Bad Life Choices: ALAPAAP Now Out on VIVAMAX App

Today is a good time to head on to your VIVAMAX app to watch ALAPAAP. It's a pretty disturbing film, probably would ruffle a lot of feathers as it's a little unconventional; yet very interesting. This is directed by Fredrich Macapagal Cortez, a protege of legendary Brillante MA Mendoza (as he's worked under a different capacity for 7 years) who's also producing this film.  

It delves into the lives of college friends, some who are into film making. To finish their studies, had to make a documentary as requirement. They decided to do a documentary, a tribe from a remote province. It wouldn't be that easy as they're no ordinary bunch of guys and gals. Let's just say it's all about bad parenting, vices, urges and alcohol ultimately taking over their usual lives. They're a pretty rough bunch and it won't be too long til they meet mishaps along the way. 

You'll get to see the role of Josef Elizalde who plays Erik Bengzon being a lot problematic. He's in his own world, pretty much feeling invincible but later on receives the ugly truth of his actions. Aside from that, Ali Asistio who plays Orius Plana will make you think if he's a good friend or a a bad influence. He looks like a goody two shoes at first, then an evil doer, and makes matters worse. Katrina Dovey, Andrea Garcia, Chesca Paredes, Alona Navarro provide chameleon like characters wherein the audience begin to see horrid changes as they take in intoxicating drinks or substances. They even took it to the mountains (visiting natives) and lived to regret every second of it. The lone London based guy Luke Selby had some of the press screening the movie at the edge of their seats as he contributed what he could do in the acting department. Albeit foreign, he fit right in like a glove. He was in conversation, yet clueless, you'll have to fish out reasons how he ended up in group sessions as with the other cast members. 

 

I asked how this would be different from a Brillante Mendoza directorial work, and Fredrich Macapagal Cortez told us about his cinematography background that would take this into more of his style. This is quite easy to understand once you get to see the closeup shots (especially the eye, skin and sunlight scenes) which you'll see if you stream this project. This is also exclusively going to be released through the VIVAMAX app so download it if you want to see the movie. Subscription fees are also affordable, so you have a chance to see it all. Aside from that, the cast also told us about how detractors shouldn't look at their work differently. Listen in to what we talked about after the screening, I love how frank Andrea Garcia answers questions:

If this piqued your interest and want to know how it ends, go watch ALAPAAP scheduled to be released today November 18 on the VIVAMAX app.

Women, Power and Money: PUSOY on VIVAMAX

Just got off the advanced premiere of the film PUSOY starring Vince Rillon, Angeli Khang, Baron Geisler, Janelle Tee and an ensemble cast. The popular card game isn't actually that known quite as much elsewhere so having this in a movie intended to be shown in film festivals had me a little worried. It might not be able to get that part of the game understood. Though between that concern and how this could be an interesting story line, Director Phil Giordano had us all at the edge of our seats and left us all asking, what would happen next?!

This is an action, drama, suspense film but set in the Philippines. Vince plays the role of Popoy, a very doting son. Married but still in the home he grew up in because he couldn't make ends meet as he supports his folks, his wife and kid too. Under circumstances that he couldn't control, he had to work for a gambling lord (played by Baron Geisler, an intense man at that). He takes commissions doing favors and finishing rivals in the dens they go to. Janelle and Angeli's character on the other hand are card sharks, and if you put two chicks in one bowl... the claws come out. That starts a whole other conflict not just in the game, but their relationships.. and their lives changed. 

Here's our coverage of the private screening on video, enjoy!

I wouldn't want to spoil things for you, but definitely... a lot different from the usual Filipino flicks we see in cinemas. The material was worked on successfully by Direk Phil Giordano and Direk Brillante Mendoza. This will be shown this May 27th on VIVAMAX so make sure you download the app and subscribe to see this and other titles on their library. The film also had a tough premise, if you had no choice... would you do something illegal if lives were at stake?!

You can purchase subscription credits via online stores, if you're up to it, you'll definitely love the story.

These are exciting times!

