BECAUSE the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival is known for nurturing up-and-coming filmmakers, it sees quite a number of returning directors in its main competition lineup each year. BusinessWorld spoke with three of them about what Philippine indie cinema is like today. “There are very few venues and platforms that actually make room for such work,” he added. As someone who works in both mainstream and independent worlds, she added that indie cinema can also affect the mainstream. Mr. Burgos concluded that the true indie films make “the message the hero,” regardless of the actors or the budget.