Fernando Poe, Jr. had his first Panday film, the undisputed top grosser of the festival; Nora Aunor had two entries: Lino Brocka's Bona and Laurice Guillen's Kung Ako'y Iiwan Mo; Vilma Santos came up with Danny Zialcita's Langis at Tubig; Amy Austria in Marilou Diaz-Abaya's Brutal.
Other entries were Basag with Alma Moreno, Taga sa Panahon with Christopher de Leon and Bembol Roco, and three comedy films: Tembong with Niño Muhlach, Kape't Gatas with Chiquito and Julie Vega, and Dang-Dong with Andrea Bautista (daughter of Ramon Revilla, Sr.).
The awards were spread equally and the category for Best Child Performer was first introduced in this year received by Julie Vega.
[2][3] The period of the Philippine film's artistic accomplishment begins in 1975 (three years after the dictator Ferdinand Marcos' declaration of Martial Law) and ending in the February 1986 People Power Revolution where the dictator Marcos lost his power.
Nora Aunor's Bona and Himala in 1980 and 1982 respectively (both official entries of MMFF) achieves to represent the period where the accomplishments of two government institutions contributed to the emergence of New Cinema in the 1970s and 1980s.