'John Denver Trending' becomes the first Filipino film to have wide screenings in Korea

“John Denver Trending” has become the first Filipino film to have wide screenings throughout Korea.

According to the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), the movie will be released on November 23 at CGV, Lotte Cinema and Megabox in major Korean cities.

AWARD-WINNING FILIPINO FILM "JOHN DENVER TRENDING" TO SCREEN IN SOUTH KOREA!

The movie John Denver Trending is a work that deals with the true story of a boy who was branded as a devil overnight with a single video uploaded to social media. pic.twitter.com/cllqV6XjT2

— Film Development Council of the Philippines (@FDCPH) November 15, 2022

The 2019 Cinemalaya film is written and directed by Arden Rod Condez, and stars Jansen Magpusao and Meryll Soriano.

On Twitter, Condez wrote, “Happy that this [South Korean] theatrical screening of our film is gaining some notice. [We're] so blessed to have a very eager SK distributor who spent so much for the promo.”

happy that this south korean theatrical screening of our film is gaining some notice. we're so blessed to have a very eager SK distributor who spent so much for the promo. bonus na yung tinawag nya akong 'very handsome'.

ang last sentence lang ang point ng tweet na 'to.

— ardenrod (@ardenrod) November 15, 2022

Inspired by shocking true stories, "John Denver Trending" follows teen John Denver, who is falsely accused of stealing a classmate’s iPad. He trends online and gets cyberbullied because of it. The film tackles the dangers of social media, especially for those who are already less fortunate to begin with.

It won Best Film, Best Actor, Best Original Music Score, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, and the NETPAC awards at Cinemalaya.

The film also competed at the 2019 Busan International Film Festival. —Nika Roque/JCB, GMA Integrated News