Filipino Films from Cignal Entertainment Receive Accolades in Italy

Luck has come our way as the Philippines through Cignal Entertainment's movies bag awards at the recent 19th Asian Film Festival in Italy. This is a big win not just for the production of two pieces "Big Night!" and "Resbak" (english title Payback). This happeened last April 7 to 13 this year at Farnese Arthouse in Rome and undoubtedly, has brought honor once again to the country in this Asian exhibition featuring 30 different entries from countries like Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, china, Taiwan and Thailand.

"Resbak" director Brillante Mendoza was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Roma Lazio Film Commision. Actors Christian Bables (which did Big Night) and Vince Rillon (from Payback) on the other hand won Best Actor for their respective films that are produced by Cignal Entertainment. News of having these in streaming platforms soon are in the works so that more people would be able to watch it. Payback will be released in the Philippines soon.

For those who don't know, "Big Night!" was previously shown in Metro Manila Film Festival in 2021. This is directed by Jun Lana and had stellar reviews, also won several awards including Best Actor, Supporting Actor, Director, Screenplay, Cinematography, Musical Score, Best Picture and the Gender Sensitivity Award (which was fitting!).

This is a part of what Cignal Entertainment is pushing for. They want to champion fresh, socially relevant and world appealing films and show them to a greater audience. They are thankful for the awards they won in this festival and the ones bestowed to the people who are in these films.

You may visit their official website at www.asianfilmfestival.info for more information about the films and the awards they've given to different films over the years. Congratulations Cignal Entertainment!

Of Card Sharks, Betrayal and Feisty Women: Director Phil Giordano for VIVAMAX's "PUSOY"

I've had the pleasure of meeting Writer-Director Phil Giordano during the screening of Brillante Mendoza's masterpiece "Palitan" during the first week of December 2021. He's originally from Staten Island in New York, got his masters from NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia. He's pretty accomplished and has received a Grand Jury Prize at the New York Screenplay Contest for his short entitled "Supot". 

 

He's no stranger to how we do films in the Philippines as I'm under the impression he's been working with Brillante Mendoza's production for a number of years. His handy work "Supot" that got around 10 accolades in Busan International Film Festival and several other award giving bodies - and have been shown in different countries as well. He's done several commercials and campaigns with well known brands like KFC, Porsche, Johnson & Johnson, Universal Music and others. Recently, they released a new movie which he made for the VIVAMAX platform called "PUSOY". This was something he already had written but made it extra spicy since it's likely to follow the theme of movies seen on the app. 

As the title suggests, this is about a group of card hustlers lead by Baron Geisler's character Rodolfo. Their lives got complicated when they got caught in one of their cheating sprees and murdered a son of a politician played by Greg Hawkins (of Kuya Escort fame). Rodolfo got in a rut and had to seek help of a General which then forced him to go even deeper into debt... and the dark world of wagers, dirty money, women and vices.  The film stars Janelle Tee who plays the role of Xandra. She's Rodolfo’s mistress with the same set of skills, providing the venue for love, trust and betrayal in different acts. Also in PUSOY are Vince Rillon, Angeli Khang, Felix Roco, Jela Cuenca, Julio Diaz, Raqel Monteza, Kiko Matos and Jacq Yu. This is pretty much an ensemble of new and experienced actors which we asked Director Phil Giordano about, let's listen in:

 

It's remarkable to see that we have the talented Director Phil Giordano making strides in the movie industry in the Philippines. I like his capacity to adapt, to make his films follow his style, which I deem stem from his hunger to create things and write at an early age. After seeing films done in the US, he knew he could do an even better job and got inspired with the great film makers. He's also planning to have a shorter version of this out for international film festivals, so this is just the start. Exciting times no?!

PUSOY by the way can be seen worldwide on VIVAMAX (this is produced by Brillante Mendoza), you can visit VIVAmax.net for more information about the movie and other titles in their library. Get in tourch with Phil on his social channels FB: https://www.facebook.com/PhilipJGiordano/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/philip_giordano.director if you want to see more of his work.

Feisty Femme Scenes Seen on Brillante Mendoza's PALITAN

Man meets woman, fall in love, get married, have children, that seems to be the norm. A few nights ago, we had the chance to see Cannes Best Director Brillante Mendoza's latest film "PALITAN" under Viva Films, meant to be shown on their platform VIVAMAX.

