Birdshot
Theatrical poster for the Philippine release
Directed by	Mikhail Red
Written by	Mikhail Red Rae Red
Produced by	Pamela L. Reyes
Starring	Mary Joy Apostol Arnold Reyes Ku Aquino John Arcilla
Cinematography	Mycko David
Edited by	Jay Halili Mikhail Red
Music by	Teresa Barrozo
Production companies	PelikulaRED Globe Studios
Distributed by	Tuko Film Productions Buchi Boy Films CJ Entertainment Netflix
Release dates	October 28, 2016 (2016-10-28) (TIFF) August 16, 2017 (2017-08-16) (PPP) March 26, 2018 (2018-03-26) (Netflix)
Running time	116 minutes
Country	Philippines
Language	Filipino
Budget	₱14 million

Birdshot is a 2016 Philippinecoming-of-agethriller film^[1] written, directed and edited byMikhail Red. Starring Mary Joy Apostol, Arnold Reyes, Ku Aquino, andJohn Arcilla, its story revolves around a farm girl (Apostol) in the countryside, who unwittingly kills aPhilippine eagle (an endangered species locally known as theharibon), and two police officers (Reyes and Arcilla) assigned to track down the haribon's killer while investigating the mysterious disappearance of a busload of farmers en route to Manila.

The film was selected as the Filipino entry for theBest Foreign Language Film at the90th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.^[2]Birdshot is the first Filipino film released worldwide byNetflix.^[3]

Diego Mariano (Ku Aquino) is the caretaker of the land surrounding a forest sanctuary. He is the father of 14-year-old Maya (Mary Joy Apostol), whose mother died in childbirth. Maya wants to explore the land beyond the family's isolated shack. Diego wants his daughter to be self-sufficient, so he teaches her how to fire a gun. After failing her first shooting lessons, Maya wanders into the forest with her father's double-barreled shotgun and deliberately kills aPhilippine eagle, an endangered animal.

Meanwhile, newly-recruited police officer Domingo (Arnold Reyes) goes to the area to investigate the mysterious disappearance of farmers en route to Manila on a bus, but is ordered to stop. Domingo's partner Mendoza (John Arcilla) and their commander De la Paz (Dido de la Paz) believe that Domingo should focus on finding the killer of the Philippine eagle instead.^[4]

• Mary Joy Apostol as Maya
• Arnold Reyes as Domingo
• John Arcilla as Mendoza
• Ku Aquino as Diego
• Angie Ferro as Lola

Birdshot was directed by Mikhail Red, who wrote the screenplay with his cousin, Rae Red. Red was also thefilm editor opposite Jay Halili. Thecinematographer was Mycko David. The music used in the film was composed by Teresa Barrozo.^[5]

Red and his cousin began writing the script in 2014.^[1] Producer Pamela L. Reyes submitted it to theDoha Film Institute, which granted production funding for the film in early 2015. After winning the CJ Entertainment Award at theBusan Film Festival's Asian Project Market, other investors granted funding, including TBA Studios. The film project was selected at theFestival des 3 Continents' Produire au Sud workshop to improveBirdshot and its screenplay.Birdshot's PelikulaRED studio (owned by Reyes and Red) managed to co-produce the film with Tuko Film Productions and Buchi Boy Productions.^[6] The total budget of the film was₱14 million.^[1]

Red was inspired by a shooting incident in 2008, where a three-year-oldPhilippine eagle was shot and cooked by aBukidnon farmer inMount Kitanglad.Principal photography lasted for 23 days.^[7] Scenes were shot in the provinces ofIsabela^[1] andRizal, as well as at the Philippine Eagle Sanctuary inDavao City.^[6]

The color red is a prominent element in the film, signifying important scenes and details.^[7]

Birdshot was first screened at film festivals outside the Philippines before it was screened in the country. The film made its debut at the 2016Tokyo International Film Festival and was screened in 14 other film festivals before it made its local debut at the13th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival in August of the following year.^[1]

The film was also screened as one of the twelve official entries at the1st Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino.^[8][9]

It was acquired by streaming serviceNetflix and released on the platform on March 26, 2018, in all available countries.Birdshot became the first Filipino-produced film to be made available on Netflix Philippines.^[10][11]

In a review forVariety, film critic Richard Kuipers describedBirdshot as a “gripping combination ofpolice procedural andcoming-of-age drama”, and noted that its social commentary evokes the 2009Maguindanao massacre. He also praised Apostol’s performance as “impressive” and highlighted Teresa Barrozo’s “haunting soundscapes”.^[5]

The film won Best Picture in the Asian Future category at the 2016 Tokyo International Film Festival and was selected for the Ingmar Bergman International Debut Award at theGoteborg Film Festival.^[12]

• List of submissions to the 90th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
• List of Philippine submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

• Official website
• Birdshot atIMDb
• Birdshot atRotten Tomatoes

• 2016 films
• Films shot in Isabella (province)
• Films shot in Rizal
• Philippine coming-of-age films
• Films directed by Mikhail Red
• Anima (film company) films

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• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Template film date with 3 release dates
• Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia
• Rotten Tomatoes ID same as Wikidata
• Rotten Tomatoes template using name parameter