THE LEADS. Royale Chimes Concerts and Events Inc. will soon roll out a big, beautiful and breathtaking event for the BPO industry!... G Diaries, a new travel series hosted by environment hero Gina Lopez, will take you on an exciting trip to discover our country’s hidden tourist gems, intertwined with inspiring stories about caring for our environment. It premieres this May 28, Sunday, before ASAP on ABS-CBN!... The team of Jodilerks de la Cruz, Employee of the Month led by Angeli Bayani, Carlo Francisco Manatad, Mikko Quizon Llan Pesigan left for Cannes last May 16 to fulfill Joji Alonso’s grand aim to be Cannes-bound!... In his forthcoming concert in Manila, Justin Bieber is demanding two hotels to billet his 180 cast and crew!... Megastar Sharon Cuneta returned on Wednesday to start shooting her Cinemalaya film entitled Ang Pamilyang ‘di Lumuluha today!... Cannes Best Director Brillante Ma Mendoza will direct Derek Ramsey for the upcoming TV5 series entitled Amo!
#LOVETHROWBACK2 THE REPEAT. During this year’s Valentine celebration period, there were three kinds of shows love-struck partygoers could choose from based on ticket price: one mass-priced, four mid-priced and one high-priced.
Directed by Calvin Neria, the pioneering success of “#LoveThrowback2’s” hugot format placed it as the highest grosser in the mid-scale price range that even before the concert was over, a repeat was announced for May 27, 8:30 p.m. in the same high-end venue at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) Plenary Hall.
Another two of the six shows had repeats, which gives it a 50 percentage that proves OPM is very much alive. Out of six concerts in abovestated period, there was only one foreign act, ‘80s alternative-rock band, Goo Goo Dolls. Given a great concept and excellent timing, OPM can stand on its own.
It also shows that you can never go wrong with timeless songs that has become the soundtrack of most Filipino’s love story. “#LoveThrowback2 The Repeat” stars OPM royalties Ariel Rivera, Christian Bautista, Joey G., Jinky Vidal, Nina and Hajji Alejandro.
As before, the concert promises a powerhouse line-up that represents different genres in the music and concert scene. Who wouldn’t want to listen to “Sana Kahit Minsan” by Ariel, “The Way You Look At Me” by Christian, “Forevermore” by Joey, “So Slow” by Jinky, “Someday” by Nina and “May Minamahal” by Hajji, and more of their hit songs?
The great thing about this is that instead of competing with each other, the “#LoveThrowback2” artists are inspired by each other, as they admitted during the recent media launch of The Repeat at Luxent Hotel Quezon City. The younger performers take the mature singers as templates to learn from, and the latter looks to the former to stay fresh by drawing energy from them.
The show also draws a mix of audiences from the so-called millennials to the young at heart. As Ariel Riversa notes, everyone shares the same emotions and reactions when they hear their favorite songs performed by the featured performers. They also laugh and nod their heads when they read the “hugot” lines after each song, a part of the show which is not to be missed as well.
Neria first used the “hugot” device in Jennylyn Mercado’s 2014 Valentine concert with Antoniette Jadaone as writer, followed up by the original “#LoveThrowback” in 2016, Rico Puno, Marco Sison, Raymond Lauchengco, Gino Padilla, Chad Borja, Roselle Nava and Nina also at the PICC.
The insistent public demand for a repeat of #LoveThrowback2 also shows that this kind of concert is not only meant to be watched on Valentine’s Day. It can be seen all over again at any time as it talks about a universal feeling that everyone at some point in their lives has lost, accepted and/or given another chance.
“#LoveThrowback2 The Repeat” is a production of Royale Chimes Concerts and Events Inc., the entertainment company founded by wife and husband team of Yuri and Beth Mercado. Beth used to work with Viva Entertainment until they decided to organize Royale Chimes Concerts and Events Inc. that brought Jack Jones, Boy George and Culture Club, Bootleg Beatles and Hello Kitty, among others, to the country.
Tickets are available at SM Tickets, Ticket net and Ticketworld outlets. Follow RoyaleChimesConcerts on Facebook and Instagram and RoyaleChimes on Twitter for more info and updates.

150TH ANNIVERSARY OF DALI’S ILLUSTRATION OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND. A visionary editor at Random House commissioned surrealist Salvador Dalí (May 11, 1904 to January 23, 1989) in 1969 to illustrate the Lewis Carroll classic for a small, exclusive edition of their book-of-the-month series. Dalí created 12 heliogravures — a frontispiece, which he signed in every copy from the edition, and one illustration for each chapter of the book.
To mark the 150th anniversary of the beloved book, Princeton University Press brought back to life the Dalí-illustrated Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (public library) — a crowning achievement among the greatest illustrations of the Carroll masterpiece from the century and a half since its inception, featuring new introductions by Mark Burstein, president of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America, and mathematician Thomas Banchoff, who knew and collaborated with Dalí.
Dalí himself applied a number of surrealist techniques to his interpretation of the story. To represent Alice — the sole character who appears in every chapter — he reused an image of a girl skipping rope that he had first painted more than 30 years earlier. He placed this strange, static, mid-motion figure, almost an icon, in each of the 12 illustration — a choice that was part automatism, part cut-up technique, as if echoing Carroll’s incantation from the first page: “The rest next time — ” “It is next time!”

TWO ASIAN AWARDS FOR TOFARM FILM. Zig Dulay’s Paglipay, grand prize winner of the first Tofarm Film Festival, won in two festivals in Bali, Indonesia. It received the Platinum World Award for International Feature Film at the World Film Awards. It also brought home the International Award of Excellence at the International Film Festival for Environment, Health, Culture.

NYOY VOLANTE AT HARD ROCK CAFÉ. Nyoy Volante is set to perform live at Hard Rock Café (HRC) on May 20 (Saturday, 9 p.m.). Hard rockers can come and see the show as Nyoy dishes out his greatest hits as culled from his impressive catalogue of multi-platinum full-length studio albums. Fans and music buffs can look forward to an evening to beautiful music as Nyoy performs his show stopping original songs such as “Nasaan Ka Na,” “You’re My You,” “Pikit,” “Someday” and “You’re Not Mine.”
Also sample today’s hottest chart-toppers paired with party anthems and homegrown favorites. This intimate show is part of HRC’s on-going live series for 2017, which is a series of live performances featuring the country’s best artists. Other featured artists this May at HRC are Part 3 (Sundays and Fridays), Kudos Love 80s (Mondays and Wednesdays), Silk (Tuesdays), Red Picasso (Thursdays) and Arpie and The Multivitamins (May 27 and 29). All shows start at 9 p.m.

NOW BACK. Leon Gallery director Jaime Ponce de Leon happily announced that their extremely popular Facebook page is back!

The country’s premiere auction house lost control over the recent posts due to a cyber-attack on said page. After trying its best to remedy the situation, Leon Gallery regained control. It promised to come up with a much more secure page in the future.
Ponce de Leon apologizes for any inconvenience this situation may have caused. He also thanks all for the understanding and support.

COMPLETE. Joji Alonso of Quantum Post welcomed the arrival of Team Jodilerks dela Cruz, Employee of the Month at the 70th Festival de Cannes with a paella dinner. The only Filipino selection in the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, the short film will have its World Premiere at Semaine de la Critique (International Critics Week). It is about the titular character (as played by Angeli Bayani), a gas station attendant and her last day the station, which is soon to be closed down.
The team includes Alonso, co-producer Ling Tiong (Singapore), director of photography Lim Teck Siang (Singapore) and director Carlo Francisco Manatad.
The festival’s parallel sidebar aims to spotlight first and second films of emerging filmmakers and has had in its roster films by Wong Kar Wai (As Tears Go By, 1989), Guillermo del Toro, (Cronos, 1993) and Jeff Nichols (Take Shelter, 2011).

‘WOW’ IS THE WORD. That is what all exclaim when they view the gown that Mrs. Universe South Asia 2017 Joyce Penas Pilarsky will wear as Queen Helena of the Santacruzan of the 60th anniversary of Sta. Rita de Cascia Parish, Philam Homes, Quezon City on May 28, 2017 starting 6 p.m.!
Self-designed, the gown is worn with a white terno with a gold vest attached to an intricate gold shoulder piece with sunrays design, both made from rattan, with pearls that serve as crown and halo. The seven-meter canvas train is done with a spectacular waterfall design running to a lotus pond rendered in textile and acrylic paint and embellished with beads upon beads and appliques upon appliques of flora.
Besides her fresh advocacy of saving children from human trafficking, Pilarsky has always pursued love of the environment as advocacy. This is the reason flora and fauna are central motifs of her couture and accessory designs.
No wonder Pilarsky is a multi-awarded global designer. Her Spring/Summer 2017 Collections are inspired by elegance and beauty of the royalty, being glamorous, fabulous and sexy. She was awarded Second Prize in the Apparel Category Competition for the Royalty Collections Project of International Design Awards (IDA).
Last October 17, 2015, Pilarsky was proclaimed Grand Champion at Los Angeles Fashion Week Design Competition tagged as “Design Warz” by Los Angeles Fashion Week Design Competition.
IDA is an annual competition that recognizes, honors and promotes legendary design visionaries and uncovers emerging talents in Architecture, Interior, Product, Graphic and Fashion Design on global level. The coveted IDA Trophy will be awarded to all Designer of the Year title winners at the official biennial IDA Ceremony in Los Angeles.
Honorary juries examined over 1000 entries submitted by architects and designers of interiors, fashion, products and graphics from 52 countries throughout the world. After final decisions had been made, the jury rewarded the best professional and emerging designers for their achievements in terms of design, creativity, usability and innovation. Judging was a rigorous process, with winners receiving publication of their work in the International Design Awards Book of Designs.
Pilarsky luckily received rave reviews from different shows she joined and she was featured in several magazines in the Philippines, USA, United Kingdom, France and Germany. Being named as the Queen of Philippine Eco-Couture, she is also proud as a model of her own creations which are very unique, one-of-a-kind fashion accessories inspired by the beauty of nature because it makes a heart smile with happiness.
She aims also to promote Filipino fabrics and other Filipino indigenous materials from different regions in the Philippines (like pineapple, abaca, pearls, natural stones and other Filipino materials) at the same time will provide more jobs for creative women. She believes that every woman deserves to feel beautiful and stunning; wearing her creations makes a woman more confident, fabulous and a headturner.

THE ‘TRIO CON BRIO’ OF HAJJI, RICO AND K. In Three in One, expect world-class entertainment when the original Kilabot ng Kolehiyala Hajji Alejandro, the ultimate Macho Guapito Rico J. Puno and the comely chanteuse K Brosas bond on stage to deliver the best of original Filipino music, laugh-out-loud moments and more as they collectively share the spotlight. This triumvirate of seasoned performers is without a doubt, a concert casting coup! Let them entertain and show you how to have a good time in Three In One.
A concert like no other slated on June 3, 2017 (Saturday), 8 p.m., it happens at The Theatre at Solaire Hotel and Casino.
Hear their greatest hits. Hajji’s include “Nakapagtataka,” “Panakip Butas,” “Tag Ulan, Tag Araw,” “May Minamahal” and “Ang Lahat Ng Ito’y Para Sa Iyo.” Rico’s include “Kapalaran,” “May Bukas Pa,” “Lupa,” “Magkasuyo Buong Gabi,”  “Ang Tao’y Marupok” and “Macho Guapito.”
For tickets, call Ticketworld at 891-9999.

POSPORO(S) LIGHT YOUR FIRE. Posporo(s) 2017, a concert series-musical collaboration between Filipino and Spanish bands and musicians, returns with a new exciting set of paired artists from a range of genres and disparate musical styles performing together on a single stage coming from a successful run last year.
This series of concerts, which will run up to November, connects Filipino musicians with Spanish artists whose music represent both countries’ identity, exposing each other to their  musical textures, nature and a sense of their own musical landscape so that these artistic encounters bridge, if not blur, the divides of style, art form, geography and disciplines.
This project is made possible by the Embassy of Spain and Instituto Cervantes de Manila with the support of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.

With the moryonan just around the corner, the stoic Tasyo (Arnold Cruz Reyes) finishes making another Morion mask out of soft dapdap wood, wraps it in an old newspaper that shows the photo of President Ferdinand Marcos declaring Martial Law, calls teenage son Mario (Jao Daniel Elamparo) and asks him to deliver it to a barrio wholesale buyer.
This is the opening scene of Panata, a made-for-television movie for May 2017 as helmed by TV5 content provider and Cannes Best Director Brillante Mendoza for Brillante Mendoza Presents, which broadcasts tonight at 10:30 p.m.
Panata is a Tagalog word for a “vow” or “oath,” usually religious in nature. The pledge here is that of local farmers and fishermen particularly in the island of Marinduque participating in the colorful festival held during the Holy Week.
Wearing costumes and wood or papier mache masks replicating the garb of Roman soldiers and Syrian mercenaries to re-enact the Passion of Christ around town streets, participants depict the story of Longinus, a Roman centurion who is blind in one eye. He was the one who pierced the side of the crucified Christ, where the blood that spurted forth touched his blind eye and fully restored his sight. This miracle converted Longinus to Christianity, which earned the ire of fellow centurions. The re-enactment searches for Longinus for seven days and reaches its climax when he is caught on Easter Sunday and beheaded.
Brillante Mendoza Presents: Panata reflects TV5’s strong commitment to be the TV network to provide differentiated entertainment broadcasted every month such as Tsinoy on February 4, Everlasting on February 25, Pagtatapos on March 22, and its freshest edition Panata on May 27. To follow are Anak on June 24, Kadaugan on July 29 and Habilin on August 26.
TV5 CEO Chot Reyes was absent during its advance screening at the Director’s Club of SM Megamall’s Mega Fashion Hall as he was coaching the Gilas Pilipinas at the 2017 SEABA Championship. So he was represented by Mendoza and Marketing head Cholo Magtoto along with the indie cast and crew.
Among the invited viewers were Marinduque Governor Carmencita Reyes, who extended assistance throughout the four-day shoot. Accompanied by daughters Gina Reyes and Dr. Violette Reyes, they graced the special screening that directly shows the Visayan province’s natural beauty, colorful culture and the tenacity of its people.

THE NARRATIVE. Based on the script of Kat Marasigan, Panata is the found story of Mario (Kristofer King in the adult role), a moryon mask maker’s son, who performs the moyonan Lenten rites for his father’s return amidst an impending rebellion during Martial Law.
Father Fernando (Lou Veloso), the parish priest who warned Tasyo and wife Azon (Sue Prado) who are New People’s Army sympathizers, of  their impending arrests. The military uses editions of the festival to catch and kill rebels, treating them as substitute Longinus.
Mario and his best friend, Toto (Felix Roco in the adult role and Vince Rillon in adult role), are witnesses to the brutal and unjust arrest of Mario’s father during the early years of Martial Law.
The desperate longing leads Mario and his mother to devote and surrender themselves to a higher power and perform various Catholic rites and rituals for the desperado patriarch’s return. Years of prayer and devotion have passed, still no father is found.
Mario, who is now married to Ising (Jill Palencia Ibuyan in the adult role and Crystal January Bravo in the adult role), takes his father’s roles as breadwinner, mask maker and rebel sympathizer.
Later on, Mario is reunited with his childhood friend, Toto, now a student activist enlightened by higher ideologies in his studies. They visit a funeral home based on the buzz Tasyo’s cadaver was deposited there, only to find out it’s a lie.
Exposed by the chaos brought about by the decline of Marcos’ regime, Toto brings Mario news of the rebel group’s impending victory against the dictator and invites him to participate in a clandestine gathering in the mountains. He gets shot in the head, which causes his right eye to turn blind like Longinus.
Preparing for another Moriones festival, Mario tells his wife with dire sureness, “Huli na ito (This is the last).” The Moriones coincides with the death of their life tormentor, Marcos. But he is back in the streets in the next panata.

