After winning the Grand Prize at the 2014 UNICEF Asia-Pacific Child Rights Award for Television last October and bagging a Gold World Medal as Best Public Affairs Program in the recently held 2015 New York Festivals, GMA Network’s Front Row has been named as one of the 10 Finalists in the 2015 URTI Grand Prix for its "Lusong Dunong" episode.
This marks the second time that Front Row was included in the list of finalists of the Monaco-based award-giving body. The grand winner will be announced in June 18 in Monaco.
Lusong Dunong is a poignant documentary on the plight of students and teachers during high tide, which should have been a normal or even harmless occurrence. But in a public elementary school north of Manila, the rising tides signal the start of what seems like a never-ending burden for the children and their teachers. The tide creeps into the school, gradually submerging the classrooms in knee-deep, filthy water. The stench of trash mixed with the salty tang of the sea permeates the air, making it sometimes impossible to hold a decent class.
This has earned the school the unpopular tag “the school in the swamps.” The children hike up their uniforms to avoid getting them wet, wading through the water in their slippers to get to their rooms. Just to be able to hold class, teachers and students endure staying in their classrooms, their feet completely submerged for hours.
Despite this, the students, along with the school staff, remain steadfast in their quest for education, proving that indeed, one can rise above the waters.
Created in 1949, URTI is the oldest audiovisual organization and the only one with a wholly global perspective. This professional union organizes television and radio programme exchanges, international audiovisual Grand Prix, coproductions, training workshops and actions for the promotion of world audiovisual creation.