The event is a spin-off of the Metro Manila Film Festival which is officially held every December.

It was originally slated to take place in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced to halt the event as a result of closure of the theaters having to shut for over 20 months.

A summer iteration of the MMFF was adopted to encourage Filipino filmmakers to create more films.

[2] The summer film festival was a proposal of Senator Bong Go who became a member of the MMFF Executive Committee in 2019.

Originally the Metro Manila Summer Film Festival (MMSFF), the first edition was set to be held from April 11 to 21, 2020 but was cancelled due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.