A short tourism video featuring snippets of Sarangani province’s top attractions has received recognition at a recent international film festival in New York City.

The video advertisement feature dubbed “Sarangani” was conferred with the Gold Excellence Award in the 11th International Film Festival in Manhattan (IFFM) spring edition on May 28 to 30.

Michelle Lopez Solon, Sarangani tourism council chairperson and the video’s director, said in a statement on Friday they submitted the tourism video under the corporate category.

She said it was among the 15 entries from the Philippines that made the cut in the IIFM, which was joined by nine other countries.

Previous IFFM editions showcased selected videos and films in a theater in Manhattan, a borough of New York City. However, the festival shifted to the online mode this year due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

A briefer posted on the IIFM website said the two-minute video advertisement features “snippets and footage of the various experiences people can enjoy in Sarangani” such as its vibrant beach festivals and parties, water sports, white water rafting, scuba diving, paragliding, sightseeing, and cultural immersions.

The video showcases Sarangani’s natural resources and tourist destinations, including landscapes, white-sand beaches, and diverse inland bodies of water, as well as the ethnic diversity of the area, showing a glimpse of the preserved and honored indigenous cultures.

“It boasts of the people’s efforts to keep Sarangani environmentally sustainable and clean,” it said.

Released in 2019, the tourism video is edited by Champ Biala and produced by Rain Ramas.

Solon said they joined the film festival to show to the world “that somewhere down in the Philippines, a beautiful place exists, worth visiting and exploring very soon.”

She said the IFFM became an opportunity for them to showcase the province through a video feature that was eventually appreciated by the film community and advocates in Manhattan.

“We really wanted people to take a look into the province. That we are a beautiful province. That it should be one of the bucket lists for them to visit one day,” she added.

Solon, the wife of Sarangani Gov. Steve Chiongbian Solon, said the raw shots used in the video were a collection from the videographers in the province. (PNA)