“I think the truly natural things are dreams, which nature can't touch with decay.”

Filipino filmmaker Jun Robles Lana has bagged the Best Director Award for his 12th feature film “Kalel, 15” at PÖFF|Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, that also brings him a grant of 5000€. The film had its world premiere in the Estonian capital where it was screened in the official selection marked by a very strong presence of Asian films. In their statement, the jury quoted, among other, Lana’s ability to make a passionate and concerned film about lives we never see in the West.

​When he gets diagnosed with HIV, the 15-year-old Kalel (Elijah Canlas) is with his mother Edith (Jaclyn Jose) who is more concerned about what the neighbours would say if they found out than about her son’s health. Riding back home on the coach, the boy is sitting silently through a wave of his mother’s insults, refusing to answer any of the questions. As the story progresses, it will become obvious why. His home is not a comfort zone, and the space is invaded by mother’s countless lovers and sister’s drug-addicted boyfriend Danny (Cedrick Juan). Also, the workspace – a small family street restaurant is populated by the same tensions: not counting the hard work, there are jealous fights between lovers, bad jokes and booze-inflicted conflicts. On top of all the hardship, Kalel is the illegitimate son of the priest George (Eddie Garcia) who is serving in their archdiocese. As a catholic priest who’s supposed to live in celibate, George can’t take over the role of Kalel’s father and their contact is limited to confessions in the church or “emergency” visits when something unexpected happens.