COMMENTS. Panata weaves an intense and immense neorealist interpretation of life and death that pictures harsh historical realities in the Philippines created by religion, politics and culture.
King’s unconvincing eye makeup gives the naturalness of his acting a high degree of conviction. Sue gives an undemanding lesson in understated acting that makes her performance the film’s centerpiece. Given the epic treatment, their performances undeniably lead to the inevitable conclusion of life’s existential nature.
The allegory turns out how the common people’s slow-changing lives intersect with their sufferings such as poverty, fight for justice and how the government as represented by soldiers are their never-changing tormentors as if acting their own private moryonan.
Mendoza is instinctively at his best here in imbuing the narrative with multi-level meanings that squeeze valid truths in every scene through the nuances of script, cinematography, production design, music, editing and their unobtrusive stir, sometimes mocking itself with misuse in high decibel still.
He makes possible a new kind of differentiated television with ease such as what the network shoots for, showing feasibility in the time of melodrama and pseudo-entertainment.
This asserts his role as master filmmaker without trying, such as the effect of Masahista on me. But that’s too far back. How about Serbis instead? What a feeling! For the longest time, I had severely avoided making a personal assessment of Mendoza’s ability as filmmaker.
With Panata, I am forced to do just that although I shamelessly gave him a standing ovation in an almost empty cineplex upon viewing Thy Womb. After sitting through Panata, I stood up to shake Mendoza’s hand for the superb enlightenment and entertainment, marks of an all-important feature.
I have to make an admission. Brillante is now in my shortlist of mogul Filipino filmmakers,

At the maturity phase in their career, The Beatles — particularly Paul McCartney — considered the Beach Boys a threat to their popularity and stature.

As its chief songwriter, who was also the group’s bassist like McCartney with the Beatles, Brian Wilson served as a formidable competitor for McCartney. Brian became evidently jealous of the Beatles’ accomplishment with Revolver. Imitating the Beatles’ marijuana habit, which brought him to a higher level of consciousness, Wilson reclaimed lost glory by coming up with the seminal album Pet Sounds, a richly textured work blending the group’s choir-voice sound and Phil Spector’s “Wall of Sound,” a lavish combination of sound elements.
For McCartney, the Pet Sounds influence came in the form of the idea that he could make bass a major sound. He told editor Tom Mulhern: “The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, a big influential album for me. If you’re in C, and you put it on something that’s not the root note — it creates a little tension. It’s great. It just holds the track, and so by the time you go to C, it’s like ‘Oh, thank God, he went to C!’ And you can create tension with it. I didn’t know that’s what I was doing; it just sounded nice. And that started to get me much more interested in bass. It was no longer a matter of just being this low note in the back of it.”
Every track of Pet Sounds is a masterwork for the Beach Boys, the whole album rich and diverse. Wilson sings solo in “Don’t Talk” and “Caroline No,” but the harmonies of “You Still Believe In Me,” “Sloop John B,” and “God Only Knows” are brilliant as group work. There are amazingly imaginative touches everywhere, from highly complex orchestral arrangements to astoundingly simple a capella harmony. If Pet Sounds were to be assigned an importance in rock history, it would be as the first “concept album” with its introspective lyrics, unified tone, and high-quality recording.
In fact, even McCartney, John Lennon, and George Harrison considered Pet Sounds as having elevated rock’s standards. It became a reference point for the Beatles, most especially McCartney, in creating their next album.
By taking Chuck Berry’s partiality for contemporary youth culture and adding a distinctive, West Coast twist, blending in vocal harmonies from ‘50s pop, rock, and rhythm ‘n’ blues groups and singing songs about sun and surfing, Wilson almost single-handedly created an image of Southern California as a modern utopia. As the Beach Boys evolved, Wilson began to play the role of Spector while the band toured. He stayed home, wrote new songs and recorded backing tracks in the studio.
Spector influenced the Beatles by powering up the Beach Boys. He conceived the 45-rpm record as an art form and executed it in a Wagnerian scale, combining classical and popular music traditions with a flair for drama. He operated on the belief that the producer is the most important person in record production and central to this authority is strict technical and artistic control. His innovative methods created an encompassing revolution in the entire record industry, which certainly boosted the careers of the Beatles and the Beach Boys.
By this period, the Beatles were heavily into experimentation. As echo is a major component of Spector’s recording technique, the Beatles adopted it as a prime component of sound distortion. The Beatles relied on the echo to give a fuller sound to a song element. This is an undesirable sound element but the Beatles, through Spector’s initiation, explored it as an integral sound characteristic.
From beginning to end, the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band album the release date of which, June 1, 1967, its 50th year we are revisiting tomorrow, June 1, 2017, is a complete departure, both in concept and content, from rock.
From the way record producer George Martin arranged the track list, the album suggested a theme with the inter-connection of song topic and treatment. It starts with “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and ends with a reprise in abbreviated form of the same song. In between, the gamut of the working class condition is tackled in varying moods and methods. As for the predicament that humans find themselves in, the meaninglessness of life, the album suggests a solution through “A Day in the Life,” the finale song’s souring climax: getting turned on.
Critic Kenneth Tynan noted the album’s historical perspective by writing that its release is a decisive moment in the history of western civilization.” Professor Langton Winner of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology concurred with Tynan. He wrote: “The closest Western Civilization has come to unity since the Congress of Vienna in 1815, was the week the Sergeant Pepper’s album was released. For a brief while, the irreparably fragmented consciousness of the West was unified at least in the minds of the young.”
Newsweek wrote: “Sgt. Pepper’s is such an organic work...a rollicking, probing language-and-sound vaudeville which grafts skin from all of the three brows — high, middle and low — into a pulsating collage about mid-century manners and madness.”
Richard Poirier and Geoffrey Stokes raved this album that by “listening to the Sgt. Pepper’s album one thinks not of simply of the history of popular music but the history of this century.”
NME’s David Quantick wrote: “It’s not the greatest album ever made, as some people would have you believe. It’s not even the best Beatle album. But it is the first example of recording technology being used as an instrument and it does contain enough traces of the old McCartney lyricism that it appeared to bringing us up against the future even as it tied us nostalgically to the past.”
But the most prophetic assessment of the Sgt. Pepper’s album came from Richard Goldstein in The New York Times. He wrote that the album is “dazzling but ultimately fraudulent” and has the “power to destroy rock ‘n’ roll.”
With the Sgt. Pepper’s album, the group achieved a musical synthesis that far exceeded the subject matter and musical content of pop. By incorporating relevant or interesting ideas, they accomplished in several years what classical music took centuries and jazz music several decades to achieve. Stereo Review critic Eric Zalman called them “the first poets of the technological age,” crediting their influences in art and life as “irreversible.”
Regardless of the mixed and contradictory assessment about this album, the Grammy Awards gave it the Album of the Year, the first rock album to win it, and Best Contemporary Album in the 1968 awarding ceremonies.
But even in this maturity period, the Beatles remained White Negroes. They might not be nicking obscure rock ‘n’ roll songs but classical music and the developed styles of their peers by them were still imitation. They just became more sophisticated plagiarists or plagiarists extraordinaire as McCartney put it.
The clear winner of the Beatles vs. Beach Boys music battle: the White Negro Beatles.

Note: Culled from the columnist’s book, The Beatles: Extraordinary Plagiarists, as released by Amazon.com in New York.

After intensive selection, mentorship by a select group of celebrities and volunteer work at Habitat for Humanity, the 40 finalists of the premium pioneer Mr. and Ms. Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) Search were presented in a pre-pageant show at the I'M Hotel in Makati City on Saturday, November 11, with cocktails at 6 p.m. and pre-pageant starting at 7 p.m.

The preliminary pageant of the Mr. and Ms. BPO Search graded as a Csat event. Csat? Csat is one of the many acronyms and terms used by the country's BPO industry. It stands for "customer satisfaction," a metric to gauge a contact agent's performance. This pageant pioneered by Royale Chimes Concerts and Events will crown the male and female ambassadors of the Philippine BPO industry.
The top 10 finalists were selected in the brand wear, swimwear and unlimited text voting portions. At P2.50 per vote per SIM, votes were cast until the pre-pageant, which makes up 20 percent of the overall scoring. The talent showcase, held on a voluntary basis and not part of the overall judging process, was also presented.
Lead's fearless forecast, which is in no way connected to the official tabulation of Mr. BPO Top 10 Finalists, includes the following contenders:

#1 Derick Bocito, Teleperformance Fairview
#2 Magic Sa-onoy, Acquire Asia Pacific Shaw Boulevard
#4 Brent Selma, Opsify Cebu
#6 Arthur Bilog, Sykes Asia PH — BGC
#7 Iversen Vasquez, RingCentral Edsa Shaw
#9 Ariel Noval, Accenture Eastwood City
#11 Al Prince Calilung, Sutherland Global Services Clark Pampanga
#12 Yuichi Sekiguchi, IQOR Philippines SM Dasmarinas
#18 Giovanni Guillermo, Convergys Megamall
#20 Shadid Sidri, Stellar BPO Eastwood City

Lead's Miss BPO top 10 finalists:
#1 Nykhi Arines, Alorica Mezza
#5 Glydel Espero, Concentrix Tera Tower Quezon City
#7 Janna Alcantara, Teletech Sta. Rosa, Laguna
#8 Julia Mae Mendoza, VXI HPI Munoz
#13 Jen Bohol, TaskUs Cavite
#14 Jaztine Balagtas, VXI Panorama
#16 Danna Leviste, Convergys Alabang 1
#17 Jam de la Luna, The Results Companies Lipa City, Batangas
#18 Bianca Atheena Abejero, Sykes Shaw 500
#20 Micca Rosal, Teletech Makati

To vote, text YES (space) MMBPO (space) F (candidate's number) and send to 29290276. Open to all Smart, Talk N' Text and Globe subscribers. P2.50 per text. Voting is unlimited and up until November 21, 10 a.m. This is powered by Voyager Innovations.
The pre-pageant showed that the 40 finalists are all ready for the Grand Night to be held on November 21 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City starting at 6 p.m. Tickets available at SM Tickets at the following ticket prices: P4,500 (VIP); P3,500 (Patron); P500 (Lower Box 2); P1,500 (Upper Box); and P750 (general admission).
This shows that the Mr. and Ms. BPO Search is an outstanding solution to solve the morale issues confronting the industry. If all contact centers can conduct their local version of the Mr. and Ms. BPO Search, industry-wide concerns like turnover, low morale and alcoholism can be corrected.
Among the sponsors are chic and comfortable fashion-forward brand, Folded and Hung; fashionable and comfortable swimwear, DR Swim By Domz Reyes; and the fab photographer of the stars, Edward de la Cuesta Photography.

FEARLESS CINEMA. “Walang Takot” is the tagline of the 13th Cinema One Originals based on the lead of Ronald Arguelles, It runs from November 13 to 21 at Trinoma, Glorietta, Gateway, UP Cine Adarna, Cinema 76 and Cinematheque with an extended run from November 22 to 28 at the Power Plant Mall.
Dempster Samarista's Bundok Banahaw, Sacred and Profane is an exploration of the titular mystical mountain, using secret histories and sacred knowledge as a way of piecing together our cultural psyche.
Phyllis Grande's Haunted: A Visit to the Red House focuses on the atrocities by Japanese soldiers on comfort women during World War 2, a horrendous collective memory that remains eerily relevant and refuses to be forgotten.
The full-length narrative section includes Paki, where director Giancarlo Abrah tries to stop a mother in her golden years from leaving her husband of 60 years to live the rest of her days out as an old maid.
Nervous Translation is Shireen Seno's drama about a shy girl who discovers a pen that can translate the thoughts and feelings of people when they get nervous.
Richard Somes' Historiographika Errata is an elaborate historical mosaic that attempts to figure out why we are what we are, throwing in the mix a suicidal Rizal, a cross-dressing Bonifacio and the widow who became the first Makapili.
Dan Villegas' Walang Forever is a bittersweet exploration of relationships told in perspectives of various genders.
Kip Oebanda's Nay is about a man suffering from a terminal disease, who uncovers a dark family secret.
The two first features this year are Fatrick Tabada and Rae Red's Si Chedeng at Si Apple, a dark comedy where two old girl friends become accidental criminals and embark on a road trip with a severed head in a fake Louis Vuitton bag.
And then there is Joseph Teoxon's time-jumping Throwback Today, in which Carlo Aquino plays a disgruntled young man at the end of his rope, who stumbles on an impossible way to rewrite his own history.
This year's foreign film line-up is a 13-strong program that includes Robin Campillo's Beats Per Minute, Claire Denis' Let The Sun Shine In, Francois Ozon's L'Amant Double, Ildiko Enyedi's On Body And Soul, Joachim Trier's Thelma, Hirokazu Koreeda's The Third Murder, Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Before We Vanish, Sebastian Leilo's A Fantastic Woman, Amit Masurkar's Newton, Lucrecia Martel's Zama, The Safdie Brothers' Good Time, Warwick Thornton's Sweet Country, Luca Guadagnino's Call Me By Your Name and the 4K restoration of Steven Spielberg's science-fiction classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
Among the restored classics are Marilou Diaz Abaya's Moral, Jeffrey Sonora's Asedillo, Celso Ad Castillo's Tag Ulan Tag Araw and Danny Zialcita's Langis at Tubig. Restored versions Zialcita's Karma, Abaya's Karnal and Lino Brocka's Cain at Abel will also be screened.
Lastly, Sari Dalena's documentary on Ishmael Bernal, Ishma, will screen to coincide with the launch of the new Ishmael Bernal book, ProBernal Anti Bio, written by Ishmael Bernal himself with Jorge Arago and Angela Stuart-Santiago.

FEARLESS SWIM. Atom Araullo's pilot documentary on GMA 7 entitled Philippine Seas proved to be a world-class biopic. Featuring Atom eyeballing a giant, endangered pawikan and a feeding dugong attacked by blood feeder fishes, the show is filled with gems of underwater photography that we normally encounter only in National Geographic features.
An extensive exploration of subject, Philippine Seas offers a lot of bonuses such as seeing Atom in angles previously unseen like his physical side. But these do not affect subject treatment, but contributes immensely to it — an intelligent approach. He does not dawdle, but only delves in necessary measure.
They prove interesting discussions supported by never-before seen nature and human footages. It even features Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Roy Cimatu without falling into geopolitics talk. Had it been in another network, it could easily divert into propaganda. Such an intelligent approach!
Philippine Seas gives us great proof why we must conserve our beautiful marine resources. Atom shares, "Hopefully in this documentary maipakita natin na mas malaki ang ganansya natin kung tayo ay magsasama-sama para pangalagaan 'yung mga karagatan at masiguro na ma-enjoy pa ito ng future generation."

FIRST-EVER MR. AND MISS BPO. Crowned the first-ever Mr. and Ms. BPO at Mall of Asia Arena: Miss BPO Micca Rosal, First Runner-up Khristine Corpuz and Second Runner-up Nykhi Arines; Mister BPO Lee Bueno; First Runner-up Arthur Bilog and Second Runner-up Job Simpas. Lead!

