Ces Quesada walks out from an indie film festival
16 Dec - Actress Ces Quesada recently revealed that she had walked away from an indie movie festival after allegedly being disrespected by the organiser.
As reported on PEP News, Quesada recently shared her frustration on Facebook, saying that she didn't receive a respectful welcome from the Inding Indie Film Festival despite being invited to attend the event to receive the Bayani ng Pinilakang Tabing Award.
She wrote, "It is an award supposedly given to somebody who has given significant contributions to the industry. My work in film, television and theatre made me more than eligible for the award. I was to be awarded together with my colleagues John Arcilla, Vangie Labalan and Nova Villa - all extremely talented and well respected actors.
"I accepted the invite thinking I was in good company and I wanted to show Mr. Favis and company that I appreciated their efforts. I also wanted to give back to the industry by showing my support to fledging film organisations like the Inding Indie Film Festival.
However, Quesada said that as soon as she arrived at the event, after two hours in traffic, she found out that the people at the reception area didn't know who she was and that her name was not in their VIP guest list.
Quesada stressed that while she is not the kind of person who would assume that people would know who she is, she expected that the people at the festival should know her when they were the ones who invited her.
The actress also stated that after the confusion was resolved, she was given a chair with no name at the VIP table. When asked about it, the person in charge told her that the paper with her name had been blown away.
"We were in a mall, not on the beach! People were already sensing my discomfort. Just then, Mr. Favis came in and apologised. By that time I was already fuming. I decided to leave the place," she said. Quesada stressed that she left because she felt insulted for being treated the way they did.
"Were these people really aware of my body of work? Was I an after thought? Or do they just invite actors to put some legitimacy to their obscure film festival?"
"I am no sucker for awards. I let my work speak for itself. I do not need validation. My validation comes when people say I was able to connect with them. To the people behind the Inding Indie Film Festival., Thanks but no thanks. You are doing the world of Independent Cinema a disservice," she added.
(Photo Source: Ces Quesada Facebook)
