He is also the recipient of the UP Gawad Plaridel 2015, as well as one of the recipients of the Gawad CCP Award 2015. And in 2018, the recipient of the Gawad Dangal in Balagtas award, the recipient of the Apolinario Mabini Achievement award, Special Citation for the award ABS-CBN Walk On Water and recently awarded the CAMERA OBSCURA Award from the Film Development Council of the Philippines.
As a screenwriter, he has worked with many Filipino directors, notably with Lino Brocka, Marilou Diaz-Abaya and Ishmael Bernal. Many of his films have been screened at international film festivals in Cannes, Toronto, Berlin, among others.