‘DEATH BY GOKKUM.’ Mike de Leon is not the first helmer who decided not to field his unreleased film, Citizen Jake (2017), in the Metro Manila Film Festival to avoid certain death through censorship. Joselito Altarejos did not enter Death By Gokkum (2016) in the SinagMaynila film festival for the same reason, and it continues to be unreleased after two years of post-production.
This self-censorship is similar to Sacrum, an art exhibit in Gateway's ex-Sining Kamalig Gallery of reproductions of Renaissance male nudes with erect phallus. So it would be permitted to be exhibited at the high-end mall, the curator censored himself by intentionally covering them and padlocking the exhibit so viewers cannot go near the life-size paintings to ogle and perhaps remove the covers.
Synchronicity abounds in Altarejos' move over to non-gender films, Death by Gokkum: the vulgarity of human affairs in Paolo Pasolini's Salo, the animal nature of men in Nagisa Oshima's In the Realm of the Senses and the road trip to death of Armando "Bing" Lao's Biyaheng Lupa. This just goes to show that originality is dead and that internationalism has claimed the arts.
Co-written by Altarejos and John Paul Bedia, it says sex is commercial. This determines the film's structure. The title itself hints at gay films that he specialized in for a decade as a filmmaker, swallowing semen being linked with the gay sex act. Prolonged pain follows short pleasure: Foul breath or disease.
It works on the premise that man is inherently good trapped in a corrupt life: love, honesty, dog-eat-dog, criminality, cleansing. Classical music, imbibed from his surrogate mother — his grandmother — is the soundtrack of his life.
It is the day before All Saints Day so there are plenty of references to the dead and dying: crime, carcasses, Halloween masks, flowers. Actors Oliver Aquino and Angela Cortez take a road trip as porno actors.
It's as if Altarejos is obsessed with death. Natoy's soldier father returns as a cadaver in Pink Halo-halo; 17-year-old David shoots his teen boyfriend in Unfriend; love is doomed by impermanence of gay relationship in Kasal (The Commitment). He posits in Death by Gokkum: Filipinos die in the hands of foreigners as symbolized by the Japanese-type characters of the film's title.
Hired to do the lead roles in a pornographis film, 17-year-old sex worker Gino as acted by Aquino and an unwed mother-sex worker Marie by Cortez go on a slow and sexually explicit trip to a different kind of passing away. The day before All Saints' Day, the two travel to a far-flung province, a paradise-like location, for the shoot. During the intense principal photography, they are made to do acts which had not been agreed upon.
Feeling trapped and isolated, the two are pushed to their limits, to the edge of their dignity. It is a morality tale set in an act judged by society as immoral. It posits the question: When you take away one's respect and dignity, however insignificant it may be to us, what is then left of that person?
Death by Gokkum's redeeming value is its being the pornography of human life.
Yes, artists must practice self-censorship!

SMARTER REASONS TO GET YOUR LATEST iPHONE FROM SMART. Experience Christmas like never before with a brand new iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus as Smart Communications offers the new generation iPhones.
"We're excited to offer iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, which takes mobile innovation to new heights with a powerful chip, advanced camera and cutting-edge augmented reality support. It only gets better with our unbeatable postpaid plans, which make it easier for you to get hold of your preferred iPhone, and optimize it with data-packed offers powered by our newest and fastest Smart LTE connection — all for a mobile experience like never before" said Patrick Tang, VP and Head of Smart and Sun Postpaid Marketing. Smart subscribers started owning the latest Apple mobile device last November 17.
iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are a new generation of iPhone featuring a new glass and aluminum design in three beautiful finishes — space gray, silver and a new gold — made with the most durable glass ever in a smartphone, Retina HD displays, A11 Bionic chip and is designed for the ultimate augmented experience.
The world's most popular camera gets even better and wireless charging brings a powerful new capability to iPhone. iPhone 8 Plus features dual 12-megapixel cameras and introduces Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting, bringing dramatic studio lighting effects to iPhone, allowing customers to capture stunning portraits with a shallow depth of field effect in five different lighting styles.
Smart's unbeatable offers are especially designed to keep up with subscribers who have very active mobile lifestyles from working on the fly and immersing in their dose of mobile entertainment on the go. Moreover, Smart's newest and fastest LTE network empowers subscribers to optimize the new iPhones and experience superfast and reliable Internet that suits their fast-paced lifestyle. Make this Christmas memorable with the latest iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus and upload your best yuletide photos and videos online.
If you are still undecided, here are five reasons to get your new iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus from Smart:
1. Charge to bill. While competitor requires a cash-out payment worth P20,999, Smart lets consumers to include the device cost into their monthly bill. With this, payments for the devices under plans 1499, 1999, 2499 and 2999 can be paid monthly for 24 months.
2. Maximized iPhone features with more data. The company offers more data to better optimize the new iPhone. Subscribers will also be given a free VAS/app that's interchangeable monthly, which won't consume your monthly data volume allocation. On top of that, some mainstream apps get unli data in volume, too. These apps include FB, Messenger, Waze, Whatsapp, Line and Viber.
3. Lower handset cost. After 24 months, consumers would just pay for the monthly service fee. For example, the customer simply has to pay an affordable Php1,999 per month after 24 months.
4. Powered by fastest LTE. Recently, Open Signal recognized Smart for having the fastest LTE Network. So, what's wiser than gearing your iPhone 8 with the country's fastest LTE?
5. Gadget Shield. Smart is also giving one month free gadget shield against accidental damage or theft.

For the complete pricing details,visit smart.com.ph/iPhone8. For more details on iPhone, please visit www.apple.com/ph.

THE NEXT GENERATION OF CALCIUM SUPPLEMENTS. Calcium being an important nutrient in maintaining healthy bones, muscles and nerves is a common knowledge. That's why when we were young, our parents made us drink one glass of milk a day. But as we grow old, we tend to consume less and less calcium every day. Our body's supply of calcium is getting leeched by our bones too, making people realize that they need more calcium in the body.
While there are many ways of incorporating calcium in our diet, one proven way is by taking calcium supplements. There are way too many options available, but how do you choose?
Aim for 500 milligrams or less because more than the recommended daily amount isn't good for you. The more calcium you take the harder it is for the body to absorb.
Look for supplements with calcium citrate because it is non acidic and can be consumed on an empty stomach.
Find calcium supplements with supplementary vitamins like Vitamin C and Vitamin D that can help in the better absorption of calcium in the body.
Go for organic calcium supplements, these supplements are more easily absorbed by the body giving the sufficient calcium your body needs.
One calcium supplement that has all of these, is the next generation of calcium supplements, Bewell C plus Calcium. It has the power of Vitamin C and D3 that complements well with Calcium. It contains Calcium Citrate, Calcium Ascorbate and Cholecalciferol (Vitamin D), that aids in the better absorption of Calcium to the bones.
Bewell-C Plus Calcium is an organic vitamin supplement that is non-acidic, this means that it can be taken on an empty stomach. Being an organic supplement, it provides the full benefits of Vitamin C and Calcium at a very affordable price.
Available in Mercury Drugstores and other leading drugstores nationwide for only P10 per capsule SRP. For more information, visit Bewell-C Plus Calcium's Facebook page.

Well, show me the way
To the next whiskey bar
Oh, don't ask why
Oh, don't ask why
Show me the way
To the next whiskey bar
Oh, don't ask why
Oh, don't ask why
For if we don't find
The next whiskey bar
I tell you we must die
I tell you we must die
I tell you, I tell you
I tell you we must die

Opening with organ notes, Clifton Stanz, wearing an open overcoat, celebrates the confused inebriation of a whisky guzzler in the Doors’ The Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar). An uncle once treated me as an elementary pupil to a studio visit of ‘60s popular noontime show Darigold Jamboree on Channel 11.
His popping out stance is that of a clown, something like a Jack in the Box. I did not recognize it then as I was too young to know, but I was old enough to remember. It was a unique kind of movement that he did, perhaps the reason it was memorable to me.
A Jack in the Box is a toy with a clown figure inside that is aided by a spring, which makes it pop out when the lid is opened. Knowing my rock history now, I know Clifton imitated not Jim Morrison of The Doors, but Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones as Jumping Jack Flash.
Later, the lanky drummer/vocalist from Pampanga would reveal his real identity as Joey “Pepe” Smith, who is now celebrating 50 years as a rock and roll icon. He was a front act for the Beatles’ historic concert at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium in Manila in July 4, 1966 with the band Eddie Reyes and D’Downbeats.
Pepe played drums with Eddie Reyes on keyboard/drums/vocals, Tony Jalandoni on lead guitar, Charlie Mielieb on rhythm guitar, and Tonet Fabie on bass guitar. They did cover versions of mostly Rolling Stones hits like Get Off My Cloud.
After the concert, Pepe buzzed that the D’Downbeats owner, who also owned the El Mundo night club along Dewey Boulevard (now Roxas Boulevard), sent four hospitality girls to the Beatles, who were back in their suites at the Manila Hotel. One of them with heavy Visayan accent revealed John Lennon as an uncut man, which matched reality.
Pinoy Rock came to be when on December 5, 1972 minutes before the three-man Juan de la Cruz band — with Pepe as vocalist-drummer-composer, Wally Gonzales as guitarist and Mike Hanopol as vocalist-guitarist-composer — were to go onstage, Pepe speedily entered a backroom to write the Pilipino lyrics to anthemic song entitled Himig Natin. From there and other rock releases like Balong Malalim and Beep Beep, he inspired the Pinoy Rock genre.
Pepe starred in Mahal, dubbed as an “electro mechanical mystical Filipino rock musical,” one year in the making. It turned out to be a four-hour staging, the Philippines’ first rock opera in the decade of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar.
With libretto by Beatriz Romualdez Francia writing as Rahisa Lahat-Wala, it featured Jacqui Magno as Ligaya Liwanag, Pepe as a Jack in the Box character, Tess Santos of the pre-Sampaguita days, at the Main Theater of the Cultural Center of the Philippines on March 21, 22, 23, and April 4 and 5 1975 at 7:30 p.m.
Stage performance and screen projections shifted time frame in multi-screen approach. High on a recreational habit, Pepe who jumps out from a box frequently forgot his lyrics, but improvised to the correct melody. Who would know?"
Ending in revelry that spilled to the sprawling lobby to the rousing tune and animated shouts of “Hala bira!” by Pepe as Pied Piper incarnate assisted by two costumed midgets called the crowd:
“Hoy Pareng Henry (Francia), Anong ginagawa mo?
Hoy Pare, Malapit na ang curfew
Hoy Pare, Iligpit mo na ang ‘Mahal!’”
“Mahal” proved to be the essence of the new Pilipino music, what a radio station then shout out as “Super Tunog Pinoy.” Or what would permute not long after as OPM, Original Pilipino Music, an imaginative blend of genres by Filipino artists with distinct cultural sensibilities. 

THE ‘RAKENROL KING’ SLEEPS. After his hospitalization due to a brain attack, Pepe, who is known as the “Rakenrol King,” is pictured lying on a fluffy couch in checkered shirt, jeans and fedora, his head on thick throw pillows, his sun screener on the center table with the message: “Magpapahinga lang ako. BUT I'LL BE BACK! Rakenrol!”
It garnered 1.3K reactions, 105 shares and 81 comments, some of which are:
Ian Mark Loreto Get well soon king of rock roll!
Lester Johnson Rest thoroughly bro.
Roel Sadiua Waw pare sige relaks lang muna... Napansin ko nga sa mga interview mo medyo over stressed ka hahaha... rock on!!
Ruben Alar Padilla Cool pepe enjoy more life don't give up lets rock and roll.

SMART OPENS REGISTRATION FOR iPHONE X, AT P3,199 PER MONTH. Gearing up for the official launch of the iPhone X in the Philippines on December 1, Smart has started accepting pre-orders for the iPhone X at the Smart Online Store and at all Smart Stores nationwide, offering the device at only P3,199 per month for 24 months.
With P3,199 per month, this includes your monthly device amortization of P1,700 and Plan 1499, which includes 9GB data, unlimited texts to all networks, 60 minutes of calls to all networks, and free access to the app of your choice every month, plus 1-month Gadget Shield.  
To check Smart’s iPhone X offers, head to smart.com.ph/iPhoneX. With its feature-packed plans for the iPhone X, Smart is your best bet when it comes to finally getting iPhone’s premium 10th anniversary phone.
Here are top reasons you should consider signing up with Smart for your iPhone X this Christmas:
1. Enjoy lower monthly cash-out at P3,199 per month, charged to your monthly bill. Smart makes it easier for you to own the iPhone X at only P3,199 per month, inclusive of data, calls and text services.
Moreover, you can have your monthly device fee charged to your monthly bill at the get-go for greater convenience. As such, you don’t need to worry about coughing up a huge initial cash-out payment, or produce select credit cards.
2. Get a better value plan with P3,499 per month. Want to get more bang for your buck? With P3,499 per month, Smart gives you a much lower total device cost as well as bigger data volume. Broken down, Smart’s P3,499 per month offer includes your monthly device amortization of P1,400 and Plan 1999, which comes with which includes 12 GB data, unlimited texts to all networks, 70 minutes of calls to all networks, and free access to the app of your choice every month, plus 1-month Gadget Shield.  
3. Connect to the country’s fastest LTE. Smart lets you optimize the iPhone X by delivering the country’s fastest LTE connection, according to the latest study of independent tech firm OpenSignal.
4. Enjoy up to 15 percent discount on select iPhone X accessories at Power Mac. Signing up with Smart gives you up to 15 percent discount on select official iPhone X accessories, such as cases and screen protectors, at Power Mac Center. You can avail of this offer if you order from Smart from November 24 until December 31, 2017. And you can redeem your discount until March 1, 2018.
5. Get a free Belkin Wireless Charger for all approved pre-orders at the Smart Online Store or at select Smart Stores.
What are you waiting for? Sign up now at store.smart.com.ph and be among the first to get the iPhone X from Smart!

