DAVAO CITY (October 6) — A documentary born from more than three decades of reporting in Mindanao has moved from the newsroom to the international film circuit, earning a Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC) nomination as it continues to gain recognition abroad.
Beneath the Badge (Sa Likod ng Tsapa), independently written, directed and produced by veteran Mindanao journalist and filmmaker Editha Z. Caduaya, has been nominated by the PMPC while making its way through film festivals and jury screenings across Asia, Europe and North America.
The film chronicles the life and journey of police officer Hansel M. Marantan, looking beyond the uniform to examine duty, controversy, public judgment, personal consequences and the possibility of redemption.
For Caduaya, the PMPC nomination carries particular weight because the film was produced independently in Mindanao, far from the country’s traditional film-production centers.
“We started with a story that I believed needed to be told. We never imagined how far that story would travel,” Caduaya said.
From Mindanao to the international circuit
The PMPC nomination comes after a growing list of international recognitions and festival selections.
Beneath the Badge received a Special Mention Award at the 24th Dhaka International Film Festival in Bangladesh, where it was presented under the Women in Cinema section.
It also received an Outstanding Excellence Award in the Investigative Documentaries category of the Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival.
The documentary was named a finalist at the Director’s Cut International Film Festival and was invited to its gala awards night in Oslo.
It was also selected for the Doc Edge/Doc Only Film Festival and the Toronto Lift-Off Film Festival 2026, and received selection or nomination at the Whistleblower Summit & Film Festival in Washington, D.C., and the Ahmedabad International Film Festival in India.
In September, it reached the semi-finalist, first-round stage of the Brussels World Film Festival, entering private jury review.
The run has placed a film rooted in Mindanao within an international documentary community spanning Asia, Europe and North America.
From journalism to filmmaking
Caduaya’s move into filmmaking grew out of more than three decades of journalism in Mindanao, where she covered conflict, governance, public safety, peacebuilding and community issues.
That experience shaped the documentary’s approach.
Rather than presenting a conventional biography of a police officer, Beneath the Badge examines the human being behind a controversial public figure and the complicated intersection of service, power, responsibility, suffering and redemption.
The film’s international reception also underscores how stories from outside Manila can find audiences abroad when they are grounded in their own communities and realities.
“This recognition is not only for me or for the film. It is for Mindanao filmmakers, regional storytellers and independent filmmakers who continue to believe that our stories deserve to be seen and heard beyond our borders,” Caduaya said.
Beyond the awards
The PMPC nomination adds a Philippine industry recognition to a journey that began with a Mindanao journalist telling a story she believed deserved to be heard.
From its origins in Mindanao, the documentary has moved into Philippine cinema and international festival circuits, bringing with it a story shaped by the region’s complicated realities of public service, conflict, controversy and accountability.
For Caduaya, however, the film’s reach matters more than the list of awards.
“Awards and nominations are important, but what matters most is that the story continues to reach people,” she said. “If a story born in Mindanao can make someone in another country pause, reflect and ask questions about humanity, then the journey has meaning.”
As Beneath the Badge continues its international festival run, its journey offers a wider message for regional filmmakers: powerful stories do not have to originate in the country’s traditional film centers to cross borders and enter the global conversation.
