Maris Racal in “Sunshine” Joins Berlinale 2025 • PINOYSTOP

Photo via Maris Racal (@mariesteller) / Instagram

Antoinette Jadaone’s film “Sunshine,” starring Maris Racal, will compete at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale). It is part of the Generation 14plus competition, a program that features coming-of-age stories from around the world.

This is the first time Jadaone and her team at Project 8 Projects will compete in one of the top three film festivals: Berlin, Cannes, or Venice. The festival screening dates for “Sunshine” will be announced soon.

Jadaone shared her excitement about going back to Berlinale. In 2014, she joined the festival’s talent program and attended the European premiere of Eduardo Roy Jr.’s “Quick Change.” She also promoted her movie “Boldstar” there in 2020.

“Sunshine” is about a young rhythmic gymnast with big dreams of joining the national team. Just days before her tryouts, she learns she is pregnant. On her way to buy illegal abortion drugs, she meets a strange girl who seems a lot like her.

The movie explores teen pregnancy, abortion, and the struggles of young Filipino athletes aiming to compete internationally.

Maris Racal plays the lead role, joined by Elijah Canlas, Xyriel Manabat, Jennica Garcia, Annika Co, and Meryll Soriano. Jadaone also wrote the story.

The movie had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in September 2024. All three screenings sold out, even though they were at the end of the festival. Jadaone said, “Akala ko puro Pinoy lang manonood, but many non-Filipinos watched and felt moved by the film.”

Since then, “Sunshine” has been gaining recognition. It was nominated for Best Youth Film at the 17th Asia Pacific Screen Awards and was shown at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in the World Cinema Now section.

This is Racal’s third project with Jadaone. They worked together before on the shows “The Kangks Show” and “Simula Sa Gitna.”

After some personal controversies in 2024, Racal returned to the spotlight this January to promote her new series, “Incognito.” She also released a song called “Perpektong Tao.”

“Sunshine” continues to earn praise worldwide and shows how Filipino stories can connect with audiences everywhere. It is a proud moment for Filipino cinema.

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