The Sierra Madre mountain range has once again been the talk of the town as it played a part in slowing the track of the recent Super Typhoon. This starts from the province of Cagayan to the south in Quezon, but did you know that the Santa Maria Music and Film Festival (SMMFF) is also happening here? I distinctly remember the 2023 run when they featured various films, musical acts while nestled in the great outdoors! With the theme "See What Others Can't" they've managed to celebrate year after year with the 2025 edition happening at the founder Jennifer Maliwanag's family mountain property in Santa Maria, Laguna (which is also part of the range).
It's pretty remote and atop clouds in the morning, but this didn't stop them from featuring even more participants this year. Imagine, having 39 films from 17 different countries Australia , EU, Canada, South America, the US and a few from Southeast Asia) all to be showcased in this year's SMMFF. All of which are being celebrated, and to make this platform be their voice, and allow us to experience their different stories (and See What Others Can't).
Quarter Finalists include Cotton Candy by Jesse Klick of USA, To Be Anders Widmark by Peter Östlund of Sweden, Image Dance by John Dawson also from the USA, First Refusal by Courtney Sanello from the USA, American Pot Story: Oaksterdam by Ravit Markus & Dan Katzir from the USA, Reborn by Ken Izumisawa of Japan, Castle in the Air by Jess D'Aguanno of Australia, Clout Chaser by Lubomir Atan of the USA, The World of UConn Stamford’s Campus Library by Dorian Robinson of the USA, Inspire Me by Geoffrey Fighiera of France, Chance Encounters by Hasi Eldib of Canada, Guiding Light by India Anne Mitchell of the USA, Life in Tandem by Joseph Litzinge & Mia Grimes who are also from the USA.
This will happen on my birthday December 6th from 4-8:30PM at the Santa Maria Open Air Cinema located at 143 Summit Barangay Pao-o in Santa Maria Laguna. If you want to experience it, visit their official website santamariafestival.com and register for a seat. It'll be one awesome day to see and feel music, film under the sky and stars!
This is organized by Jennifer Maliwanag (Festival Director), Rex Lopez the Producer and Creative Lead, and Jerico Maliwanag a Film Creator and Communications Lead for this year's SMMFF.
Took a trip way east to Marikina City to visit the physical showroom of Maddox Jewelry. We got to talk to Madame Charo Cordial, the viral online seller, entrepreneur and businesswoman who made her small venture into a gold and diamond empire that it is today.
She had very humble beginnings. Brought up in a small town where farming was the premier industry, her parents had her take up Agricultural Engineering in college. During the pandemic, she just had the the opportunity to delve into jewelry (among her other passions), and that's where Maddox Jewelry started. When we met her, her demeanor was very warm and welcoming. With her fascination for all things gold, she got so busy these past few years garnering not only a huge clientele but celebrities, some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry. The difference between her and the other online sellers is that she's got a physical showroom in Marikina (AZDM Building) where she conducts appointments for those who want to see the jewelry before they purchase it.
We asked her about making investments on jewelry and what is the best time to do it and she said "There's really no BEST time to do it but NOW. As you may know, gold value is increasing over the years and if you don't get it early, you won't see the value grow. I've seen several of my clients who purchased gold and diamond pieces in the past and in a few years, the value is now 5 times of what it was then."
She adds "Jewelry is not only for women, but men too. We have several pieces that are unisex especially the classic designed ones that can be worn by men or women. Aside from that, we have celebrities like Mark Herras who got earrings with diamonds in it. (Tried to find it on display but they said it's all sold out!) We have them in different colors. We have blue diamonds, green diamonds, something that would fit your personality. We'd gladly accommodate you here as we have people who could assist you to choose the right sparkle you need for your jewelry."
Here's a bit of our talk with her that evening:
As you may have heard, her clients are mostly other jewelry sellers that source most of their wares from her. She also wished for a few A list celebrities to collaborate with her since she also does content on TikTok and Facebook.
Her Facebook page is her only selling platform, and streams are regularly done live and deleted right after because most of the sales are done only during livestreams. If you're interested, go follow their page and watch out for schedules, it's mostly from 6pm to 12am and they're quite keen on helping entrepreneurs to start their own businesses. If you've been wanting to start your own collection, they have people to help you at their Marikina office.
Their showroom is pretty full most of the time, it might be wise to ask for appointments through their contact numbers there. I'm off to buy a few very soon. Remember as she says, the time to invest in jewelry is now!
Super nice and very humble, she's shining bright indeed. Thank you and congratulations Ms. Charo! Here's wishing you could help more people and continued success in the business!
Everyone deserves a good night's sleep, but how would you do that with the amount of stress you're experiencing at work and at home?
A few days ago, we got to see the launch of Swiss Proli Night Gummies, an FDA approved supplement made to make your usual sleep a deep one. Guests, celebrities and brand executives were all clad in sleepwear, and beds all lined the venue to the stage. They also had some really good midnight snack items, drinks all around so you can have your fill. People were taking lots of photos in different booths and scent sprays were given as tokens to go home.
Here's a few clips I took of the event with Julia Montes and Ms. Pinky Tobiano on stage.
A single piece would accelerate you into deeper sleep and REM. This also contains Melatonin, Ashwaganda, L-Theanine, Vitamin B6, D3, and magnesium. This hastens you to get that restful sleep which you always wanted to happen all these years and is vegan. They are also ISO certified so you are assured you're getting the best in the market. If you're interested, it's available now on online stores Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop, and their social channels.
If Julia likes it, why in the world would you not right?!
PEBA (Philippine Entertainment Bloggers Association) was invited by NET25 to a celebration of INC's Eduardo Manalo's birthday through an activity called CARE FOR HUMANITY (Lingap Sa Mamamayan). The executive minister remembered the media practitioners and felt the industry also needed help. This goes the same with other sectors, for the differently abled, senior citizens, all of which are close to the INC.
This is worldwide so this is simultaneously happening in other countries and continents like Africa. This can be seen on their channel and social accounts so if you want to delve more into it. You can watch bits of it on the channel NET 25.
They also have organizations that hire employees from the PWD sector. Look at the gorgeous spread they did during the event.
NET 25's Creative Consultant Ms. Wilma Galvante says "I experienced Lingap last year in Quezon City, and I would never forget the experience of doing that. This year, they're taking it internationally and I am so honored to be part of it on the birthday of Ka Eduardo Manalo."
They are taking Lingap sa Mamamayan to other countries via their INC network. Brothers and Sisters of the INC will take up what they have and share it to various communities around the world. What a way to celebrate a leader's birthday! This should inspire more people to do the same.