The film stars GMA's Luis Hontiveros, Rash Flores, Cara Gonzales and Jela Cuenca. It talks about marriage, its intricacies, and why one should know the one you're marrying. Brillante did this Girls Love themed film with subtlety, you can feel the need for shock value at first then give you reasons why you would root for the ladies that wanted to be together. It fits on the premise that it'll never work because of societal issues you would face, including religion, and their own existing relationships.

The ladies Cara Gonzales and Jela Cuenca did not hold back on their scenes as they needed to to fill a void of not seeing each other for years. They kept the feelings, understood the hunger which is why I called this film pretty feisty. Luis and Rash on the other hand are your hetero male dose that don't even need to over act machismo, they're ones that could convey confusion, friendship, lust and disappointment in several acts. You will be taken to their place, understand why they would react that way and in some instances, feel what they feel in the movie. 

A Brillante Mendoza work of course had a sense of reality. Think of it as something that Filipinos won't be talking about on a regular day as it also showed hetero, femme, and group scenes that tells their gender, social construct, no matter what their biological assignment tells them to do. As you may probably know, this would be for a matured audience. They're already thinking of putting this as an entry into LGBT themed festivals as it's pretty late to do so for some of the festivals Brillante Mendoza has joined already. It's also a really nice place to showcase the caliber of Viva artists who are part of this film, at a very international and artsy caliber. Needless to say, I'm impressed with this latest Brillante Mendoza masterpiece and he's slated to do three this year and a couple more next year (a lot in the pipeline) but they're generally mum about it til it happens.

This film will start streaming on the VIVAMAX app come December 10 so make sure you download it off Google Play or the App Store and subscribe to watch a lot of other movies from their library and this film called PALITAN. Here's part of the presscon we had with them prior to screening.

 Congratulations to Direk Brillante MA Mendoza, Viva Films and VivaMax because you've got a really bravely depicted movie in your hands with this one!

Film To Rid Thirst for Art: The Revolution Knows No Gender

The Sinag Maynila film festival will happen on March 17-24 this year and yes, there are those who would dare tell the story of Paolo, a filmmaker, social activist cum revolutionary fighter. His roots are filled with his life experiences affected by the current socio-political situation that this country is still under. The film depicts a repressive and oppressive government, and tells of how he as a child, artist, become a seed of his own revolutionary movement. 

This is written and directed by Joselito Altajeros, same director who did movies such as "Ang Lake Sa Parola (2017)", "Ang Lihim Ni Antonio (2008)", "Take of the Lost Boys (2017)", "Gino and Marie (2019)", among others. He wants to pursue films that injects his advocacies. This includes his democratic ideals showcasing the struggles of the masses. This is produced by Harlene Bautista via Likhang Silangan Entertainment and his new group called 2076Kolektib who's aim is to produce content with socially conscious themes. They are also joined by Wilson Tieng (Solar Group) and Director Brillante Mendoza of Cannes fame.

Again Sinag Maynila 2020 will happen on March 17-24, hopefully you can get to catch Walang Kasarian ang Digmang Bayan when it shows during the fest. The film stars prime indie actor Sandino Martin, Arnold Reyes, Rita Avila, Ruby Ruiz, Iana Bernardez, Many Garcia and a lot more.

Stay tuned for updates on their social channels.

 

Brillante Mendoza on Duterte's SONA and TV5's "KADAUGAN"

We just got off the press conference and private screening of Brillante Mendoza Presents: KADAUGAN, an installment for the show that the world famous Filipino director is doing for Kapatid Network TV5. The series has been done to showcase different customs, traditions, festivals around the Philippines and mirror Filipino lives, as real as it should. During the short interview witb the acclaimed Director, he mentioned a couple of the plans that they want to do during President Rodrigo Duterte's State of the Nation address which is going to happen on July 24, this Tuesday at the Batasang Pambansa Complex in Quezon City. 

