‘Maria’ director Pedring Lopez is back with another action crime thriller ‘Shadow Transit,’ starring Hong Kong-born, US-raised and UK-based singer-songwriter and actress, Qymira, with Indonesian actor Yoshi Sudarso and Filipino-American rapper and actor KC Montero.

Watch the trailer below:

SHORT SYNOPSIS

In the neon-drenched heart of Poblacion, Makati, Celeste—a UK-born photojournalist and singer-songwriter based in Hong Kong—meets Kai, a rebellious Indonesian-American DJ living on the edge. What begins as a night of music and shared wanderlust turns violent when Kai’s criminal past resurfaces through Raul Vergara, a ruthless Manila crime boss, and his volatile nephew Sarin. After a confrontation leaves Sarin wounded, Celeste and Kai are forced to flee through Manila’s labyrinthine streets, hunted until sunrise. As they race toward the airport bus terminal, the city becomes both maze and mirror—a place where beauty, danger, and truth collide. Shot handheld with mostly available light, Shadow Transit blends realism and romantic fatalism in a fever dream of connection and consequence—where every flicker feels like memory, and every goodbye feels permanent.

Who is Qymira?

Pronounced as kai-MEER-uh, Qymira began her career as a classical soprano singer when she was 15. “My world was in music, but through chance and opportunity, I was in a couple of movies before and TV series when I was in Los Angeles. But then my mom got sick, so I went on a long hiatus. So now, I’m very thankful to direk Pedring because it’s like coming home to back to where I love,” Qymira shares.

How did they start to collaborate for ‘Shadow Transit’?

“I actually did a music video for her in the UK last year. So, when we were doing the video and I had this script (Shadow Transit) before. So this year, I went to Hong Kong FilmArt, and I pitched the idea to her and she liked it. Now, we have finished the film,” director Pedring shares.

“The preparation started in July (2025). I deliberately wanted to shoot during the rainy season, because the entire film, I wanted to capture that Manila, when it’s wet, and 95% of the film was shot at night. So, that was difficult to film and that was her (Qymira) first film. Like first forray into full-fledged action film, shooting at night, shooting in the Philippines, real sets. We shot three days at the red light district – Poblacion, Burgos. It was fun, and Yoshi, one fo the actors, just came from Bullet Train. It’s actually a good mix of Filipino crew and foreign artists, then KC is a FilAm,” director Pedring continues.

From helming the hit femme fatale action movie ‘Maria,’ will ‘Shadow Transit’ also feature Qymira as a dangerous female character?

“Well, yes. There are fight sequences there that involve two guys, shot during the rain in the airport,” director Pedring answers.

How was it casting KC Montero as the villain and having a Filipino as the villain in a multi-national movie?

“In the story kasi, KC’s character, Sarin and Yoshi’s character, Kai, they grew up in the US and came back to the Philippines because they had problems in the US, so they had to come back. So, Sarin’s family is in the cartel. But, with KC kasi I find him really good as a villain, like I’ve worked with him in Maria. But if you watch Maria and if you watch this (Shadow Transit), his character here is much more layered, it’s different from what we did in Maria. I think it’s more leveled up, in terms of acting. In Maria, it was difficult for him when I tell him to improv (improvise), here, he loves to improv. It helped him and he matured as an actor. I think if you watch the film, you’ll be surprised what KC did as an actor,” director Pedring shares.

Shadow Transit is a co-production of the Philippines, Hong Kong and Canada. A neo-noir thriller romance film, shot mostly in the Philippines. It will have two screenings at the QCinema International Film Festival on November 22 at 7:55 PM at Gateway Cineplex Cinema 16 (Gala with Talkback), and on November 23, 6 PM at Gateway Cineplex Cinema 18.

Watch our full coverage from the pocket media conference below: