The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has picked 22 projects from 87 applications for the second 2026 round of CreatePHFilms, its flagship grant scheme for local filmmakers. The list, published on Thursday 12 November, includes new features from Raya Martin and Zig Dulay, a development grant for Sam Manacsa and 16 short films.
The council did not say how much each project will receive. Its published caps set the limit: applied to this selection, they put the round’s maximum at ₱25.5m ($400,000), all of it in non-recoupable grants that leave filmmakers with full ownership of their work.
Key facts
- Fund: CreatePHFilms, Film Development Council of the Philippines; second 2026 cycle
- Selection: 22 of 87 applications, about one in four; one development grant, two small-budget features, three large-budget features, 16 shorts
- Money: at most ₱25.5m ($400,000) under the published caps, at least ₱9m ($140,000) of it for the three large-budget features; per-project awards not disclosed
- Across 2026: 43 projects over two cycles, 21 in April and 22 now
The grants
CreatePHFilms has four categories, each with its own ceiling, according to the FDCP’s programme page. Development grants of up to ₱500,000 support medium and feature-length projects through development and pre-production. Short films can receive up to ₱500,000 for production and post-production. Small-budget grants of up to ₱1m go to films budgeted below ₱15m. Large-budget grants of ₱3m to ₱5m go to features budgeted at ₱15m or more, which is why that tier alone carries a floor. Finished films are also offered screenings at partner festivals and programmes.
Applications for this round closed on 24 August. The ceiling is the sum of those caps across the selection: one development grant at ₱500,000, two small-budget grants at ₱1m, three large-budget grants at ₱5m and 16 shorts at ₱500,000. Converted at the European Central Bank’s 11 November reference rates, ₱63.25 to the dollar, that is about $403,000.
The full list
Project development – The Void is Immense In Idle Hours, Sam Manacsa (NextLives)
Small-budget production (budgets below ₱15m) – Ang Pagtatagpo, Mikael Joaquin (Pothos Collective) – Sa Gitna ng Guho, Kevin Oliver Arota (Nubelente Studios)
Large-budget production (budgets of ₱15m and above) – AMIR, Zig Dulay (GMA Pictures) – Obosen, Raya Martin (Rein Entertainment Productions) – Vicariously., John Rogers (901 Studios, Be True Entertainment)
Short film – Ang Aking Lahat, Adelbert Abrigonda – Antindyan Daka Ta Reng Ayup, EJ Gagui – Apat na Palapag 四棧, Vanessa Leonardo – CONCEPCION, Jeric Delos Angeles – Fly High, Butterfly, Aedrian Araojo – Igat, Jose Pascual Arnaldo – Kung Sinapian Kang Mag-isa ay Sinapian Ka Bang Talaga?, Glenn Barit – March, Samantha Lee – May Tinik, Carla Manalo – Minor Intervals, Joanne Cesario – Motra Negra, Tyl Abellaneda – Music Memory, Gabriela Serrano – Paging Elise, Ronnie Bawa – Repeat After Me, Hix Murakami – Taká, Joffrey Z. Atienza – The Sky Has Milkfish, Cedrick Valenzuela
How this round compares
The first 2026 cycle, announced on 30 April, chose 21 projects: five development grants, one small-budget feature, three large-budget features and 12 shorts, among them Erik Matti’s On the Job: Maghari. The new list tilts from development towards production, with one development grant instead of five and four more shorts, while the large-budget tier holds at three.
The same caps put April’s maximum at ₱24.5m. The second round can therefore commit up to ₱1m more with one project fewer, because the money freed from development grants goes to an extra small-budget feature and more shorts. Glenn Barit is the one name in both lists: a development grant in April for Luzonensis & Floresiensis, a short-film grant now.
The FDCP reworked the scheme this year. When it opened the first 2026 call in February, it raised the development cap from ₱300,000 to ₱500,000, extended production grants to cover post-production and added animation and documentary as sub-categories for development and shorts.
Our reading
By international standards these are small sums. A large-budget grant of ₱3m to ₱5m is worth about $47,000 to $79,000, but on a Philippine feature budgeted at ₱15m it covers between a fifth and a third of the cost, without taking a share of the film. The missing figure is the award per project: until the FDCP publishes it, the round’s true cost can only be bracketed. Public film money is moving in different directions this month. Norway’s film institute has paused new applications to 16 schemes, Guatemala has created its first production fund and Canada has divided a C$600m ($425m) package.
Sources
- FDCP, CreatePHFilms selects new Filipino stories for Cycle 2 (12 November 2026)
- FDCP, CreatePHFilms programme page (grant caps by category)
- FDCP, CreatePHFilms welcomes new Filipino stories for Cycle 1 (30 April 2026)
- FDCP, CreatePHFilms continues on with Cycle 2 (call open to 24 August 2026)
- FDCP, CreatePHFilms levels up support for Filipino filmmakers in 2026 (call for Cycle 1)
- European Central Bank, euro reference rates, 11 November 2026 (USD 1.1127, PHP 70.379)