The first-ever Summer Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) has been postponed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On Thursday, March 12, President Rodrigo Duterte implemented a "community quarantine" in the National Capital Region that will take effect from March 15 to April 14.
Apart from this, Pres. Duterte raised Code Red Sub-level 2 in the Philippines due to the rising numbers in COVID-19 cases in the country. One of the measures that will take effect is the banning of mass gatherings or "events where the number of people attending could strain the planning and response resources of the community hosting the event"—just like the Summer MMFF.
The postponement was announced on the MMFF's official Facebook page, and reads, "In light of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic and health emergency, the SUMMER METRO MANILA FILM FESTIVAL is hereby postponed. We’ll keep you posted for more updates in the coming days. Thank you!"
The Summer MMFF was scheduled to run from April 11 to 21with eight official films in the roster.