GMA’s ‘Oras Na’ wins in Monte Carlo

THE country’s most awarded and most respected broadcast news organization records another first in local television history.

Adding to Pinoy pride anew is GMA News and Public Affairs’ environmental documentary Oras Na, which was awarded the Martine Filippi Award for Discovery in the prestigious 31st International Union Radiophonique et Télévisuelle Internationale (URTI) Grand Prix for Author’s Documentary held in Monte Carlo recently.

This is the first ever award received by a Philippine TV network from the said international award-giving institution.

International jurors of the URTI describe Oras Na as “(a documentary with) a modern and rhythmical way of filming, (which) raises the crucial issue of the environmental challenges our so-called developed societies have to face. Starting from the issue of access to drinkable water in the Philippines, It’s Time (Oras Na) develops a striking message of which the reach is essential to humanity.”

Oras Na is a 70-minute environmental documentary hosted by award-winning Kapuso star and environmental advocate Richard Gutierrez.

“We are honored that the URTI has chosen Oras Na as one of the awardees this year.

More than the prestige of the award itself, we are happy that the documentary has now been shared with the rest of the world through the screening in Monte Carlo. We are humbled that the message behind Oras Na has found resonance beyond its Philippine setting,” shares program manager Angeli Atienza.

Through time-lapse filming, the documentary presented visual evidence of the degradation of the country’s rainforests, shortage of clean water, the significant decline of fossil fuels, and the looming collapse of marine resources due to over harvesting and destructive fishing. If scientific estimates are correct, and if the signs of degradation are not addressed, vital resources could run out within the current generation—from the year 2025 to the year 2050. (PR)