Original Screenplay of the Year (Jun Lana

Jun Lana

Jun Lana , born as Rodolfo R. Lana, Jr., is a Filipino playwright and two-time FAMAS award-winning screenwriter. The winner of 11 Palanca Awards for Literature, he became the youngest member of the Palanca Hall of Fame in 2006....

).

The movie had received invitations from 17 prestigious film festivals abroad, an unprecedented achievement in the history of Philippine cinema.

"Sa Pusod Ng Dagat" is the country's official entry to the Singapore International Film Festival

Singapore International Film Festival

The Singapore International Film Festival was launched in 1987. The festival is an annual film event, held around April/May each year, and screens about 300 films from over 45 countries...

, Toronto International Film Festival

Toronto International Film Festival

The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...

, Hong Kong Film Festival, Fukuoka International Film Festival, Tokyo International Film Festival and Oslo Film Festival. It is an entry to the film festivals in London, Cairo, Bombay, Barcelona, Haifa and New York.

The movie also made it to the Chicago International Film Festival, Montreal Film Festival, Nantes Festival of Free Continent and Chicago Film Festival. It was also the Philippine entry for Best Foreign Language Film in the Oscars

Academy Awards

An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...

.