Bacolod filmmaker Vincent Joseph Entuna has added another accolade to his growing list of achievements after winning the Best Director Award at the Active Vista Human Rights Film Festival 2025 in Quezon City for his short film “Sa Pwesto ni Pistong (The Barber’s Chair)”, Oct. 18.
The film, set during the Martial Law era, follows Teopisto, a humble barber, and his nephew Carlos as they confront the loss of freedom and the consequences of neutrality in their small community.
Carlos, restless and idealistic, is drawn into the resistance against the regime, while Teopisto’s transformation from passive observer to reluctant participant mirrors the awakening of a people living under oppression.
Uniquely told through a single locked camera angle, the film was praised by critics for its restraint and visual discipline, heightening the themes of surveillance, silence, and control under dictatorship.
In his acceptance speech, Entuna dedicated the award to “the voiceless and the forgotten,” paying tribute to the victims of the 1985 Escalante Massacre in Negros Occidental, an event commemorated every September 20.
“This film is for those who were silenced by history,” Entuna said, adding “Art has the power to resist. Our stories must not only entertain but bear witness.”
This marks Entuna’s third Best Director win, following earlier victories at the Bacolod Film Festival 2024, where Sa Pwesto ni Pistong also won Best Picture and Best Screenplay, and at the Pangasine Film Festival 2025.
The film was also nominated for Best Picture at the Sinag Maynila Independent Film Festival 2025 and recognized at the Hundred Islands Film Festival 2025.
Producer Benj Ramos and Bacolod Film Festival 2024 coordinator Kristin Bactad-Jor joined Entuna at the awards night to celebrate the victory.
The Active Vista Human Rights Film Festival, organized by DAKILA, is one of the country’s premier platforms for socially engaged cinema, honoring films that champion human dignity, democracy, and freedom of expression.*