He was asked about what he thinks of doing the SONA this year and said "Maybe they believe in me and I do this pro bono, I do this for free because this is for the President and this is for the country. Other people would want to do this I'm sure, I can do this every year because I enjoy it. I have help from Malacanang and they don't limit me at all. I want to capture the President as he is, raw and not hiding anything that he says. I'll do more close ups, shots with his hands, his gestures, he is a working president and I see him mostly outside."

This installement of Brillante Mendoza Presents will star Dionne Monsanto and Daniel Marsh. According to the Director "Major networks are busy with ratings, I believe in original stories and content and will also do this in Cebuano with subtitles in Tagalog. This will star Dionne Monsanto and Daniel Marsh (although Irish is very fluent in Cebuano). Kadaugan means to win, the term stemmed from Magellan's fall against Lapu Lapu. All these episodes are from real life festivals, I had difficulty communicating with the staff sometimes as most of them are really from that place. I also did it in 3 days. After this, I will have a presscon for AMO with Derek Ramsey, which will stretch 12 episodes. I will also have Directors cut, some to be shown on free TV and cable and I feel encouraged because I see something different on TV. I work on limited budget, but produce movies, a hard task but we do it. This is an effort as we used to be number 3 in the world in producing films, we're a bit late I know but we are doing our share. I intentionally hired artists and production that are from Cebu because this is where they are from, to show their passion. Tere is a Cebuana who wanted to get married, but didn't know the foreigner fiance didn't really have plans to do that. It will touch a little on family ties, on Cebuano hospitality. Their script is all in Tagalog but the actors all translate it in Cebuano. While there are some limitations, the Cebuano crew is experienced. They will also give others the ability to see how Filipinos see foreigners and vice versa. I hope you get to enjoy this. The story is intertwined with the festival and isn't forced. The festival is like the same journey as Tere and is doing a battle for love, much like Lapulapu versus Magellan. We are very thankful for SM for helping through it's different channels and programs, we've been doing this for 7 years and continually educating people about alternative viewing, the same line as our advocacy."

The show will premier this July 30 and will feature the wonderful festival of "Kadaugan sa Mactan". AMO on the other hand will begin in August and is something to look forward to with the acclaimed director's work. A film made for TV is just priceless!

KUMAGCOW

Fresh Blogs Fast! 

TV5 and Brillante Mendoza Presents: Anak

Maybe, just maybe, it's not enough to have 3 movies made for TV to be shown on TV5. Oh yes because the ever brilliant Brillante Mendoza is adding another one to be shown on Sunday June 25 right on time after mothers day and fathers day to talk about family relationships, the love for mom and dads, sons and daughters and how it could go the lengths to weather pain, suffering and agony of bearing a child in a Filipino setting to make you ask if love alone in a family be okay or if it really exists.

Actors include the ever young and charming Romnick Sarmienta who plays Alex Ramos, Harlene Bautista who will be Marissa Ramos, Ms. Perla Bautista as Joy Bismarck, Bea Saw as Michelle Fernandez, Gay Quililan as Lydia Martinez and Kimmy Maclang as Beth Santos. They will make you understand how and why the Obando Fertility Rites have been done for years and how it has impacted the lives and faith of Filipinos here and around the world, to give them hope and be pregnant no matter what the odds are.

The show will come right after LAKBAI (show hosted by Baste Duterte) so make sure you tune in to the happiest network in the country the whole afternoon, right at TV5.

KUMAGCOW

Fresh Blogs Fast!

Brillante Ma Mendoza Presents: PANATA

Have you ever gone to Marinduque? Have you guys ever heard of the Moriones Festival? That's where we'll actually be in this installment of Brillante Mendoza Presents: PANATA. 

The Festival's name is the namesake of Morion or the Roman Soldier's helmet which locals wear to scare kids and depict the life of Saint Longinus - a roman centurion. The festival also showcase real life people whipping themselves as a form of atonement for their sins held from Holy Monday to Easter Sunday every year. The festival is also a way of thanksgiving of fishermen in the province.

The lead male actor plays Mario, a mask maker for the festival. He believes in the cause of local rebels and believes in their cause, but his chhildhood friend talks to him... and perhaps changes his mind and goes through the different facets of his life. He questions his ideologies, and perhaps after that he can make decisions. This is directed by the brillant Brillante Mendoza. If you would want to watch it, tune in to TV5 this month of May and  June on all its Saturday weekends.

