Style and Soul

July is the month of Philippine independent cinema. As usual, the well-known Cinemalaya film festival, now on its 8th year, puts the spotlight on alternative films no longer exclusive to the intelligent film enthusiast. Now, indie films have been extended to the mass audience who were all spoon-fed with sickening romance, slapstick comedy and teledrama movies created by the country's major movie studios. 

Although it's sad to say that only during this film fest do people really pay attention to indie films, at least even for a short period of time, Filipinos get to be exposed to a wider variety of narratives, filmmaking style and different types of issues and themes which help shape culture and thought; from an independent, not commercial perspective, among the general public.

Yes, films about social and political issues as well as poverty and art matter. However, the audience is no longer confined to these subjects anymore. This year, Cinemalaya offers a buffet of films for every type of film buff.

Some of us wish we could just watch everything. But with 25 films for showcase and only a limited budget in your pocket, how do you choose which one to watch? Here are my top personal picks this Cinemalaya 2012.

Hello everyone! I've been very busy with a lot of things lately and I totally forgot to post about this giveaway! The premiere night is tomorrow, February 12, 2012, 4PM at Cinema 1 in Rockwell Powerplant Mall. 

To join, simply add/follow/like:

1. Carmex Philippines = Facebook and Twitter

2. ZoyaManila = Facebook and Twitter

3. Style and Soul = Facebook and Twitter

4. Tweet "I want to watch THE VOW tomorrow @thestyleandsoul @CarmexPH @responsiblespa"

First 2 people to tweet will automatically win! The first will win 3 tickets while the second one wins 2 tickets! 

SUPER QUICK AND EASY! Join now!!! I will validate the winners today and contact you guys tomorrow on how to claim your tickets. Make sure you comment here below your full name (on valid ID), birth date, age, mobile number and e-mail address so I can contact you ASAP! 

Good luck everyone! Happy Valentine's Day! 

I'm writing this entry as a sequel to my previous blog post, A few things I learned from Direk Joey Reyes. Last November 30, an intimate group of bloggers had the chance to meet one of the most bankable comedy actresses of today, someone who is chameleon enough to play either lead or support, for indie films or mainstream cinema,  none other than Eugene Domingo.

Spotted before the event: Director of My House Husband, Joey Reyes and host Shalala

Before Direk Joey leaves, the bloggers request both for a photo.

Before the bloggers con, comedy host Shalala got to interview Eugene for showbiz chika show Juicy!

Gluta Max giveaways were given to the bloggers.

The event was sponsored by Kenny Rogers, Katipunan

The bloggers conference was produced by OctoArts films (in cooperation with Bloggers United) as part of their social media promotions for My House Husband, a local movie entry to this year's upcoming Metro Manila Film Festival. It is a real-life and family oriented dramedy about Rod (Ryan Agoncillo), a man who lost his job and is forced by circumstances to do the household work while his wife Mia (Judy Ann Santos) has to be the one to take on the role of the provider. Together, they face the struggles of this dilemma brought about by the reversal of roles in the family and how they've accepted and dealt with the situation at hand.

Screen cap of the movie trailer

In this movie,  Eugene Domingo  will play the role of Aida, Rod's next-door neighbor, who will eventually become one of his close friends and from there we have the "other woman." The bond that they (Rod and Aida) have formed will stir up the couple's relationship as Mia turns green with envy and at the same time provide the film a hilarious touch.

Thank you Lord for my hosting stints and exposure! Thank you so much for the blessings :)

Going back to the bloggers conference, saying that "It was fun," is a mere understatement. We all had a blast as we laughed our asses off to Eugene's jokes and sarcastic but comical banats (remarks). I remember, the first time I saw her was during the premiere of Amigo, a fil-am indie film by John Sales. There I was photo covering the event and I bet, not in a million years would she ever remember that I once took her photo. Haha.

The event gave me the chance to interact with her and get up-close and personal. She was candid and natural. And so far, mukha talagang walang halong ka-plastikan. She was straight-forward in her answers and she spoke with eloquence and intelligence. I'm not the biggest Eugene Domingo fan but I always have the utmost respect for successful individuals like her who have achieved so much because of their hard work. 