Through the endemic feel and organic beat of Western Visayan culture resonating in the region’s local stories as told by its best and emerging filmmakers, CineKasimanwa Film Festival may well resonate among viewers from other parts of the country and other countries.
Following the well-loved global blurb of Philippine tourism, “It’s More Fun in the Philippines,” CineKasimanwa now on its fifth year further expands its breadth and reach with entertaining strategies all over Western Visayas from December 1 to 17.
First, its omnibus trailer had a national launch with an opening gala at CineSwerte, a concept moviehouse within Department of Tourism (DoT) Makati as created by DoT-Region VI and CineKasimanwa, wherein films from Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan, Antique, Guimaras and Negros were screened at the showroom that featured a lobby cinema (only during the opening) and CineSwerte (which will run for two weeks) from November 20 to 30.
Highlights were the keynote speeches by DoT Region VI regional director Helen Catalbas, CineKasimanwa festival director and programmer (also member of the National Committee on Cinema of the NCCA) director Elvert Bañares and Undersecretary for Tourism Regulation, Coordination and Resource Generation Alma Rita Jimenez, and Assistant Secretary for TRCRG for Luzon and Visayas Maria Lourdes Japson.
It also featured special performances by Dante Beriong, noted Kinaray-a and Hiligaynon novelty music composer and singer, and the rap group Tumandok Crew, grand champion of DoT Region VI’s Experience Western Visayas Ilonggo Rap Competition. In the novelty Act A Scene, volunteers from the audience also acted out selected dramatic scenes from the film entries.
Two years ago, the DoT and CineKasimanwa partnered for the first ever short film grants in the country, the DoT Region VI presents Western Visayas Tourism Showroom featuring the films of CineKasimanwa: Western Visayas Film Festival. CineKasimanwa: Western Visayas Film Festival is a film festival in Region VI (Western Visayas), Philippines.
Western Visayas consists of six provinces (Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan, Antique, Guimaras and the newly reinstalled Negros Occidental), four cities, more than 100 municipalities with a population of more than six million people. This is to promote the creativity, stories, culture and people of Region VI through different films done by award-winning and emerging Hiligaynon film directors from the region.
The omnibus trailers were nationally launched through the showroom’s opening. Many filmmakers from the Philippines usually come from Region VI and, as such, it may be concluded that there is a vibrant cinema culture within Western Visayas with films in Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a and Aklanon languages.
CineKasimanwa focuses on local stories and visions with a very diverse program from full-length to shorts, narratives to experimental works, traditional to new media, special program for children and an annual program for horror, science fiction and unclassifiable films. Western Visayas has a very rich culture with many folklores, family drama and stories of locals told through generations.
“Kasimanwa” is a friendly term in Hiligaynon prevalent in Western Visayas which roughly translates as “someone who is from the same region.” Through films and the annual CineKasimanwa film festival held in the region, a sense of belongingness with cinema unites everyone and now promotes provinces in the region as a tourism destination. The film festival continuously envisions to feature, support, encourage and promote Hiligaynon cinema to the region and the world.
The filmmakers whose film trailers were presented are:
Luha sang Bulalakaw (Tears of the Star) by Kenneth de la Cruz. Is there something like a romance made in the stars? A young couple in the island of Guimaras faces the challenge of a forthcoming separation. A few days before Samuel leaves Aileen for a better job opportunity in a distant city, the latter, feeling immensely desperate, tries to stop him from leaving. Making the most out of their remaining time together, they patiently wait for a shooting star before facing the consequences of being apart. Shot in Guimaras Island’s Alubihod Beach, Manggahan festival, Holy Family Hills, Spring Bloom Farm, National Mango Research.
Ugsad (Full Moon) by Kenneth Borlan. They say there are no secrets we can keep. Under the full moon, we are all naked. In the midst of someone’s confusion, will the presence of the full moon be able to pave his way to understanding the mysteries of the inner darknes or will he just give in and fade away? This mystical drama from the director of Mga Hilaw Nga Tikang gets a twist that commences during the dance of the aswangs. The film was shot in Suba Malawig Eco-Tour, Daliran Cave, Sebario Salt Farm, old Trappost Monastery and Bala-an Bukid Shrine — all in Guimaras.
Empyreus: Mga Gangaan Sang Pagtilaw (Empyreus: Gates of Sin) by Dennis Hubag. Man is awakened by God in the afterlife and given the freedom to choose a place where he wants to spend eternity. Each choice being Man’s indulgences makes it difficult for him to decide until his final choice unravels Man’s innermost desire to question divinity via his faith. The film was shot in Iloilo’s Bato Sumpit Falls, Bato Simbahan; Bucari Pine Forest in Leon; Isla de Higantes in Carles.
Saliwat (Again) by Jay Palmares Leo. An enthusiastic guy openly shows his love to his best buddy, Amara, who, in return, rejects him every now and then. Will Leo’s efforts shine through and make Amara fall for him? Antique is not just a destination, but an inspiration for this millennial romance not devoid of secrets. Shot in Antique’s Caluya; Malunpati Cold Springs; Bagtasan Patadyong Weaving and Tibiao, it is a millennial love story.
Higante kag mga Misteryo sang Kuweba (The Giant and the Mysteries of the Cave) by Ramjun Valasote and Dane Arsulo. When a group of friends decides to go on a road trip from Iloilo to Aklan, all they want is to escape the stress and chaos of their urban lives. When they visit the Pangihan Cave without following usual safety measures, they fall into the traps of the mysterious cave where they wil experience a real adventure they will never forget. Shot in Boracay Island, Jawili Falls and Pangihan Cave in Aklan.
Dalitan (Venomous) by Reymundo Salao. Espionage, intrigue, trust, deception, betrayal all mix in this action-packed film from the director of the award-winning Dungol. A lethal virus has spread and a team of government operatives must stop a clandestine organization from spreading it in several barangays. They are brought into the beautiful islands of Antique, Western Visayas, to track the source of the epidemic only to find out there’s more than meets the human eye. This was shot in Antique’s Nogas Island in Anini-y, San Jose, Culasi Sea Wall, Igpasungaw in Sebaste, and dive site in Anini-y.
Manggagarab (Man with A Sickle) by Kyle Fermindoza. Gabriel and his daughter, Celine, have been living a peaceful and warm, loving life in the mountains. With Gabriel’s wife gone for reasons unknown, he struggles to provide for his daughter.
Everything is as normal as everyone else until the past starts crawling in and devouring Gabriel. The untold story of the Manggagarab casts a shadow of despair over Gabriel and his daughter. The darkness lurking behind the thick jungle has once again crawled out onto the light of day. Once again, it is time. Shot in Capiz & Iloilo: Suhot Cave in Jamindan, Cadimahan River Tours, Hinulugan Falls, Falls Camp Peralta.
CineKasimanwa — through its lead institutional presentors such as DoT-Region VI — has partner festivals, institutions, schools and universities and LGUs in each province. CineKasimanwa proudly supported and presented by DoT-Region VI, with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and the Film Development Foundation of the Philippines.
The short films programmed for DoT — presented as a concept showroom — are some of the most interesting films from the first to the fourth editions of the festival. No wonder CineKasimanwa is turning out to be a template for other regional film festivals. No wonder the DoT is determined to use film to promote tourism as confirmed by Undersecreetaary Jimenez in praise of CineKasimanwa’s lead.
CineKasimanwa’s guests included CineKasimanwa’s best film winner of 2015, director Aime Apostol-Escasa with film editor Chuck Escasa; Albert Avellana, supporter of Hiligaynon cinema and owner of Avellana Art Gallery; Mark Dizon, cinematographer of one of the presented films Luha Sang Bulalakaw; actor John Julian Muniz; and NCCA commissioner Alphonsus Tesoro who is also Capiz’s provincial tourism officer.
Can you ask for more fun in the Philippines?

MEDIA CHRISTMAS PARTY. Happy to meet at the ABS-CBN and Sky media Christmas party friends Manay Ethel Ramos of Malaya Business Insight, Crispina Belen of Manila Bulletin, former vice president of ABS-CBN Corporate Communications, who solidified the department and now Sky consultant Bong Osorio, head of ABS-CBN Corporate Communications Kane Choa, ABS-CBN Media Relations head Aaron Domingo, Janiz Navida of Bulgar, Nestor Cuartero of Tempo, Danny Vibas of Remate, Bhaby Lee of People’s Journal and Jason Inocencio of Adobo magazine.
The party, held at the ABS-CBN Audience Lounge (primarily used by the audience of ASAP and It’s Showtime), was a first for SKY, according to Bong. Entertainment, sports and news writers and bloggers were the guests, which shows how Sky has expanded its reach based on the initiative and innovation of ABS-CBN Narrowcast head March Ventosa. It was a fun night with great food, company, accommodation, party games and prizes! Robi Domingo and Tippy Dos Santos were outstanding hosts.
I thank Kane for allowing this PWD to be accompanied in this strictly-by-invitation-only event. Thanks for the excellent assistance of the able-bodied and personable ABS-CBN events marshalls. The facility itself is excellent except for the non-use of the inclined ramp (under repair, according to a marshal) and the inclined way to the second floor. It takes a PWD to recognize what would benefit other PWDs.
Looking forward to the next one!

ALLITERATION TITLES WORK. Quantum Post Production House head Carlo Francisco Manatad’s Whether the Weather is Fine (formerly A Wrong Season) won the top Jury Prize of the TorinoFilmLab (TFL) of Turin, Italy. Produced by Carmi Rae Cacanindin, it was awarded 50,000 euros to help complete the film.
Like Carlo’s Whether the Weather is Fine or Mike de Leon’s Kakabakaba Ka Ba? or Sigrid Andrea Bernardo’s Kita Kita, alliteration is a favored head rhyme by Filipino filmmakers. Alliteration is the repetition of usually initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words or syllables (such as wild and woolly, threatening throngs).
TFL is a film processing laboratory that primarily supports filmmakers working on their first and second fiction feature films. Its four main fields of involvement are training, development, funding and distribution.
TFL runs several projects in each of these fields every year. They end at the TFL Meeting Event in November during the Torino Film Festival when participants of the different programmes present their work to a selected group of producers, sales agents, distributors and other professionals in independent filmmaking.
Quantum Post Production is also the company that did the laboratory services of Dan Villegas’ All of You, Quantum Films official entry to the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival to kick off this December 25 with world-class finish, look and appeal. It stars Jennylyn Mercado as Gabby, Derek Ramsey as Gab, Sam Milby, Nico Antonio as Gabby’s gay friend, Rafael Rosell and Solenn Heusaff.
The story of Whether the Weather is Fine is Carlo’s journey in getting to where he is now after years and years of hardships, if not suffering from the experience of Yolanda (super typhoon “Haiyan”) in 2013. He searched for a way to get to Tacloban to make sure his family was safe from the ordeal, creating and recreating the material, to raising funds to finally getting the film off the ground. He pitched sessions wherever his feet would allow him, creating short films to prove his mettle as a director and much, much more.
Producer Joji Alonso would sometimes question his decision as to the right timing, choice of this and that, blah blah blah, but would always eventually concede they knew better. And this is one point she is so glad to be wrong.
Lawyer Joji thanks the Film Development Council of the Philippines through head Liza Diño-Seguerra, and to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts for the help extended, most specially for the last three trips to various destinations in Europe, to complete the film lab.
She thanks everyone at Quantum Post: Kristin Parreño Barrameda, Timmy Torres, Benjamin Tolentino, Ogie Tiglao, Nardre Torres, Noah Lean Loyola, John Kenneth Paclibar and new members of the family, to the staff Francis Edgar Salvador, Rodel Castillo and Maricar Banzon Zacarias for all the support lent to Carlo.
Produced with Plan C, Teck Siang Lim, Ling Tiong, Globe Studios Quark Henares, Planet A Media Productions and TFL.
Mabuhay ang Pelikulang Filipino!

GMA RECORDS REVITALIZES ROSTER OF ARTISTS. Among them Alden Richards, Willie Revillame, Jennylyn Mercado, Dennis Trillo, Michael V., Solenn Heussaff and Tom Rodriguez, GMA Records welcomes Ai-Ai de las Alas, Gabbi Garcia, Kristoffer Martin, One Up, and Papa Obet to their growing family of amazing entertainers as they inked separate deals with the Network’s recording arm.
To reach a wider audience and relate to the younger generation, Ai-Ai signed a distribution deal with GMA Records to release her single “Walang Pinipili” with the vocal group Ex Batallion. Her single, despite being about the complex and in-depth interpretation of love, boasts of a mixture of upbeat sounds and rapping.
“Kumbaga, gusto kong makilala rin ako ng mga millennial, and at the same time ‘yung Ex Battalion, gusto ko rin naman na makilala sila ng fans ko,” the newly married top entertainer explains.
This partnership with GMA Records is also her way of reaching her dream of having a hit single, another notch on the belt she is yet to achieve. The single was released for download and streaming on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and over 180 digital stores worldwide.
Excited to release his first single, “Una Kong Pasko,” for streaming and download on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon and over 180 digital stores worldwide, Barangay LS FM DJ Papa Obet feels grateful for the opportunity that GMA Records has given him.
“Ito talaga ‘yung passion ko, ‘yung pagkanta. Naging madali ang pag-uusap namin ng GMA Records at talagang tinutulungan nila ako, so nagpapasalamat ako sa kanila na tinanggap nila ‘yung song ko,” the DJ adds.
Kristoffer Martin’s single “Paulit-ulit” is a product of Filscap Songwriting Camp, penned by Jam Ruiz. Kristoffer feels very happy to be part of GMA Records. He looks forward to sharing his music to more audience.
“Sobrang saya ko kasi gusto kong i-pursue ‘yung singing career ko talaga kaya I’m thankful to GMA Records for giving me the opportunity to be part of the team. Gusto ko kasi talagang i-share ‘yung music ko sa marami pang tao,” he shares.
Gabbi Garcia who recently released her debut single “All I Need,” which she wrote, has also inked a distribution deal with GMA Records. The single was co-produced by Christian Bautista. “I am glad that my single will be distributed by GMA Records. I’m also thankful to all the people who appreciated my first single.”
One Up boy band is scheduled to release “Smile” written, produced and arranged by Kiko Salazar. “Maraming salamat po sa GMA Records sa opportunity. Nagpapasalamat rin kami sa lahat ng sumusuporta sa amin, sa group namin. Sobrang hinintay po namin itong time na ito and finally ito na. Magkakaroon na kami ng single,” says a member.

All of You, the reunion flick of Derek Ramsay and Jennylyn Mercado, is an entry to this year's Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF). Directed by Dan Villegas, the movie is an examination of what it's like to find love in the age of dating apps. It is not a smorgasbord, but a mature film that holds its own critical and commercial powers.
Jennylyn as Gabby and Derek as Gab play two strangers who hook up in Taiwan via an app in All of You, chronicling their love story and contradictory beliefs on love and marriage. Their first big argument is caused by their contrasting priorities in life. As they hit the three-year mark, they find themselves back to where they started as they ask themselves where their relationship is headed.
This is the tandem's most daring feature to date. "Walang pang-taas. 'Yun na 'yung pinaka-ano, todo na 'yun sa akin. May plaster naman sa harap, 'yung sa likod ang wala," Jennylyn describes how her sex scenes with Derek were shot.
"Basta ginawa lang namin ang kailangan, hindi kami nag-i-expect ng kahit na ano," Derek adds.
Also in the cast are Solenn Heussaff, Rafael Rosell and Sam Milby. The film also features Yayo Aquila, Hannah Ledesma, Nico Antonio, Kean Cipriano, Enzo Marcos, Via Antonio, Kelvin Yu, Kate Alejandrino and Milo Almido.
Darren Espanto sings "Dying Inside" as All of You's official theme song.
It is produced by Quantum Films, MJM Productions, Globe Studios and Planet Media Productions.
Jennylyn is brand ambassador of Tough Mama home appliances.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW. Lawyer Joji Alonso, who is Quantum Films' producer, decided to sit at our table at the movie's grand press conference held at a restaurant in Scout Tuazon. As a trusted friend, she asked me to take care of her signature handbag as she went around to greet invited media guests. She settled down beside me, giving me the chance to ask her exclusive questions. This also explains why her answers are clipped.
Is All of You similar to Kita Kita (which was shot entirely in Japan)?
Quantum Films never works based on formula.
What percentage of All of You was shot in Taiwan?
Ten percent.
Where you with them during the shoot?
Sila lang.
(Noticing only Jennylyn, Derek and director Dann were only the major names on the presidential table, I asked): How is Dann as a director?
Mabait siya. Do you know I am his business manager? He is like a son to me.
(His girlfriend) Antonette Jadaone? She first worked with you in the script of Ekstra (The Bit Player).
Antonette trained under Joyce Bernal.
(To Dann) What is All of You about?
Mas nagpo-focus siya doon sa kapag mabilis ang relationship, ano ang effects niya? Kapag nag-live in na kayo, ano iyong effects niya? Tungkol siya sa commitment.
Has it something to do with your own experiences?
I was able to tap, go back into experiences in my life that have similarities to the scenes here. I went back to my past and there were some scenes there na I don't know why pero it just came out.
What is the advantage of All of You over the made-for-children entries?
It is the only romantic comedy in the festival. Mas mature 'yung atake sa All Of You. 'Yung pagiging mabilis ng relationship and effects nito. Viewers will always see films they prefer.
(Knowing that competitors will heavily use television advertising and promotions, I quizzed Atty. Joji): What's your advertising and promotions plan?
This grand presscon, film premiere, social media, music video, mall shows. In our three MMFF official entries, we never used TV placements.
Did they turn profitable? (She nods.)
With our TV advertising, it appears All of You is not trying to compete for ticket sales supremacy.
Do you know it now costs P2 million for a 30-seconder?
We simply do not have that kind of money. Like all of Quantum Films, we compete with outstanding production values we are proud of.
Has All of You been classified?
PG-13. Hindi ako pumayag na tanggalin ang murahan, I thought it would change the overall tone of the film. Oo, hindi for children ang All of You.
Graded by the CEB (Cinema Evaluation Board)?
Not yet. Derek is very good in the film.
Jennylyn?
She's always competent.
Award winners?
I do not second-guess results na. If I do, I just keep it to myself.
What's your film production werpa?
Release well-made films. All of You is my most mature film to date.
Long legs?
Yes.
Your best film?
It will always be Kubrador (The Bet Collector).

