A one-man production film entitled "Dalagaton" by Mr. Rovic Lopez emerged as the first-ever seafarer entry to win Best Film in Peter's Prize for Film during this year's Peter Solis Nery Foundation International Film Festival (PSNFIFF), announced last September 14, 2025.
His 3-minute silent short film was shot and edited on a smartphone in the middle of the sea while working onboard a car carrier vessel during his first contract. He let his personal struggles depict seafarers' lives and the reality they face onboard.
"This film is an honest unraveling of our common sickness on board. An illness not caused by the waves or the winds but by separation, isolation, and detachment from the life we are used to having," Mr. Lopez wrote in a Facebook post.
Out of the 27 films received and qualified for the PSNFIFF 2025, "Dalagaton" gained the majority vote, composed of four first-place and one second-place votes, from the six-man jury composed of award-winning filmmakers, film scholars, and cinephiles.
Mr. Lopez, an alumnus of John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University (Arevalo), Inc. and former Associate Editor of The Dolphin, was also hailed as the foundationโs new ambassador for film arts.
The Peter Solis Nery Foundation International Film Festival is a three-minute, silent, international film festival sponsored by The Peter Solis Nery Foundation for Hiligaynon Literature and the Arts, Inc. It was introduced last 2019 by the foundation's creator, Peter Solis Nery.
Story by Mdpwn. Jexine Ysabelle Hibionada
Pubmat by Mdpn. Jade Apdua
Photos from Mr. Rovic Lopez's Facebook account
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