It's not about being a so-called "fan" but giving respect and high admiration for people who have lived to set out a good example to those who want to accomplish so much in their lives. I look up to her not only because we are schoolmates (go UP! Haha), but also because she has risen above from the bottom of the food chain, from being an extra (e.g. playing roles of a house maid), to being a side kick, to now being a total star taking on lead roles, endorsements, hosting TV shows, magazine editorials, and so on and so forth. Indeed, she has come a long way and all I can say is "Wow, sana ako rin, one day."

Listening keenly to her answers, I absorbed as much (minsan lang to!) as I can and took note of every sensible statements she said. And just like our bloggerscon with Direk Joey, I also learned a lot of new things and pieces of advice that I'm happy to keep in mind as I live my young years, as I work my hardest to attain all my goals and dreams in life.

When I got home, I scribbled in my planner the what-I-call Steps on how to be the next Eugene Domingo "Ingredients of a Successful Career" from Ms. Eugene Domingo (Haha!)

1. Just be natural
What makes Eugene Domingo THE Eugene Domingo? Simple. What you see is what you get. She lets her true character and personality come out without any inhibitions. She's not image-oriented but more on doing her job and doing it well.

2. Be the master of yourself

She is one of the very few who can jump ship from one network to another with ease, without burning any bridges. It's quite amazing how she made it possible, to be a Kapamilya, Kapuso and Kapatid all at the same time, in short, "Kabakla" (Kabahagi Ka ng Lahat). How did she become a non-exclusive artist? She  said the key was being honest and sincere to her bosses when she asks permission to do work for other networks. She values her freedom as an artist and she believes that life is meant to be enjoyed and so, she decided to be a freelancer and be her own boss instead.

Eugene with her bosses Orly Ilacad and Cat Ilacad of OctoArts Films

3. There is no small role
Despite her current achieved status,  Eugene Domingo  is happy to take on any role as long as she has work and there is good material (script) for it. She said that the only time she would probably refuse is when she has played a certain type of character so many times that she gets sick of doing it and would want to experiment on other roles for a change.

4. Stay humble and grounded
Eugene and I are on the same team when she said she is against unfair treatment, inequality and discrimination in the work place. She doesn't have that star complex (like most celebrities have) and she wants everyone in the business to be treated with respect whatever position they are in.

5. Talent, passion, patience and hard work is the real deal
Let's face it, Eugene isn't the sexiest nor the most beautiful in our roster of local celebrities. However, what makes her stellar is her confidence in the God-given talent that she has. She doesn't stop with just having a gift. Eugene makes sure she still studies in order to master her craft. Her tenacity to do all her projects and manage her schedule well is something that I truly commend. And most of all, she has waited  patiently for her biggest breaks in God's time - making her one of the best that we have today.

Catch  Eugene Domingo  in  My House Husband movie with Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo. Movie will open in cinemas on December 25.

Like My Househusband, Ikaw Na! on Facebook

Like Eugene Domingo's Unofficial facebook account
Video Credit: Ruth Dela Cruz

As part of cutting my back logs, let me share with you some of the movie premieres that I was able to attend to for the past few weeks. 

Twilight: Breaking Dawn (Part 1)

Moschino fragrance line sponsored a Breaking Dawn premiere last November 19 held at Eastwood City. The wonderful people from Prestige Brands Philippines invited a couple of bloggers to go. I went there with Bestie and Paul plus my boyfriend JR.

We forgot to bring our camera, hence the lack of personal photos in this post but I'm grateful that Prestige invited us because I wouldn't have watched the film if not for free. LOL. I know Twilight has a lot of fans world wide but I'm really just not one of them. I've heard from Paul that the book (version) was a really good read. However, I find the film just too cheesy for my taste.

I appreciate the honeymoon cinematography and the character's beautiful house in Brazil.