ENTERTAINMENT WRITERS GET AN ANGEL! GMA Network Vice President for Corporate Affairs and Communications Angel Javier Cruz (fifth from left, standing, in group photo of Corporate Communications people during the party) commonly referred to as “a beautiful woman,” organized an exceptional personalized Christmas party for entertainment writers on December 6 at the GMA 7 Studio.
The raffle prizes were donated by Kapuso Network officers such as Mr. Duavit or Mike Enriquez, the Eat...Bulaga! producer or by its stars such as Janine Gutierrez. They did not come from GMA 7 budget. Also, everybody won, unlike in the other Christmas parties where only the late comers or only the very lucky ones take home cash or in-kind prizes. Actor Ivan Dorscher was a hit at the picture wall. Highly appreciated was accommodating this PWD’s request to be accompanied in a by-invitation-only event. Highly appreciated, Miss Angel. You are entertainment media’s angel!
SITTI MEETS HER MALE COUNTERPART. Marvin Velasquez is the new Filipino singing sensation making bossa nova, the Brazilian-style music most requested in London, capturing the hearts of its sophisticated music aficionados with his showcase of vocal prowess and authenticity as a performer. 
This veteran of concert performances and television singing contests is making waves for himself through the showcase of power vocal prowess delivered soothingly in bossa nova style. Giving extraordinary justice to the genre, more and more people are embracing it that music insiders have tagged Marvin as the “Bossa Nova Prince.”
This means Sitti Navarro also known as Sitti, the female singer who popularized the bossa nova in 2006 after releasing her first album, Café Bossa, earning the title “Bossa Nova Queen” has met her male counterpart. Other bossa nova acts in the Philippines followed. Sitti is also featured in the segment “ASAP Sessionistas” of the variety show ASAP.
Marvin started singing at age seven. At 14, he won grand prize at “Awit Ng Tanghalan.” Just last year, he partnered with ‘70s singer Eva Vivar for a couple of concerts in his hometown.
A down-to-earth fellow with a disarmingly kind smile, Marvin excitedly shared, “In a way I’m carrying the flag of our country each time I go on stage in a foreign place. I’ve been to a lot of places, and it makes me glad that Filipino talents like me are appreciated by people abroad, including our compatriots.” 
The Filipino communities in foreign countries often find him delightfully surprising with his unassuming stage presence that delivers a voice to hear for. By invitation, he has performed in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, India and London. The last stop, produced by London companies Side Projects Prod, managed by music expert Poch Mallillin, and Simply C, saw him perform alongside The Boyfriends. 
“Mas masarap ang tagumpay kapag may pinagdaanan kang mga pagsubok sa buhay,” said Marvin, who is not new to life’s struggles including losing a brother from kidney failure. Marvin’s previous single “Pusong Bigo” was written by his friend and former handler Arnel Abella who died from stroke. 
These loses almost made him quit professional singing. Yet, it is the one thing he does best, and he knew his lost loved ones would surely be proud that he keeps entertaining people, here and beyond Philippine shores. 
Last June, he performed at the grand opening of Erasmos Foodnook on Marcos Highway. At the same venue, just last November 3, he led some indie acts for the show billed “Haze of Journey to Music.”
A loving family man, Marvin is back in Manila. He appeared in an anticipated ensemble concert entitled “Musikahan Noon at Ngayon Concierto” on December 8 at the Music Museum in San Juan City. The concert featured The Boyfriends, Male Rigor of VST & Co. fame, YouTube sensation Zendee, The Voice Kids second season champ Ella Nympha, among other remarkable acts. But this show revealed that Martin and Rusty work as a tandem. Rusty appeared with Marvin singing and dancing in certain numbers.
His distinctly big voice is behind the songs “Tabing Dagat,” “Kay Bathalang Mahal” and “Mambo, Samba, Cha-cha,” all written and arranged by London-based Rusty Malillin and his brother Jun whose brilliant track record included scoring hits for The Boyfriends. Marvin favored us with exceptional acapella renditions of his songs during the interview held at Kuya J restaurant at Promenade Greenhills.

CATCH MARVIN’S SPECIAL CONCERTS. As Marvin’s star rises, he has turned a much sought-after name in the Asian gig scene. For one he had also been tapped to host and perform at “The Pinoy Rock Legends Rock & Roll Christmas” at Teatrino in Promenade Greenhills on December 13, Wednesday, 8 p.m. This show will feature iconic Pinoy rock stars Gary Perez, Resty Fabunan of Maria Cafra, and yes, Jun Mallillin of Abrakadabra who’s behind the now-classic “Bote’t Dyaryo.”
Currently, Marvin is recording his upcoming single “Lovestruck in London Square,” written by Rusty about love found in London’s many public squares and arranged in the bossa nova genre by his brother Jun. He looks forward to working with premier songwriter Jimmy Borja and American act John Howard.
Marvin will also fly to Hong Kong and Macau for a number of performances from December 17 to 27.
Whoever heard Marvin sing bossa nova is blessed!

GET THE GLOW WITH BEWELL C. The reputation of vitamin C as an immunity booster and beating colds and flu is incontestable. However, it is also an antioxidant that can address not just diseases but ageing issues.
It all starts with oxidative stress. Oxidation happens when our bodies process the oxygen we breathe and our cells produce energy from it. This process produces free radicals which results damage to cells and the amount of free radicals become oxidative stress.
Excess amount of free radicals go on about their business and cause the cells to function the way normal, healthy cells do. To simply put it, we age because of damaged cells, and this happens all the time. These free radicals have three types: reactive oxygen species, reactive carbonyl species and reactive nitrogen species.
Reactive oxygen species are found in the air we breathe, cigarette smoke, UV rays, stress and pollution. These destroys the skin’s moisture barrier, causes inflammation, results in wrinkles, brown spots and rough texture.
Reactive carbonyl species result from excessive alcohol consumption and intake of carbohydrates such as sugar, rice and pasta. They make the skin sag, causes deep wrinkles and fine lines and dark, discolored brown spots.
It all sounds exhausting and dramatic, but what do you do when these free radicals are eating up on antioxidants? Load up on Bewell-C.
Bewell-C (sodium ascorbate) is a non-acidic vitamin C supplement that helps you maintain a healthy glow. As it’s a potent antioxidant, it destroys free radicals which keep wrinkles and skin dryness at bay.
The vitamin C in Bewell-C also helps absorb iron from the food you eat which helps you feel and appear more energized. Bewell-C also helps the body to produce enough collagen for a firm and toned skin. It also clears the skin and blemishes as it replace damaged tissues in the body. With your intake of Bewell-C, you will surely get the glow.
As an everyday supplement, Bewell-C provides all the benefits of vitamin C without the risk of hyperacidity and other harmful side effects associated with high doses of the most common form of vitamin C, which is ascorbic acid. Bewell-C, as good as natural orange!
Bewell-C is available in Mercury Drug and other leading drugstores nationwide for only P5.50 per capsule (SRP). For more information about Bewell-C, visit https://www.facebook.com/bewellcsodiumascorbate/

JOYCE PILARSKY CAPE WORN WITH DIOR. Model Ilona wears a Dior with Joyce Pilarsky's chiffon cape that features huge cabbage roses in different colors as cover story of L'Officiel. "I am so proud to have been chosen to dress up this beautiful model out of several thousands of beautiful designs and creative designers. Stylist Barbara Constantin chose my work for the cover. Praise God!" shouts out Filipina global designer Joyce with pride.

MEETING ROBERTO. "Aren't you Roberto in the Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil's blockbuster romantic comedy?" I asked Italian actor-director Ruben Maria Soriquez when I arrived midway his solo press interview at a restaurant in Quezon City.
"Dolce Amore," intoned veteran writers Nestor Cuartero and Ronald Constantino of Tempo. "Yes, you wore a wig there that you removed at the later part of the series. You are perfect for the role. Are you Italian?"
"I'm Filipino-Italian. Soriquez is he surname of my Filipino father; my mother gave me the Italian genes. She is from Bologna, Italy. Over there, a son is given the second name Maria when his mother is a devotee of the Virgin Mary, whose feast day Catholics are celebrating today."
When Dolce Amore aired, I never got to know Ruben's name so I was thrilled to meet and get to know this great actor.

ENJOYING ARTISTIC CAREER IN THE PHILIPPINES. It was in the 1990s when Ruben first came to the Philippines, but it was in 2014 when he finally moved to the country to start producing films with his own company, See Thru Pictures.
In 2015, he produced, directed and starred in Of Sinners and Saints, for which he won Best Actor in the World Premieres Film Festival Philippines that year, organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP). Portraying the role of a priest with a dark past, Of Sinners and Saints has obtained numerous awards worldwide.
The following year, 2016, Ruben gained great exposure on Philippine television when he played Liza's kind Italian stepfather in the certified hit ABS-CBN series Dolce Amore.
From then on, he has been enjoying his artistic career — in acting and directing — in the Philippines, which he considers his second home. Indeed, he has a lot of blessings for which to be thankful.
His only handicap now, however, is he does not speak fluent Filipino and when he attempts to speak the language, his strong Italian accent gives him up. He sets his mind to improve his Pilipino-speaking ability to get more local acting roles.
But his ultimate dream is to shoot films in Los Angeles and to be directed by Sophia Coppolla and by Filipino master helmers Brillante Mendoza, Lav Diaz and Erik Matti.

WORKING WITH SHARON CUNETA. I got close and personal with Ruben when the other invitees left ahead of me.
Recently, he portrayed the role of the boss of the character of Sharon Cuneta in the current blockbuster Unexpectedly Yours of Star Cinema.
This comeback flick of the Megastar with Robin Padilla has already earned more than P100 million at the ticket counter since it opened last November 29.
What was it like working with big stars such as Sharon and Robin in Unexpectedly Yours? Did he know the popularity of both stars even before he moved to the country?
"I knew how big Sharon and Robin were back in 1990s, the first time I came here in the Philippines. Their names were familiar to me since then.
"Working with Sharon was a great and awesome experience for me and I tried to give my best in the scenes with her. Actually, all of my scenes are with the Megastar.
"It was such a great pleasure working with her. I'm thankful to our director Cathy Garcia-Molina for the opportunity. Sharon was warm and accommodating to everyone on the set.
"Another thing I found out is that it is easy to work with a great actress like her. She sets the mood in seconds, so, it's easier for me to be in my character," relates Ruben.

FINISHED FILMS. Ruben has also finished four feature films, namely, The Spider's Man, The Lease, A Perfect Family and Entrapped: A Day Of Terror.
He's co-starring with Richard Quan in The Spider's Man, which he co-wrote with Mark McKeown, and produced and directed.
"I'm playful here. It's a dark comedy with a little drama that tells the story of two half-brothers (Ruben and Richard), one of which is affected by autism and schizophrenia and whose best friends are spiders," he says about the film with a few scenes shot in Italy.
Others in the cast are Lee O'Brien, Jeff Tam, Rob Sy, China Roces and his Filipina wife Lanie Soriquez, who he met in a local mall.
The Lease is a paranormal horror-thriller involving a rich family, starring Garie Concepcion, the beautiful daughter of Gabby Concepcion, as his wife, and their two children. The film is directed by Paolo Bertola, also an Italian cinematographer now based in Manila.
A Perfect Family is an experimental silent feature film shot for a decade in six different countries: Austria, Spain, France, Italy, Hong Kong and the Philippines. "This one is a thriller in three levels of reality. In the cast are me, my wife Lanie, and my young son Kim who looks like Daniel Padilla when he was his age. No plan to make him take an acting career until he finishes school," adds Ruben.
Ruben says Filipinas are "great lovers" since they do not compete with the husband unlike Italian wives. They are as passionate and give all-out support.
Entrapped: A Day Of Terror is a period thriller set in the 1980s based on a true event, produced by Luca Redavid for Innuendo Films, co-produced by Ruben and directed by another Italian Emanuele Dantonio.

EUROPEAN PHILIPPINES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (EPIFF). Lastly, the Italian actor-director is happy to announce, too, that he, together with Maurizio Baldini and Lorenzo Galanti, recently founded the European Philippines International Film Festival (EPIFF).
EPIFF is endorsed by Italian Chamber of Commerce (ICCP) — wherein Ruben is among the Board of Directors — as well as the Philippine Italian Association (PIA), and FDCP.
According to Ruben, "The objective of EPIFF is to promote the best of Philippine Cinema in Italy and Europe and to find distribution for those films as well.
"We shall announce the call for entries anytime soon. The festival will be a competition among films made by Filipinos or filmmakers abroad with a Pinoy blood. We will be looking for films that have international appeal, especially to the European audience."
Ruben added that the new international film festival is tentatively scheduled on March 7 to 9, 2018 to be held in a historical theater in Florence, Italy. Other details of submission of entries will be announced soon.
Ruben left ahead of me for Novaliches to get a video camera for an indie film he's producing, taking his black four-wheel drive in the mid-afternoon drizzle.

The awards season went by this year without mention of the following laudable accomplishments in entertainment. For some reason we can only surmise, these are not the recognitions that traditional and/or professional sources hand out. These leads point to new directions in television and cinema entertainment that, for this column, make them outstanding.
JOYCE PEÑAS IS BEST NEW ACTRESS. An advocacy film about teachers as heroes, the film New Generation Heroes stars Aiko Melendez, Jao Mapa, Joyce Penas and Anita Linda. Penas, who is a trained teacher by profession, makes her the only real mentor in the cast. With minimal acting experience, she puts extraordinary reality to her role of a dedicated, measly paid teacher, who is forced to do a buy-and-sell sideline as mother of a physically disabled son. A non-commercial film is a total risk for her as producer, but Penas did its just the same to celebrate Global Teachers Day as a tribute to mentors’ all-time importance in social upliftment, inspiring a fresh agenda for actors.

ALAALA: A MARTIAL LAW SPECIAL DIRECTED BY ADOLF ALIX JR. This brave and truthful GMA Public Affairs offering stars Alden Richards in the role of Kabataang Makabayan activist Boni Ilagan in a historically accurate documentary about the nightmare from the inhuman bullies of Martial Law. Richards, for delivering valid history, is supposed to have suffered the distate of President Rodrigo Duterte supporters who did not like its anti-Marcos content. This puts Richards in the league of serious actors and proves GMA Networks’ commitment to truth regardless of painful consequence.

STATE OF THE NATION WITH JESSICA SOHO. For providing depth and context to the headlines, Soho’s SONA blazes with off-the-grill news. Its anchor, Jessica Soho, deserves professional recognition for her incisive questions not only to headline-makers, but also to her own reporters for added information and wider perspective of the news and issues on hand. Soho has made relevant news tougher, smarter and more curious all by herself, and it helps make us better informed citizens.

PANATA BY BRILLANTE MENDOZA PRESENTS. The best of the monthly “made-for-television” film series on TV5 by the Cannes Best Director, this one magnificently blends all elements, making its out-there metaphor the most well-realized among the series now no longer airing. Full of local color meant to give a glimpse of native symbolisms, Panata is about a poor Filipino family in Marinduque, its members all devotees of the Moriones Festival. They struggle along the timescales from President Ferdinand Marcos’ declaration of Martial Law to the assassination of Ninoy Aquino, leading to the years after the People Power revolution. It is a powerful dramatization of Philippine history!

