MANILA – Metro Manila Film Festival Executive Committee chairman Tim Orbos has named three new members who will replace the four officials who resigned their posts in the last two weeks.

In a statement shared by MMFF spokesperson Noel Ferrer, the three new members are filmmaker Maryo J. Delos Reyes, Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonete-Alimurung and PAGCOR’s Arnel Ignacio.

According to the statement, the remaining slots in the executive committee “are kept open for other representatives of the independent cinema after a meeting with them and MMDA officials.”

“May this clear the air for constructive and productive work for the members of the MMFF ExeCom and assure the public that we are reaching out to all the sectors and serving to the best interest of our film industry,” the statement added.

Four Executive Committee members have resigned in the last two weeks -- Roland Tolentino, Ricky Lee, Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala and Ed Lejano. Tolentino, Lee and Magsanoc-Alikpala lambasted the committee’s decision to prioritize "commerce over art" for this year’s MMFF.

Meanwhile, in a separate statement, Belmonte-Alimurung shared why she accepted the position.

“This was a decision that took me a while to think about precisely because of the reported issues and controversies involved,” she said.

“However, I was a member of the selection committee last year, and am familiar with many of the debates surrounding the festival and the arguments presented by all sides,” she added.

The incumbent Quezon City Vice Mayor believes these “seemingly opposing views are not irreconcilable if we all focus towards a well-defined common vision.”

As the chairman of the QC International Film Festival and an elected official in the city with the most number of cinemas, Belmote-Alimurung claims she is “familiar with the sentiments of all the audience bases that want to be reached by the MMFF, as well as all the industry players involved.”

As such, she hopes to play the role of a harmonizer in finding a common ground amid all the issues.

“It is important that we do not alienate any of these interests but we must strive for conditions acceptable to all, without sacrificing our fundamental values of fairness and transparency,” she said.