MANILA — The 2019 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) grossed nearly a billion after its two-week run since Christmas Day, its executive committee announced on Wednesday.

The 45th edition of the annual festival reached P955 million in total ticket sales, 4.5% short of the P1-billion target.

A bulk of the earnings were from four of the eight official entries that led the box-office race.

They are, in no particular order: Viva Films’ “Miracle in Cell No. 7,” Star Cinema and Viva Films’ “The Mall, the Merrier,” CCM Productions’ “3pol Trobol: Huli Ka Balbon!”, and APT Entertainment’s “Mission Unstapabol: The Don Identity.”

With the exception of “Miracle” lead actor Aga Muhlach, the stars of the those four films — Vice Ganda, Coco Martin, and Vic Sotto, respectively — are MMFF staples.

Runaway winner “Mindanao,” starring Judy Ann Santos and directed by Brillante Mendoza, was a notable exception from the top four grossers.

The rankings of the other participating entries — the horror film “Sunod,” the romance flick “Write About Love,” and the historical drama “Culion” — were also not detailed.

The 2018 MMFF remains its most successful edition in terms of box-office gross with P1.060 billion.

The committee pointed out the closure of cinemas in Visayas and Mindanao due to Typhoon Ursula and the recent earthquake, in explaining the festival falling short of reaching the P1-billion mark in 2019. — With reports from Shiela Reyes and MJ Felipe, ABS-CBN News