TALE OF TWO SONS BY JOSELITO ALTAREJOS. This is the director’s Asian return to gender films after leaving the Philippines. It is about a Millennial Taiwanese and a Filipino whose confused sexuality is caused by physical or physic separation from their biological mothers. They link in Taiwan and the instant friendship make them decide to find themselves. The story is told in contemporary terms complete with graphic scenes veiled in darkness. Altarejos is the master of gender films with his in-depth understanding, content and unapologetic narrative.

G DIARIES BY GINA LOPEZ. This travel show was hosted by environment hero Gina Lopez (whose brother Ernie Lopez subbed when she was occupied with other green concerns) was directed by Wil Harper. It highlighted ecotourism with an environment-friendly approach. Running for one season on ABS-CBN, it provided highly interesting insights about subjects that contributesd immensely to the betterment of our environment.

MAALAALA MO KAYA, CREATIVE DIRECTION BY MEL MENDOZA DEL ROSARIO. This Charo Santos Concio-hosted long-running anthology excels for its selection of people-driven narratives. But it is only this year when it became clear of the greater lengths it goes to seek outstanding reality to its main characters by casting actors closer to the truth from childhood to adulthood. They literally age before our eyes with proximate validity that brings exceptional satisfaction to viewers.

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‘CINEKASIMANWA 5’ BY ELVERT BANARES. Two years ago, the Department Of Tourism (DoT) and CineKasimanwa: Western Visayas Film Festival CineKasimanwa partnered for the first time to provide short film grants in the country. This is the country’s first subsidized regional film festival with national reach. Now on its fifth year, CineKasimanwa from December 1 to 17, 2017 screened its omnibus trailer in a national launch with an opening gala at CineSwerte, a concept moviehouse within DoT Makati featuring special performances by Visayan entertainers.

‘PHILIPPINE SEAS’ BY ATOM ARAULLO. In coming up with a world-class documentary about the true state of the Philippine Seas, Araullo took death-defying risks. GMA Network upped its credibility status with this single report by a well-admired investigative journalist.

WHETHER THE WEATHER IS THE REASON BY CARLO MANATAD. Quantum Post Production House head Carlo Manatad won the top Jury Prize of the TorinoFilmLab (TFL) of Turin, Italy for this work. Produced by Carmi Rae Cacanindin, 50,000 euros was awarded for the completion of the film. The story is Manatad's journey in getting to where he is now after many years of hardship from the experience of Yolanda (super typhoon Haiyan) in 2013.

ALL OF YOU BY DAN VILLEGAS. A smorgasbord entry of scenes and visual gimmicks culled from Hollywood blockbusters targeting vulnerable children, this Quantum Films production starring Jennylyn Mercado and Derek Ramsey is for mature audiences with an Movie And Television Review And Classification Board rating of R-13, explaining its legs are long beyond the first two days of 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival. Not a highfalutin entry as it was graded B by the Cinema Evaluation Board, it seeks viewer satisfaction as a goal.

MR. AND MISS BPO SEARCH BY ROYALE CHIMES CONCERTS AND EVENTS. Offering a solution that will enhance their self-worth and provide entertainment through the search of their ambassador, this pioneering search had a fresh and innovative approach. With the first “Mr. and Ms. BPO,” the time had indeed come to put the spotlight on the new breed of young men and women who can be rightfully called "mga bagong bayani ng bayan” (the new heroes of the country).

‘DI KA PASISIIL BY CHIARRA ZAMBRANO AND JEFF CANOY. The show is lauded for giving Filipinos a closer look at the war that devastated Marawi City. The heartbreaking images and stories brought us inside the armed conflict in the Islamic city, where they saw firsthand the struggles of both residents and the military in a war that claimed many lives and displaced thousands of people since May 23, 2017. The stories of hope of our fellow Filipinos, amid the uncertainty of survival, made viewers emotional and aware of its harsh capabilities.

MAGANDANG BUHAY BY KARLA ESTRADA, JOLINA MAGDANGAL and MELAI CANTIVEROS. This is the lifestyle show that replaced the entertainment talk show by removing its negative aspects or keeping it positive and focusing on an intensive discussion of the featured entertainer’s lifestyle specially his/her cooking abilities. Guesting hard-to-book entertainment personalities such as Vilma Santos, Charo Santos and Gina Lopez and featuring travel opportunities, its two-celebrity feature format makes an interesting watch.

CINEMA ONE ORIGINALS. “Walang Takot” was the tagline of the 13th Cinema One Originals Festival, which ran last November at selected malls in Metro Manila. The festival embraced change and combined old and new platforms, styles and audiences. Featuring two documentaries, seven narrative films, two feature films, 13 foreign films and a handful of restored classics, the festival ran in Trinoma, Glorietta, Gateway, UP Cine Adarna, Cinema 76 and Cinematheque with an extended run at the Power Plant Mall.

SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL SATURDAY SPECIAL. With this impressive rerun of episodes of Shake, Rattle and Roll as SRR Sabado Special on ABS-CBN, Saturdays at 5 p.m., the network has been able to maintain.

Millennials are in for a wonderful surprise this 2018 as GMA Network unveils three-in-one online exclusive shows bannered by new GMA Public Affairs host Atom Araullo in Adulting with Atom Araullo, Millennial “it” girl Gabbi Garcia in #Goals with Gabbi Garcia and GMA reporter Joseph Morong in Fact or Fake with Joseph Morong at the press launch of “GMA One Online Exclusives” starting January 1, 2018, Monday, at 5 p.m. over the official YouTube channel of GMA 7 at GMANetwork.com.
The 35-year-old Atom joins millennials in their journey towards adulthood. He gives netizens a peek at his everyday struggles as he faces the responsibilities of being on his own and living on a budget. And, yes, Atom also shares tips on love: how does one go through courtship and online dating?
Adulting means to carry out one or more of the duties and responsibilities expected of fully developed individuals (paying off that credit card debt, settling beef without blasting social media, etc).
Adulting is exclusively used by those who adult less than 50 percent of the time.
“We hope to talk about the different challenges we face as we enter the adult world,” said Atom in an interview.
“Nobody teaches us these kinds of things. Sometimes we’re lucky to have friends or family to help us get into it painlessly, but for the most part, nangangapa tayo sa ganiyan.
“Everything from finding your own place, budgeting your money, making career decisions, personal relationships, or taxes, things like these. I feel like a lot of people can relate to these challenges,” he added.
Atom revealed during the event that he made an important adulting decision recently, that is, to live by himself, leaving the family home where he had been shacking with his parents and sibling since birth.
That’s a very crucial adulting decision which means he has to decide and do things on his own and for himself that includes finding out which is the better walis tambo that he did not even bother to know before this move.
He did that for a practical purpose, to move closer to where he works now, GMA Network in Quezon City, to circumvent the traffic mess. For all we know he is also planning to marry his girlfriend, which he did not bother to talk about.
Which is another adulting decision he has to tackle that he is a normal guy after all!

GOALS. Meanwhile, get inspired by Gabbi’s videos as she shares her personal objectives in #Goals with Gabbi Garcia.
Goals are objects of a person’s ambition or effort; aims or desired results.
A show that will definitely tickle the fancy of the kikays out there, #Goals with Gabbi Garcia sees Gabbi exploring her goals in beauty, style, makeup, travel, and music.
“We’re in a new age now where millennials appreciate digital content, they’re really into social media,” said Gabbi. “The show is very relatable to the youth because in #Goals, we will talk about makeup tutorials, new trends, how a typical teenager lives her life”.

FACT OR FAKE. Joseph, on the other hand, debunks false news items in Fact or Fake with Joseph Morong. As more news sources are available online, Joseph will try to help millennials spot fake news.
“Fact or Fake goes back to one of the tenets of journalism which is fact-checking,” Joseph explained.
“In the program, we’re going to define what fake news is as opposed to mistakes, misinformation, and disinformation. Bottom line is, we want to emphasize that in our society where there’s an overflow of information, it is important to be discerning,” he added.
Don’t miss GMA ONE Online Exclusives: Adulting with Atom Araullo, #Goals with Gabbi Garcia and Fact or Fake with Joseph Morong starting January 1, via GMA Network’s official YouTube account (www.youtube.com/gmanetwork) with new episodes uploaded every Monday at 5 p.m.

LUCIANA AND ROBERTO ARE BACK! The match is back in a new Filipino-oriented project in Italy.
Multi-awarded actress Cherie Gil is Luciana Marchesa, Serena’s rich Italian adoptive mother and Tenten’s secret biological mother in Dolce Amore. Cherie acquired the impeccable Italian accent during her marriage to internationally renowned Israeli violinist Rony Rogoff when they lived in Venice for five years.
Filipino-Italian director-producer Ruben Maria Soriquez is the newly minted domestic cash grab actor as Sharon Cuneta’s boss in Unexpected Yours and Cherie’s Italian hubby Roberto Marchesa, who is Serena’s kind stepfather in the fan hit family series. He is currently shooting an American action series.
With these leads, Ruben pushes and rushes Filipino-made films in Europe with the creation of the European Philippine International Film Festival (EPIFF), dates on March 6, 7, 8, 2018, to be held in the renaissance style Cinema Teatro della Compagnia, Florence, Italy.
Cherie will host its launch in Manila early January 2018.
To showcase works of outstanding Filipino filmmakers to link them with Italian and European producers and distributors, a board will select films that meet interests of the mainly European audience to promote contemporary Philippines to the old world by screening the complexity, richness and diversity of its culture and the amazing beauty of its landscapes.
It is officially supported and promoted by the Film Development Council of the Philippines, the Philippines Italian Association, the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines Italian Embassy in Manila, the Tuscany Film Commission, the Italian Film Commission, and the Fondazione Sistema Toscana.
This pioneer filmfest is organized by the Islands Stream Cultural Association composed of Italians and mixed Italian-Filipino members, among the founders are Soriquez, director-producer Maurizio Baldini and cinematographer Lorenzo Galanti.
An opening night party and an awards night spotlight the finest of the filmfest’s Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Cinematography and the Audience favorite award.
Special events and projections outside the official selection are the event’s sidelights.
Now accepting complete submissions until January 31, 2018, the official selection of 8 official entries to be decided by the selection board composed of directors, producers and critics will be disclosed on February 5, 2018, which must be received by February 15, 2018.
Eligible for submissions are Feature Length Documentary and Feature Length Films made by Filipinos of any nationality (i.e. those who are of Filipino ancestry whose citizenship is that of another country).
Submission guidelines including an electronic press kit are available in the EPIFF Facebook page.
For submissions, email a password-protected link of the film to islands.stream.florence@gmail.com.

I thought it was a pseudonym — the name of millennial visual artist Clarisse Aguilera, the beautiful and charming youngest daughter of A-list composer-singer Rey Valera. During an interview at Cafe Marla, Sct. Limbaga, Quezon City, however, Clarisse assured me it is her legal name. She is the wife of Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) dealer Rommel Aguilera.

When she was a member of the four-crew family band, Saling-pusa, that used to back up their father in his salad days, “Clarisse Aguilera” would have been a perfect pop name. But Clarisse has decided to stick to being a visual artist while she works as production designer keeping an 8-hour shift at PAGCOR. Her inverse work schedule with Rommel has produced a bundle of joy, a 9-month-old son they have named Hue.
Clarisse is a self-confessed introvert. As a young girl, she would ask her parents, Rey Valera Guardiano and Ditas Guardiano, to give her art books and materials with which to amuse herself. They helped instilled the painting passion in her. (Upon the suggestion of Chito Ilacad of his original record company, OctoArts, Rey decided to use Valera as entertainment surname as it had easier recall.)
Aquilera decided she wanted to paint after watching Bob Ross in his TV show in the early ‘90s. She refined her artistic skill as a Fine Arts and Design student, graduating Magna Cum Laude and Rector’s Awardee at the University of Sto. Tomas. Afterwards, she got employed at the newly opened PAGCOR Manila Bay where she met Rommel.
Her exposure to classic and contemporary arts gave her the motif of physiognomy in her paintings, or what she calls conceptual art, the blend of incredibly realistic faces expressed with abstract auras sans horror vacui.
This freed her from kenophobia, from Greek “fear of the empty,” the filling of the entire surface of a space or an artwork with detail. In fact it became her strength, a distinctive feature of her art that gives it minimalist quality of just focusing on her main subject with almost no ornamentation.
This style is best exemplified by “If Chaos Is A Work of Art Then My Art Is A Masterpiece.” Using herself as subject to interpret an artist’s creative process, this grayscale work embraces disorder as part and parcel of the explosion of ideas and images that viewers can only appreciate in the finished work. The overflow of lines, brushstrokes and color combination from the artist’s consciousness and subconscious is an art work itself — enough to create another masterpiece!
Her painting “Tres Marias” or “Fragile Beauty The Perfect Storm” features three torsos of sensuous, western women on a plain background. The work is about women’s deafening silence, which people often mistake as fragility and softness. Many do not understand it as the gender’s most dangerous trait. It hammered for whopping P100,000 at auction that established a record of sorts for a new artist.
Clarisse depicts an aura as a subtle body of human energy field, usually in some esoteric positions as a particular colored figure emanations that express its psychic character.
As such, her faces take a distinctive character that gives its meaning or importance. All of us have the determination based on the artist’s perception.
This interpretation gives Clarisse’s works its significance. It is more fancy and elaborate than plain replication of a likeness; it is a reading of its imperative soul. A gaze is more than an intent look, but an incredibly romantic study of its impressive reason.
For Lead, Clarisse takes the Twenty Questions Challenge. Among 20 art-related questions, she opts to answer the following 13. Her responses are published verbatim, and they are visualized by her works in acrylic on canvas.
Samples are the fantastic and free butterflies emanating in a sexy twist from an opened head in “My Soul is in the Sky,” blackbirds freed in incredibly elaborate manner in “Take These Broken Wings,” the overload of words from the diptych “Let Your Works Take Flight” or its absence in “Listen to Silence.”
Here are her thoughts on questions she picked to answer:
1. Who is the artist that inspires you the most?
Salvador Dali & Rembrandt van Rijn. Dali’s works would always remind me that there are no rules in making art. And Rembrandt’s works taught me how powerful texture and brushstrokes can be in bringing life to an image.

2. Do you paint for money or pleasure?
I’ve been painting even before I landed my first job.I knew I loved painting even before I realise that I could make money out of it.

3. Who do you think is the best Filipino visual artist and why?
Ronald Ventura and Juan Luna. Ventura for his conceptual images, Luna for his incredible execution.

4. Under what conditions do you prefer to do your work and why?
I wish to start my projects as early as possible, para bawas stress. And I do prefer to work alone, while a movie or TV series in playing on the side. Plus hamburgers.

5. Are your works Filipino in spirit and why?
In a way, yes. What I do are mostly are visual representations of our thoughts and what going on inside these shells and I do get inspiration from the environment and people around me. When I see someone naiisip ko… Ano kay ang nasa isip niya? Saan kays siya nanggaling? Masaya kaya itong taong ito? She looks tough, I wonder kung ilang struggles na kay lang napag daanan niya?
Questions like that.

6. Does criticism help you become a better artist?
If it’s constructive, yes. Work on improving. I see nothing bad about trying to become better versions of ourselves.

7. How do you determine when an art work is done?
Quoting Arthur Willam Radford, “Half of art is knowing when to stop.” We don’t want to overdo our art, but we also don’t want to stop before it has reached its full potential.
For me, its more like you can feel it when the artwork is done. I look at it, when it starts to connect, then I’m happy with it, that’s the time I decide to put the brush down

8. Do you associate with other artists to stay competitive or to socialize?
To socialize. I do love to learn new things, and one way of gaining knowledge is by socializing. You let yourself open to new ideas. Hindi misamang mamulot.

9. Will you describe your workspace as orderly or disorderly?
Just the right mix of chaos and order. I start my session with all my materials in order and end up nang sobrang makalat.
10. How do you keep your art fresh?
By trying to make concepts that are timeless. I wish to make artworks with concept that are still relatable to viewers of different generations.

