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January 13, 2026 | 3:21pm
The awardees of the Taiwan International Student Design Competition (from left) Haorui Tian, Meryl Chan, TPCA Environment Foundation Sponsor, Chin-Yen Cheng, Zih-Hong Jiang.
Photo release
MANILA, Philippines — Meryl Chan's "Dive & Trek" won the Environmental Sustainability Special Award (Digital Animation) at the 2025 Taiwan International Student Design Competition (TISDC), the sole Filipino awardee at the contest.
The animated "Dive & Trek" follows a poor fisherman named Alon who is arrested after accepting an illegal coral trade offered by tourists, leaving his daughter Pearl to reckon what remains of their family.
"Dive & Trek," featuring music by Louie Ocampo and background paintings by Catherine Tsui, was Chan's thesis film from the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York where she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2D Animation.
It received the SVA's Animation Thesis Grant in 2024 after being highly-rated for its storytelling and was featured at the My Hero International Film Festival and the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Educators Forum Student Animation Showcase.
The TISDC flew Chan to Taiwan last month to accept her prize, an experience she shared on Instagram.
"This film was made to shed light on the dangers of coral harvesting and the systemic pressures faced by coastal communities, and I'm truly honored it was chosen from over 16,000 entries," Chan wrote in her post's caption.
"Beetle Hunt!" by another SVA filmmaker and "Echoes of Color" by a graduate of Malaysia's INTI International University both received Special Region Awards.
"Before Lights Out" by James Doherty of the United Kingdom's University for the Creative Arts won the Gold Prize of the Digital Animation category.
"Following The Line" by graduates of Taiwan's National Yunlin University of Science and Technology won the Silver Prize while "Grandma's Cookie Box" by graduates of Vietnam's Van Lang University won the Bronze Prize.
"Essence" by Wan-Yu Hong of another Taiwan school the Taipei National University of the Arts beat out entries from design categories (Product, Visual, Architecture & Landscape, and Fashion) to win the top Grand Prix award.
RELATED: Filipina makes waves with her thesis film promoting environmental awareness
