Khalil Ramos and Ian Pangilinan represent two different eras of Filipino queer cinema meeting for the first time, and Puregold CinePanalo 2026 is where it’s happening. Ramos starred in “2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten,” the 2016 coming-of-age drama that’s since become a touchstone of Filipino queer storytelling. Pangilinan became a breakout name through “Gaya sa Pelikula,” the boys’ love (BL) series that helped popularize the genre locally. “Patay Gutom” puts them opposite each other for the first time — and that’s before getting to everything else the film is doing.

The Plot: A Delivery Rider, a Grave Offering, and a Ghost

Ramos plays Tristan, a delivery rider who accidentally eats a food offering left at a grave and, as a result, gains the ability to see Art — a lonely ghost, played by Pangilinan. Their connection deepens into something intimate, complicated by family secrets on both sides and the very basic obstacle that one of them is dead. It’s a supernatural romance more interested in ache than scares, built around a relationship that can’t fully exist in either world.

Behind the Camera, Just as Much Is Happening

“Patay Gutom” also marks Pangilinan’s feature directorial debut, co-directing alongside animator Carl Joseph Papa — meaning he’s both acting opposite Ramos and shaping the film they’re both in. The two directors split the film’s visual language along the same line that divides its two lead characters: Tristan exists in live action, while Art, the ghost, exists in animated form. It’s a hybrid choice that does actual narrative work, not just a stylistic flourish: the split visually reinforces that these two characters occupy different planes of reality, even as the story insists they belong together.

The supporting cast adds real weight to the family-secrets half of the story, with veteran actors Agot Isidro and Cris Villanueva rounding things out.

Why the Pairing Is the Real Headline

BL as a genre has largely lived on streaming and series formats in the Philippines; a feature film built around two of its most recognizable faces — one from its arthouse lineage, one from its more recent boom — is a rare crossover, and CinePanalo 2026 is where it’s landing first. Pair that with a first-time director casting himself in his own film, and “Patay Gutom” is carrying more institutional weight than its ghost-romance premise suggests.

Catch It

“Patay Gutom” screens as part of Puregold CinePanalo 2026, running September 23 to October 4 across eight Metro Manila venues — Gateway Cineplex 18 in Araneta City (the festival hub), Trinoma, Fairview Terraces, Ayala Malls Feliz, Ayala Malls Circuit, Ayala Malls Manila Bay, and Market! Market! Regular tickets are ₱250, with a discounted ₱200 rate for PWDs, senior citizens, students, national athletes, and Aling Puring and Perks cardholders. A ₱2,000 festival pass covers all seven features plus the student shorts program — passes go on sale September 22 at Gateway Cineplex 18, a day ahead of general on-sale at the other venues.