Along with the movie, a new fragrance was introduced to us - Moschino Forever. It's a timeless fragrance which represents the classic Moschino fashion - with elegance and irony. This is specially created for the classic man with a strong personality that enables him to be original and unique (source: press kit).

I love the linear and classic glass bottle with its signature Moschino logo on top.

The fragrance has a fresh, strong and sensual, citrus scent with accents of bergamot, kumquat, and star anise. It also has a spicy hint to it brought about by clary sage (herbal plant), tonka beans and black pepper together with a woody base concocted from sandalwood and musk (source: press kit). For you to further imagine what this perfume smells like, I linked its ingredients (above) so you would know what are these plants that I am talking about.

Again, thanks Moschino Forever and Prestige Brands Philippines for inviting us!

Won't Last a Day Without You

Our good friends Niche and Coy from Globe/Globe Tattoo invited us to the premiere night of Won't Last a Day Without You, the latest movie of pop singer Sarah Geronimo and male celebrity Gerald Anderson. Again, this movie is not my cup of tea but just for fun, I said yes and dragged (yet again) my boyfriend JR to accompany me. Too bad, some of my fellow bloggers from the Globe Tattoo LED billboard campaign weren't able to go because it was a last minute (day itself) invitation.

OMG. Megamall was PACKED with Sarah and Gerald's fans. They all went crazy at the sight of the movie's stars and cast. I couldn't take a decent photo and so, instead of waiting outside for the program, my boyfriend and I went inside the movie house and waited for more than an hour before it finally began. The invitation said 7PM but I think it started around 8:30PM na. 

The story revolves around DJ Heidi (Sarah G.), who gives love advice to radio listeners. One of her callers, Melissa (Megann Young) sought her guidance concerning her playboy boyfriend Andrew (Gerald A.) and Heidi promptly advised her to break up with him on nationwide radio. Angered and embarrassed by the incident, Andrew attempts to sue Heidi and to make up for it, she tries to patch things up between the couple. Turns out, this love-counselor-student-relationship resulted in them falling in love with each other.

I was surprisingly pleased with the movie. When I went there, I knew what I was getting myself into: another romantic-comedy oozing with cheesy and pa-cute scenes but the director made sure it was limited to a minimum and so it was tolerable. Sarah was incredibly funny and was a natural actress. The two had believable chemistry. 

It wasn't perfect (I hated the resolution towards the ending!) but kudos to the script writer for benta DJ dialogues and I'd like to thank the person responsible for casting Joey De Leon, who played Heidi's father in the film. Haha! His character, Pablo, a-once-stellar rock star who happened to be one of Andrew's idols, provided ample comic relief and astig factor to the movie. 

Happy to find a youtube video of the premiere night. Take a peek and see how gaga the fans went over these local celebrities. Haha. Di ko bet outfit ni Sarah, fuma-fashion police? Haha.

Top SM Dept. Store | Shorts Next Jeans | Cardigan Thrifted | Shoes c/o Shoe Etiquette | Satchel F-STOP

Before falling in love with fashion, I had something else in my life - films. If not for my film organization in college (UP CAST), I wouldn't even know that I had in me a genuine interest for film and video production work. Thanks to my all orgmates, I have experienced shooting for feature shorts and independent films. All the people that I met at production opened the door for me to be a freelance production manager, one of the many things that I currently do as a creative entrepreneur. 

And so, when Bloggers United was given the chance to partner with OctoArts Films for a special bloggers' event, I was more than ecstatic to do the project. I've never done any film for quite some time now, except for a few documentaries and video commissioned works on the side. And since fate has led me to the field of fashion events, it was an experience that I wouldn't want our group to let go of.

To those who may be wondering how we got involved, it was because Bloggers United had previously collaborated for a few blogger-centered affairs for Ms.Cat Ilacad of Posh Nails. She is the daughter of Mr. Orly Ilacad, the founder of the said Philippine production company. And from there, I think you can pretty much tell the cause-and-effect relationship.