11. What aspect of your art is distinctively yours?
I think it would be too early for me tell. Right now, my works are a product of learned things put together. I consider myself as a work in progress, still an artist with plenty of room for growth and improvement.

12. what is the question you’d like to ask yourself and how will you answer it?
Question: What is the relevance of your art?

Answer: It’s a reflection of our inner self. I wish to tell stories of about feelings, thoughts and everything inside. To visually represent the things we usually don’t see when we look at ourselves in the mirror. What we see outside are just a fraction of our whole being, there is so much to tell.

13. How do you want to be remembered?
I wish to be remembered as the songwriter’s daughter, who, despite her father’s successful musical career, still dared to take a different path to follow her passion and dreamed to make a mark in her chosen craft.

LUMU BEERHOUSE AND FILIPINO KITCHEN. Will goat meat be the next big food trend?
At the rate some countries are creating demand for goat meat, now available in supermarkets, new restaurants specializing in goat dishes, and butchered to order and sold by website, it is boosting a global food trend. Where before the meat was avoided for the rancid aftertaste, demand has been rising so the supply line is being beefed up.
When you think of goat meat, exotic Moroccan tagine and Turkish kofta typically come to mind. But did you know that shoulder joints melt like butter when slow-roasted, leg steaks are tender in casseroles and chops are particularly succulent after being cooked on a summer BBQ? Goat meat also makes for delicious garlicky Merguez sausages à la France.
Goat meat makes up 60 per cent of red meat worldwide, but the United Kingdom is one of the few places in the world where it's not commonly eaten. That is slowly changing. Goat meat is now trendy.
Chef Luigi Muhlach recently opened his brand new restaurant named after his acronym, LuMu, in Greenbelt 3, Makati City. Branded as a "Beerhouse & Filipino Kitchen," its Facebook fan page describes it as a "Kambingan. Inuman. Chibugan. Lambingan. Tambayan" — a place to enjoy goat dishes, drinks, food and a place to be with your special someone or for hanging out with friends.
Siblings Kaila and Moira Estrada dropped by to show their support and sample the richness of goat. They sampled the restaurant's specialties, among them a goat barbecue platter, adobong kambing ribs and sausages made of minced goat meat. They were absolutely delighted. The chef's mother, actress Janice de Belen, couldn't be prouder of her son as LUMU's executive chef-owner.
Taste is Chef Luigi's priority. So forget about your eating regimen when savoring his cooking. Each dish from his kitchen is fully loaded with calories, flavors and all the things that make for a sumptuous dining experience.
"I'll let you in on a secret - fat is flavor," Luigi said with pride. "This is why most diet food isn't enjoyable to eat. Sometimes you need to enjoy food as a purely pleasurable thing."
Luigi also opened the LOVE Dish promotion at Resorts World Manila, offering his specialty Sinuglaw sa Aligue at The Terrace, fifth floor, Maxims Hotel and at Bar 360, ground-floor Gaming Area. Fresh tuna cubes are drenched in a vinegar, coconut milk and crab fat concoction, and given a full flavorful kick with siling labuyo and other spices. Served with crisp, paper-thin slivers of chicken skin, the Sinuglaw sa Aligue is an out-of-body experience that will have you reaching for an ice-cold bottle of beer.

PLDT 10TH GABAY GURO PAYS TRIBUTE TO BULACAN TEACHERS. True to PLDT chairman Manny V. Pangilinan's promise of bringing the PLDT Gabay Guro celebrations to the provinces, the much-awaited "Grand Gathering" came all the way to Bulacan to give early holiday treats and pay tribute to the teachers of this historical province last December 9.
The star-studded event was held at the Bulacan Province Capitol Gymnasium where around 4,000 teachers from Meycauayan, San Jose Del Monte, and Malolos gathered for a day full of fun, prizes, and world-class entertainment led by the country's biggest performers - Regine Velasquez, Ogie Alcasid, Jaya, Jona and Regine Tolentino with comedians Ate Gay and Regina.
Hosted by actress Jasmine Curtis-Smith, beauty queen MJ Lastimosa and TV personality IC Mendoza, the teachers' tribute was mounted successfully in cooperation with the provincial schools and the local government of Bulacan led by Gov. Willy Sy-Alvarado.
In the morning of Dec. 9, 250 teachers were handpicked to become recipients of two significant seminar-workshops -- Gabay Guro's "Teachers' Treasure Chest" led by Deng Kibanoff and "Teaching in a Digital World" facilitated by Addie Robles.
This is in keeping with the ongoing programs of Gabay Guro that are summed up in the Pillars of Learnings advocated by the men of women behind the foundation. These programs include Scholarships, Livelihood Programs, Housing and Educational Facilities, Broadband and Computerization, Teachers Training and the Teachers' Tribute.
Gabay Guro chairman Chaye Cabal-Revilla and her team of dedicated volunteers worked tirelessly behind the scenes for everything that the foundation stands for. It is in these events where teachers get to experience the tribute they deserve. Ms. Revilla says she wouldn't have it any other way.
"We give our all to make our teachers feel special but at the end of the day, we are the ones who feel so much more blessed. The gratitude they show is priceless. It makes everything worth it," she said.
PLDT Chairman Manny V. Pangilinan has thrown his all-out support to this endeavor.
"I am extremely proud of Gabay Guro's achievements. They are doing a wonderful job for the Filipino teachers. We plan to increase our teacher-scholars to 10,000 in the next three to five years. The event here in Bulacan is just one of the many regional celebrations that we plan to hold in the near future. So watch out for more," he says.
Gabay Guro on its tenth year carries with it an outstanding history littered with awards and citations that make all of them advocates stand a little taller. Among these are the Gawad Tanglaw award, Anvil Awards and from the Phil. Association of National Advertisers (PANA) and the Philippine Quill Awards.
Ms. Revilla and the Gabay Guro team of visionaries are propelled by this belief: "Our nation's children depend on our nation's teachers to lead them to the future. Gabay Guro has also partnered with local government units to further teacher education by conducting trainings for over 20,000 teachers."
Today, it runs eight training programs for teachers around the country namely: Teacher's Treasure Chest; English Proficiency Training; Computer Literacy; Emotional Intelligence; Teacher's Armor; Leadership Training; IT Sustainability and Literacy; and Unleashing Creativity in Teaching.
Gabay Guro answers to the needs of the times by doing grassroots anti-drugs trainings in schools. It has also taken the cudgels in the construction of classrooms in the provinces, mostly those that have been hit by debilitating calamities. There are over 40 classrooms constructed and donated already in Cebu, Bohol, Leyte and Capiz.
For more information please visit the Gabay Guro official website www.gabayguro.com, and follow them on twitter and Instagram at @PLDTGabayGuro.

An early work of pioneer Singapore resident visual artist, multi-awarded Benjamin "Ben" Cruz, is the 40" x 54" graphite/acrylic on canvas in grayscale "Abang" (2001, Malaysian for "brotherhood," which will go under the hammer at Leon Gallery's Leon Exchange Online Auction on January 20, 2018, at 2 p.m.
This important work shows a queue of Muslim men of varying nationalities wearing white thobes with koofis, one slinging an orange towel, while performing umrah.
This pre-fame work shows a very strong efficiency in illustration with its use of space, simplicity in color and sense of balance that the artist would later incorporate in his paintings. The choice of the universal subject puts perspective in future work by erasing nationality as a divider of people.
In Cruz's paintings, acrylic pigments on canvas swirl in a blend of colors, contours and concepts with the ethereal fluidity of watercolor. He plays on the bendability of dimensions and layers of humans, objects and enviroments in an invitation to experience familiar yet surreal nature scapes morphing in the mind that projects a larger picture and a multi-level meaning that makes them powerful art.
He overlays representation with non-representation to come up with powerful images commenting about the beauty of life, love and their loss mostly in monoscale overdubbing them hints of hues.
Although his works depict sparse spaces that seem to float in the ambiance, the rendition makes the different aspects of the subject blend seamlessly in several scales . It gives his works an overwhelming feel. This style creates works with a semblance of high originality although it has been observed to have been rehashed by younger artists.
Born in 1954, Cruz became interested in art as an elementary pupil, just like many visual artists. In high school, he enrolled in night art classes. This led him to decide to take Fine Arts, majoring in Advertising, at the University of Santo Tomas.
Cruz practiced as a graphic designer/illustrator in the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Singapore where he worked for the Business Times starting 1988 up to 2007, a total of 20 years. Painting in his free time and joining art competitions when he could, he perfected his award-winning, realistic-abstract renditions of dream and their emerging worlds. These allowed him to receive overdue regional recognition.
Now a senior citizen and retired in 2008, Cruz paints full-time and continues to bring to greater dimension his manipulation of distorted images of reality in large-format works that have been showered with plaudits.
He won the 1st Prize in the Barangays City National Painting Competition with "Tagumpay ng Batanguena Alay Kay Nino" (2014). His other achievements include five commendations in previous competitions, garnering the UOB 34th Painting of the Year 2015 (Established Artist category) Singapore competition.
Although he holds solo exhibitions mostly in Singapore, his first solo show "Punong-Puno" was held at the San Beda College Museum, Alabang, Muntinlupa City in 2013; his 2nd one-man show at the Kaida Gallery in Scout Madrinan, Quezon City in 2015; and his last solo show at SM Megamall, Mandaluyong City in 2015.
Reflecting his quiet nature, here are Cruz's brief and direct answers to the 13 questions he chose from the 20-item questionnaire:

1. As a visual artist, what is the one thing the public does not know about you? That I was also a graphic designer/illustrator for 35 years.

2. What fascinates you the most about art?
I am a man of few words. Self-expression through art is what fascinates me. It is the outlet of my emotion and creativity.

3. Who is the artist that inspires you the most?
No particular artist. I admire and respect them all kaya nga di ko malaman kung saan ako kategorya,sa abstract o realistic.

4. What training did you get as an artist?
I studied Fine Arts Major in Advertising at UST, but in high school, I enrolled in commercial art, a vocational course. Kahit underaged, ako ang pinakabatang artist sa klase namin. Profesional na silang lahat. Talagang inspired na inspired ako sa galing nila basta matuto lang ako. And I succeeded.

5. Do you paint for money or pleasure?
Of course we all need money to purchase materials, but art appreciation offers more satisfaction. This must be an artist's ultimate goal as no amount of money can give the same motivation.

6. Under what condition do you prefer to do your work?
No particular condition as long I'm in the mood to paint. Walang oras akong pinipili. Sa tingin ko maganda na, tigil muna. Tulog muna. Tapos gising. Bukas, tuloy uli.Basta gusto ko laging busog na busog ang mata ko sa development and culmination ng ginagawa ko.

7. Are your works Filipino in spirit?
Some of my works are Filipino in spirit, but you see, I pursue universal beauty. Mahilig ako sa nature -- simple yet difficult to execute -- that gives me the ultimate trip. But I prefer themes that could be well appreciated by others.

8. Does criticism help you become a better artist?
Kailangan ng bawat artist 'yan to improve. Yes, criticism helps me make better artworks. They acknowledge
my work so they comment.

9. How do you determine when an art work is done?
When I feel satisfied with the over-all look of my painting, that means my work is done. It takes several returns to a work-in-progress before I get this feeling.

10. Do you associate with other artists to stay competitive or to socialize?
I do socialize with other artists, bond with them to learn new trends and build more friendships. I decided to stop working abroad not only because of the encroaching advance age, but to put less stress in me so I might socialize more in a sincere effort to enjoy work more. I do more now as I am not ruled by deadlines, and I paint at may own pressure and pleasure.

11. Will you describe your work space as orderly or disorderly?
A visual artist's work space need not be orderly, but I sure need a bigger work place where I can move around. My work space might project chaos, but a thorough view shows order in the confusion. It is ruled by an infinite sense of harmony only understandable to me. That's okay as its use is exclusive to me.

12. How do you keep your art fresh?
Pumupunta ako sa art galleries; art events like fairs or exhibitions; I often research on social media or printed materials that keeps it current and contemporary.

13. What aspect of your art is distinctively yours?
As of now my realistic abstract style is the distinctive feature of my works. This makes my art unique, which I am truly proud of.

“ACTually” every Saturday takes over the slot of the well-loved Eat Bulaga segment “Juan for All, All for Juan: Bayanihan of d' Pipol” that airs on weekdays.
“Actually” is an adverb used to emphasize that something someone has said or done is surprising or when expressing a contradictory or unexpected opinion or correcting someone.
Eat Bulaga had capitalized the word’s first three letters as segment name, as in “ACTually,” to emphasize that viewers will know what the object stands for through acting, thus, serving as an effective title that is not hard sell.
Bringing the whole cast together who are normally segregated from Monday to Saturday by program design, an ordinary object is presented in ACTally” by nine-inch-heel wonder Sinon Loresca. It is used by Team Yellow and Team Blue in a flash group presentation using the unidentified object differently. A round long pillow, for example, turns into a banana boat ride.
Participated by the whole cast, divided between Team Yellow and Team Blue, they act out a scene using the object to identify it. The friendly competition turns into one-upmanship resulting into a lot of jeering specially from the young leaders as backed up by the audience.
Ryzza Mae Dizon leads Team Yellow with Ruby Rodriguez, Pia Guanio, Allan K, Maine Mendoza, Luane Dy plus a boy toy as all-around member. Maine is getting a lot of special attention from fans in relation to her recent difference with tandem partner Alden.
Baste leads Team Blue with Jose Manalo. Anjo Yllana, Wally Bayola, Paolo Ballesteros, Ryan Agoncillo, Alden Richards plus s boy you crew. All boys, the lolas willingly give up their identical crossdressing and for once act as males their real ages. The usually flamboyant Paolo does not miss on the gay side of things.
With Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon are arbiters, Tito Sotto and Jimmy Santos act as judges using Yellow and Blue hand signs with the audience votes to decide the winner. They play five rounds with three trials, except the fifth round, which has five rounds.
The winner gets a fun prize, usually a surprise gift item with paltry cash. We are clueless if this will change as the initial airing, the winners got a white letter envelope with folds of white paper napkin and crisps P20 bills totaling 500 “pieces.”
What collective “acting!” Enjoy the extraordinary mood boost this noontime!
For its curiosity, comedy and camaraderie, “ACTually” is Eat Bulaga’s fresh offering that brings It’s Showtime’s “Cash-Ya Kaya!” daily segment on edge. It turns into an extraordinary segment that boosts further “Eat Bulaga’s” high ratings and ups GMA 7 noontime entertainment quotient!

TWEAKING FAKE NEWS ABOUT POPE FRANCIS’ VISIT. Depicting Pope Francis’ festive welcome during his January 2016 visit of the Philippines, certain media entities buzzed Dante Hipolito’s oil on canvas “Salubong” as the artist’s or Batangas Gov. Vilma Santos’ gift to the head of the Catholic Church.
A limited edition fine print of “Salubong” (Lot 161, minimum bid of P3,000) as double-signed by the artist will go under the hammer at Leon Gallery’s Leon Online Express Auction on January 20, 2018 at 2 p.m.
In the painting, Gov. Vilma leads Gary Valenciano, Sen. Grace Poe, Marian Rivera, Dingdong Dantes, Coco Martin and Kris Aquino dressed as farmers in welcoming the Pontifex. The brouhaha started when Marian reposted the off-the-grill buzz on her Facebook account.
Wikipedia even reported that the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines commissioned it for display at the rotunda of the Batangas provincial capital. This was pure manufactured information as there was no such intention or transaction. I know this as Dante and I closely coordinated while he painted the art work.
Before all is forgotten again about the papal visit of January 2016, it kicked off the negative capabilities of fake news. Accorded primary exposure by media, it went viral to controversial levels despite its pacific message.
Turning into a convoluted issue, commenters missed its spiritual dimension, a non-sectarian approach, turning it into a free-for-all bashing from the banal to the bizarre, causing the meltdown of social media. The Age of Information has been twisted and mangled, resulting to the Age of Misinformation.
Dante stated it best by bringing it back to earth level: “Isa lang po ang naging mensahe ko sa painting na yon... ang pagmamahal ko sa aking kabiyak ng puso.”
“Salubong” was never intended as a welcome gift for Pope Francis. Meant to be a commemorative of his visit, it was given to this writer as souvenir. It is now part of my art collection that his family has to borrow when needed such as in his wake on January 24, 2016 that we are commemorating for the second year now.