Always watch something different on the happiest network in the country, TV5!

KUMAGCOW

Fresh Blogs Fast

Brillante Mendoza Presents: Pagtatapos

A few days ago, we had the chance to watch the next movie made for TV made by brilliant Cannes Film Festival Awardee Brillante Mendoza (oh yes I said that!). This is part of the program Brillante Mendoza Presents shown o TV5 wherein they already released Tsinoy and Everlastig to coincide with the celebration of Chinese New Year and Panagbenga Festival in Baguio City both of which they've utilized lesser known actors. They did this to concentrate more on the story than the personalities and I think it's a good thing.

According to TV5's CEO, "It's not planned to go to festivals or make awards, we just have to be different and be an alternative. We took courage to embark on this and support Direk to do his best work. The first two, it hasn't been much into the taste yet but there is a reason to this partnership. 12 made for tv movies, we are working on a one year relationship. We want to be the home of different kind of producers, directors abd story tellers. The reality in todays medium is that we have to consider the entire journey of the content, the plan is to put this on video on demand directors cuts which we can show on digital content. Direk is working on the talents and there is room for good stories which we hopefully will bring. We are finding ways to bring you quality ones even on a limited depth of talent and hopefully develop more talents in the future as this is a transition, it's a business decision." - Coach Chot Reyes of TV5

"We do have professional and non professional actors and hopefully it will be shown internationally. We have our people go out and make location based movies made for tv and we have a process in place. This is an alternative, a film is a film, and we concentrate mostly on content rather than personalities. Like what I said in past interviews, they got me a go signal to have creative freedom and TV5 gave me that. We do need sponsors and ratings to survive but they got the challenge and didn't ask me to compromise. I don't think I had to lower the quality, and it will find it's audience. A story is a story, if I make a good story then that's where I'll give my all. On the business side, we have a unique budget, a bulk figure then just work with that in these movies made for TV. Everytime it's a different experience as we include the locals. I do realism, they say it's ultra neo realism but I did a different style in Japan which I plan to do also in my next projects.  You should watch out for that."- Direk Brillante Mendoza

Brillante Mendoza Presents: Pagtatapos will be showing this coming April 22, 2017 at 9:30PM. There will be a couple more in the coming months and these works of art will be available to people pretty soon on digital streaming services worldwide so you better get in the habit.

KUMAGCOW

Fresh Blogs Fast!

Aubrey Miles for Brillante Mendoza Presents: Everlasting

We wrote about this last December before the outing of the first installment of Brillante Mendoza Presents, of the world renowned visionary and Best Director at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. 

All Saturdays of last month, they've released TSINOY, which was brought about by the depiction of Filipino Chinese families set in the famous Binondo district in Manila. This time however, he's taking the story telling up another notch by doing a very unique tale of love of two women (played by Aubrey Miles and indie queen Mercedes Cabral) and the struggles arise when people follow their dreams, and go through the hardships of love. Almost all the scenes are also shot in Baguoi while the annual PANAGBENGA festival is ongoing. Direk Brillante's take on this story is different but will be telling it all in detail so you get to understand where the characters are coming from. How do you reason with a dream? How do you argue with love on the line?

This may just be another month where your Saturday evenings will get the brunt of how TV5 is disrupting the television space. Imagine watching quality movie scenes each week right in the comfort of your own homes, wouldn't that be nice? Well take the chance to watch the show starting this March 25, 9:30PM on TV5. You don't have to pay a single cent to see what a Cannes Film Festival awardee is doing on public broadcast TV. The show will also be tackling lesbian relationships so make sure you would always explain things to kids as the characters set off to find their real happiness. Now if you think this program is pushing the envelope, you're just seeing the second story... there are more!

Make sure you stay tuned to TV5 9:30PM every Saturdays on the Kapatid Network!

