Filipino filmmaker Carlo Francisco Manatad won best director for his Yolanda-set film “Kun Maupay Man It Panahon” at the recently concluded London East Asia Film Festival (LEAFF).

Now on its sixth edition, LEAFF lauded Manatad for presenting a “blend of the fantastical with the painfully true, and the delicate with the epic” in the film with the English title, “Whether the Weather is Fine.”

“We particularly commend this director on an extraordinary accomplished debut feature, one to which he has a deep personal connection,” the organization said.

ICYMI: Carlo Francisco Manatad wins Best Director for Kun Maupay Man It Panahon (Whether the Weather is Fine), which the jury describes as "a remarkable, personal, and extraordinary debut feature," at #LEAFF2021!#KunMaupayManItPanahon#WhetherTheWeatherIsFine pic.twitter.com/xXMay85nam

— Kun Maupay Man It Panahon (@theweatherfilm) November 2, 2021

Manatad’s recognition from LEAFF marks the latest international accolade for “Kun Maupay Man It Panahon,” which also won the Youth Jury Prize at the Locarno Film Festival in August, where it held its world premiere.

• 'Kun Maupay Man It Panahon' director dedicates Locarno win to Tacloban

The film has been screened at several international festivals, notably Toronto, and Chicago where it had its US premiere.

“Kun Maupay Man It Panahon” is set during the onslaught and aftermath of supertyphoon Yolanda, and centers on “a mother (Charo Santos-Concio) and her son (Daniel Padilla) as they struggle for survival and deal with absurdity of fate,” according to its synopsis. It also stars newcomer Rans Rifol.