‘LINEAR.’ Sam Penaso’s opening solo exhibition for 2018 at the Art Cube Gallery, Makati until February 1, 2018 features a wide array of his works from sculpture to abstract painting. Geometric lines and shapes, as well as vibrantly contrasting psychedelic colors, offer a view of the artist’s creative process in his more than two decades' journey into art.
Sam’s recent works incorporate numbers and letters in Linear as he expresses his sequential development in terms of technique and use of media. As in his Stripewalker performance action and photography series, each piece is imbued with high energy, intense saturations of color and deliberate exploration of the limits of his art practice. The artist's creativity is stretched as he introduces new ways of seeing the mundane.

‘ASINTADO,’ VEHICLE FOR COMEBACKING ACTRESSES. Perhaps because asintado is considered a generic Pilipino term for a person who aims and shoots accurately, GMA 7 and ABS-CBN are using the term as title for comebacking award-winning actresses, former Kapuso star Aiko Melendres and comebacking Kapamilya actress Lorna Tolentino.
But the bragging right of being first to use it as title belongs to GMA 7 director Louie Ignacio, who used “Asintado” as the title of his first entry to the Directors Showcase of Cinemalaya. Winning nominations when fielded in a foreign filmfest, GMa News TV pre-empted ABS-CBN set to launch its Asintado series on January 15, 2018 when it screened Louie’s “Asintado” on January 14, 2018 at 8 p.m.
Aiko in Louie’s “Asintado” is a mother who makes important decisions for her two sons — one who saves the life of another, the other who turns one into a criminal. An outstanding interpretation, Asintado features Gabby Eigenmann, Jake Vargas, Rita de Guzman, Rochelle Pangilinan, Benjie Felipe and child actor Miggs Cuarderno as an austistic boy who is a perfect slingshot shooter.
With the original title “Victims of Love,” Grand Slam actress Lorna is strategist Miranda Ojeda for the ABS-CBN late afternoon drama series. While Lorna plays a support role to lead actress Julia Montes, the 55-year-old veteran actress did outstanding acting.
She also works with young ones Shaina Magdayao, Paolo Avelino, Aljur Abrenica, Empress Shuck and Louise delos Reyes, as well as older ones Agot Isidro, Cherry Pie Picache and Noni Buencamino as directed by Lino Cayetano and Onat Diaz.
Hard-hitting broadcaster Erwin Tulfo when he was still connected with TV5 had a radio program called “Punto Asintado.” As you know, it describes his style of broadcasting that is always straight to the point. It means he does not dilly-dally with what he wants to state specially the important ones.
In the Lorna series, “Asintado” means “accurate,” while in the Aiko film it’s “in between the eyes.” While they mean the same, the narrative will spell the difference between titles in usage. But they remain grabbers that call attention with one word, the mark of a strong title.

(Introduction. Mike Villa-Real, Philippine Veterans Bank vice president for Corporate Communications and head of Marketing Services, has a new blog, “Mike Test.” It debuted with “Of Landings and Sentimental Journeys” about the Lingayen Gulf Landing in Pangasinan on January 9, 1945. Lead is reprinting it here for its timeliness and important historical perspective with permission from the blogger.)

Having attended the Lingayen Gulf Landing ceremony for at least 7 years now every January 9th, I’m already a familiar visitor or tourist in this annual gathering. This year is particularly special, being the 70th anniversary of the day that the Allied Forces led by the US Sixth Army held the biggest naval landing in World War II in the Pacific. For the US, it was known as the “Luzon Landing” and paved the way for US and Filipino forces to take over Manila and eventually the entire country in less than nine months.

I have to hand it to Governor Amado Espino Jr. – he really has full respect for the veterans and their contribution to shaping our country. With my job, I meet LGU Executives all over our country and he is one of the very few who walks the talk when it comes to our veterans. During the event, the Provincial Government recognized the oldest Filipino veterans present. There also was a medical mission for the veterans present courtesy of a tie-up with the Provincial Health Office, Veterans Bank and the Board of Trustees of the Veterans of World War II.
During the program, I had the privilege of meeting Jay Gruenfeld, an American World War II veteran who took part in the Luzon (Lingayen Gulf) Landings 70 years ago. He belonged to the 103rd Regiment of the 43rd Infantry Division which landed in San Fabian, specifically in White Beach 3, just adjacent to San Fabian Town.
To the best of my knowledge, he is the only Veteran at the event who actually participated in the Landing. But for some reason, there wasn’t much attention given to this living hero of the very event we were commemorating 70 years ago. I felt they should’ve called him to the stage and given recognition – at the very least, realizing that at 90 years old, he journeyed all the way from the US East coast just to be there at his own expense.
He tells me this is his fifth trip to the Philippines, the last two being the 50th and 60th Lingayen Landing ceremonies. In the last one, he was recognized as the only Veteran of the Lingayen Gulf Landing and was called to the stage to be recognized.
My brief time with Mr. Gruenfeld was meaningful because this is the first time I am hearing first-hand accounts from an American point of view on the Lingayen Gulf Landing, having been very familiar than most of this historic event from historical documents and interviews with historians, survivors and veterans.
In his book, it says that before they landed on San Fabian on LSTs (Landing Ship, Tank) on January 9, 1945; they were told to “expect heavy casualties” and rumors went around of “stiff Japanese resistance on the beach.” Their mission as the 103rd was to neutralize the pillboxes on the beach. An excerpt from his book “Commissioned in Battle” says it all:
“Our immediate objective was to charge 100 to 200 yards up the beach and attack enemy pillboxes. There were none, so we entered battered San Fabian, which was still smoldering from the shelling of our Navy guns. The only dead we saw were Filipino. Wails of grief from mothers and wives drifted in the air with the smoke.” (Chapter 4, Luzon Beachhead)
This verifies the accounts of the Filipino survivors we’ve interviewed, that the majority of the casualties of the Lingayen Gulf Landings were the civilians of towns along the shore: San Fabian, Dagupan, Binmaley and Lingayen.
On January 19, 1945, the 103rd’s mission was to help take over Japanese troops at “Hill 600” located a few kilometers north of Pozzorubio. Gruenfeld’s encounter at Hill 600 saw nine Japanese and one American killed in the process of taking over this hill. In one of his trips in 2005, he had a marker erected at the same spot with no fanfare.
Earlier, I offered to go with him and visit San Fabian White Beach 3 but says he didn’t think much about their landing because there wasn’t any resistance at all. He did want to visit Pozzorubio and see the marker he put there 10 years ago.
After the Battle for Manila in February, his unit, now with new soldiers who replaced those who died or were wounded, was seeing action in the Battle of Ipo Dam in May 1945. He was promoted to 2nd Lt in the battlefield which was the basis of the title of his book. In Ipo Dam, he gets his fifth injury and is finally sent home. For these, he gets three purple hearts.
During our brief encounter, he tells me, “I’m supposed to give you this.” And he takes a copy of his book “Commissioned in Battle (2012)” and signs it for me. That made my day.
He dedicates his book to “the brave Filipinos who resisted the Japanese occupation” and says that his experiences in the Philippines were “the greatest, most enriching time” of his life.
As we parted, I all the more felt disappointed Gruenfeld wasn’t recognized in the Lingayen Gulf Landing rites. In almost a decade of attending this annual event, this was the only time I’ve actually talked to a soldier who was there in the midst of the action. It was brief talk over brunch but was very meaningful to me. I don’t think I or our people would ever have this chance again. I hope I am wrong.

COCO MARTIN IS 2017 MMFF’S BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENT. The organizing committee of the 2017 MMFF released the ticket sales ranking of official entries as follows:
1. Gandarrapido: The Revenger Squad (starring Vice Ganda): P540M;
2. Ang Panday (Coco Martin): P204M;
3. Siargao (Erich Gonzales/Jericho Rosales/Jasmine Curtis Smith): P80M;
4. Haunted Forest (all-new-star cast): P56M;
5. Meant To Beh (Vic Sotto/Dawn Zulueta): P51M;
6. All of You (Derek Ramsay/Jennylyn Mercado): P34M;
7. Ang Larawan (Rachel Alejandro/Joanna Ampil): P29M; and
8. Deadma Walking (Edgar Allan Guzman/Joross Gamboa): P26M.
Total festival gross is P1,020B, overstated by some P500M from the alleged P1.5B gross receipt as floated by some vested interests.
All entries that were B-graded are entitled to 50 percent entertainment tax rebate as an incentive from the Cinema Evaluation Board, except Ang Larawan and Deadma Walking that were A-graded and, thus, are entitled to 100 percent.
As it did not use television advertising, All of You is net of the expense.
As far as Lead is concerned, Coco as lead actor, director under his legal name Rodel Nacianceno and producer of Ang Panday is the the film festival’s biggest accomplishment for coming up with a truly children-worthy film with outstanding special effects. Fernando Poe Jr. II is born!

‘ACTually’ AMAZING! Eat Bulaga included new Saturday only game segment, “ACTually,” with the well-loved “Juan for All All for Juan” intact! Wally Bayola is now with Yellow Team. Also, the Broadway Boys debuted Sen. Tito Sotto’s inspirational composition “Nag-iisa” last Saturday.

FACEBOOK MAKES ‘MEANINGFUL’ CHANGE. Facebook finally announced the “meaningful changes” it will make by asking its two billion users to rank their trust in news sources, in its latest attempt to combat the spread of misinformation on the social network.
Generally blamed for the rise of fake news attributed to have been manipulated to elect country presidents and other social malaises and maladjustments it is not ready to own up, Facebook Inc. has realized how much it affects people’s lives so it has volunteered to make changes.
Reuters reported that Facebook will change the way it does business to emphasize “meaningful social interactions” rather than the type of News Feed scrolling that critics say is addictive, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg announced. So this is not fake news.
Mark Zuckerberg said in a post on Facebook that the changes would be “major” and lead to a short-term drop in the time spent on the network, but that it would be better for users and for the business over the long term.
The change comes as the online giant seeks to address charges that it has failed – along with Google and Twitter – to prevent the spread of bogus news.

Nicai de Guzman's report entitled "How a Mysterious Letter Led to Juan Luna's Lost Paintings and Letters" and subtitled "How Salcedo Auctions recovered Luna's correspondence from prison on the January 19, 2018 issue of Esquire online reads: "The auction [of Juan Luna's A Do… Va La Nave? (Where The Ship Will Go?)] was held on September 19, 2015 at the Rockwell Tent in Makati City. The Luna painting had a published estimate of P9,000,000 to P12,000,000. Bidding opened at P6,000,000 but when the painting was sold, it set the Philippine record for the highest price achieved for an artwork at auction. It sold at a hammer price of P40,000,000. With the buyer's premium, the total sale price was P46,720,000."

This is inaccurate as Anita Magsaysay-Ho's Harvest at Dawn was sold by auction for P52,650,000 with buyer's premium through Leon Gallery on June 2015, holding the Philippine record. Until now, the record is unchanged two years after.
It is an unchallenged correction, as this writer pointed out this inaccuracy in this column and Facebook post in 2015, yet it persists. It seems following Hitler's trick of persisting on inaccurate information as it turns to be truth in the long run.
Said post also freely claimed that Luna's Portrait of a Lady of a fair-skinned lady holding a rosary while reclining in bed that now hangs with other Luna obras and bosetos at the National Museum of the Philippines is Paz Pardo de Tavera.
Eminent historian Ambet Ocampo disagrees. In his book Looking Back, Ocampo writes that it cannot be Paz as her family burned their Lunas after the obsessive artist murdered her.
Asked if she is Paz, writer-artist Alfredo Roces is tentative: "I can't say with any confidence whether she is Paz, Luna's wife. Luna seems to have painted Paz in different romantic light. In Ensueños de Amor, she is a redhead, in Mi Novia, light-brown-haired. In this painting the subject has dark eyebrows. Need to compare with a real photo of Paz, but I don't have any access, but in photos I recall she looked more heavy-set than any of Luna's paintings."
Asked to clarify if it is be possible they are different women other than Paz, he answered: "Yes, this is possible, but it would not have been proper in those days to proclaim a 'novia' other than your wife publicly."
He points out the source of the identification problems: "Many of Luna's painting of women look alike, but those said to be of Paz's don't look alike. The titles and identification of these paintings of females may not have been Luna's but somebody else's after the fact. So one has to be skeptical and careful about conclusions regarding identification and labelling."
Here's a theory invalidator: Luna mainly titled paintings of immediate family members with possessive articles to express relationship and fondness, as in Mi Hijo Andres to refer to his son or Mi Hermana to refer to his sister Numenaria. Non-relatives were titled by their name as in Retrato de la hija de Juan Tamayo, Maria for Maria Tamayo, or Nena y Tinta for Nena and Tinta.

VGJ.THUNDER TRIUMPHS IN GALAXY BATTLES. VGJ.Thunder, the mighty Chinese team, swept the grand finals of the momentous three-day tournament of Galaxy Battles Dota 2 World that wrapped up on January 21 at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan. VGJ.Thunder took home $200,000 of the $500,000 prize pool. Evil Genius received $85,000.
A type of vertical entertainment, it is a fusion of entertainment and sports that the world population now largely engages in for amusement. It may not be word of the year but it is here for us to appreciate.
By now, the most accessible form of vertical entertainment is the video game that has spawned global competitions, offering mind-boggling cash prizes. All vying for the bragging right for world record as the largest live audience in a gaming match, the competitors are getting fiercer.
Unstoppable, intense tournament as narrowcasted by Sports and Action, VGJ.Thunder defeated PG.Barracx, which beat Team Skyville and Team Spirit, which beat TNC, the Philippine powerhouse. They are two of the teams that knocked the Filipino teams competing in the tourney.
The world's best-known Dota players participated for a chance to share in a USD1,000,000 (roughly P50 million) prize pot, and be recognized as a Valve Major (gathering 1,500 International 2018 qualifying points).
The first Major video game tournament of Dota, Defense of the Ancients, for the fresh year from January 19 to 21, at the 60,000 full house capacity Philippine Arena, the world's largest indoor arena.
Divided into three parts, the Galaxy Battles Esports Arena, Galaxy Battles Dota 2 World and Galaxy Entertainment Arena would be a totally fresh experience. The remarkable Philippine Arena was cleared and converted into an intense and compelling Dota 2 activities central to contain theme-like events, food and drinks zones, comfort areas, sponsor's booths, and similar amenities.
And it didn't stop there. There was a sound-and-song hype at the open-air stadium parallel to the Philippine Arena where local, regional and international artists will blast anthems, greatest hits and new chatbusters.
This summed up as a major curiosity of the next season of Galaxy Battles which will be a touchstone tournament -- not just another Major. Amazingly enough, grasp it's shaping up into a full-scale Dota 2 event. Whatever way, it conversed into a continuing challenge to the gaming global community built around the game and its competitors.
Sixteen global teams broke at one of the 11 main actions authorized by Valve. Another six slots were put at stake via regional invitational qualifiers and the open qualifiers played throughout the six regions. The two residual slots disputed by wild card winners.