For more information about their movie:

TV5

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

http://brillantemamendoza.com

"Bhoy Intsik" for Sinag Maynila 2017

Just got off the presscon for "BHOY INTSIK" starred by Raymond Francisco, the official entry of Frontrow Entertainment to the Sinag Maynila 2017. He says "I didn't know at first that there are people living in cemeteries, the parallelism of how these things happen in real life is insurmountable. I play a gay character, dresses up to fool people, but I have a soft heart. I worked with Direk Joey in the past and when I got word that I was going to do the lead role, I was nervous, but Direk was precise and we attacked this role differently. I play different roles really, it's my first lead role and my BIGGEST break. To a point this is gay empowerment, I really don't like gay roles where they get ridiculed, kicked, and this is good."

Also included in this film is Ronwaldo Martin, Coco Martin's brother. He's done several indie films already including Cinemalaya entries like "Pamilya Ordinaryo" and his supportive brother has nothing but good words for him. He's playing Marlon, a not so good guy who also happens to be a con man. He lives with "Boy Intsik" and gets into conflicts with him in this project. He wants to later on be paired with Anne Curtis and also get to where Coco Martin is today. He's got a very good disposition, and I could see Coco Martin in him when he was younger. He's not single, unfortunately for you ladies, and he's had his non showbiz GF for a couple of years now. He says "I was hand picked by Direk Joey and being Marlon Pogi I hope the contrast comes through. I live in a bus, live everywhere and the character calls for something raw which was asked for me in the film. I'm excited to see this on screen! He's going to get booked, but wouldn't be romantically involved with a lady in this film."

Direk Joel Lamangan adds "The story is from real life, it's from a depressed area in Cavite. That person is already dead but when he was alive some of the things in this film was patterned with what he did in the past. I knew RS aka Raymond Francisco was fit for the film because I watched his previous stage plays. They were enemies before and they got to know each other later on. I knew they were all veteran actors, I challenged them to do it and they are good. Ronwaldo is super tight lipped but he does the job quite well and observes people so he could adapt to the role. We have full dimentional characters, and they did it with ease. They are the best assets of this film and they see the need for aesthetic quality, they are a very good addition to the industry. I hope people watch this in SM Cinemas, Gateway Mall and other theaters in Metro Manila! It's not done yet with the sub titling but we're sending this also to Hong Kong hopefully soon."

Sinag Maynila 2017 will run from March 9-14, 2017 in selected cinemas in Metro Manila.

KUMAGCOW

Fresh Blogs Fast!

TV5 Outs Brillante Mendoza Presents

You will be in for a treat as TV5 brings in a new addition to theie lineup of programs. You've been witness to the success of Brillante Mendoza and how he has worked so steadfastly to put the Philippines in the movie world map. He's won Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival for his masterpiece Kinatay. He also was instrumental for Jaclyn Jose's portrayal of Ma'Rosa that earned her the Best Actress Award. He's now bringing that same quality into TV via this new show called Brilliante Mendoza Presents to feature made for TV movies on Television once a month. Isn't that awesome news? 

Coach Chot Reyes says "It's our honor to present our most exciting surprise this 2017. As early as January we're going to have a made for TV movie on Brilante Mendoza Presents. We are continuing our content that hasn't been seen on local television and who else to do it but the best, Director Brillante Mendoza. It will start January but come February we are going to have a mini series called AMO with Derek Ramsay talking about the Chinese Community. The message is that we are open for partnerships, just come to us and we are not bound by anything so we can co produce if you present to us. We are an alternative, we are another choice. It's going to run every last Saturday of every month but we're going to air January 21 because we have the last Saturday for Miss Universe."

Direk Brillante adds "We will shoot in the entire country and we will feature stories from the provinces. We will focus on characters as we go along, even talk about the illegal drug trade. There will also be other film makers that I am going to work with. We will have full length films, with the goal of featuring them on international festival. I'm really excited to work with TV5. Aside from TV5 talents, we have indie actors and focus on the content rather than the stars. For the first episode an actual performer because it's needed on the Dragon Dance. For the series, Derek will be there. If we get them, we'll let you know as soon as the teasers for January are ready you'll see them all on TV early that month."

Now you can watch his films on free TV and expect world class television programs on D5 Studio and TV5. 

KUMAGCOW 

Fresh Blogs Fast!