Initially, the plan was to do a bloggers set visit (bongga diba!) for OctoArts' upcoming MMFF (Metro Manila Film Festival) 2011 entry, My Househusband (Ikaw Na!) starring Judy Ann Santos, Ryan Agoncillo and Eugene Domingo. The idea couldn't be more perfect right? But because it's hard to work out a schedule for the actors, production and the bloggers, we decided to go for a feasible but nevertheless,  a meaningful one - a sit-down bloggers lunch with one of the acclaimed writer-directors in the Philippine entertainment industry (and the movie's director as well), Direk Joey Reyes.

A very intimate group of fellow bloggers (mostly from the lifestyle and entertainment niche) welcomed our invitation. I hosted this very casual event (with utmost honor) and presented the man of the hour, Direk Joey (who else?!). It was a round table, up-close interview with direk which started with awkward silence at first but almost never ended because all the bloggers had so much to ask and Direk Joey had so much more to say.

I sat there, asked questions like everyone else and was very eager to listen to a man with depth, intelligence, humor, inspiration, experience and success. As much as I love learning, there's nothing I love more than sharing ideas and a lot of other things that Direk has imparted to us.

1. "Get to know" people.

Before he began, I was taken by surprise when Direk Joey asked each and every one of us to introduce ourselves and talk about what we blog. The simple gesture of asking for our names was more than striking to me. I'm sure I speak for almost everyone when I say we felt "recognized" because a notable person like him showed genuine interest in knowing a thing or two about us. 

Why would he even bother, right? He has met and worked with a lot of smart, creative, successful and famous individuals in the first place, that it probably didn't matter who we are because he might forget about us afterwards anyway. But still, he sincerely reached out with a small talk or a funny comment as each one of us took turns to say something about ourselves. That's how he really is. He even shared that when he travels to places, he'd introduce himself to strangers!

Thinking back on how I did at the event, I remember welcoming all the bloggers and asking for their names but... I realized that I didn't even made an effort to "get to know" anyone. I felt really bad about that and it made me want to strive to be more personable and sincere when I meet other people.

Sarah, Pax, Me and new lifestyle blogger friend Anton

2. "Social media and exercise are better than botox."

Direk Joey strongly believes in the power of social media. In the past, there was complete oligopoly between three media channels - print, radio and television wherein people accepted information through a one-way process. The rise of new media has put an end to this kind of information control. People started to interact with what they read, watch and listen to through the new (social) media. 

We are now empowered to give feedback, to inform, to influence, to express and to connect with others from all over the world which expanded people's consciousness through mutual learning. The director even regarded social media as the cheapest yet effective form of marketing by citing the viral success achieved by independent films like Kimidora and Zombadings.

The basic form of marketing is by word of mouth and Direk considers promotions through Twitter, Facebook, blogs and all other online accounts as "word of many mouths" which he sees as the most powerful kind of advertising above all.

According to him, TV trailers plus radio and print ads will only assure that people will watch the movie on its first day of screening. However, it is social media that will keep the audience coming because of the recommendations or comments they will see from online media users.

3. Film is an art while movie is a product.

I share Direk Joey's advocacy of supporting the independent film movement. He emphasizes that Indie films bring back the integrity to the role of the director as a creative agent and not just a mere employee. Filmmakers continue to create films even if there's no hope of box-office sales because they want to communicate ideas, messages, influence the viewing public or for no other purpose (art for art's sake) at all.

Meanwhile, he describes movies as mere products that you can buy from a supermarket because reality is, the entertainment industry is a business. Movies are simplified into templates (either comedy, drama, action, horror/suspense and romance) with a definite demographic target, then specifically manufactured in order to garner profit. I its formula as big celebrities + ad placements + entertaining script + production value + technology + cheap labor VS hard work = profitable same old movie.

But even though Direk Joey works for mainstream cinema, he has still put up his own production company called Largavista to fulfill his thirst for creating sensible films that will make people think. He believes that our local moviegoers deserve a variety of selection and on the other hand, aspiring filmmakers with passionate voices need to come out that are not necessarily empowered by money alone but by creativity as well.

4. "Out of all of the MMFF 2011 entries, only three (3) movies will profit."

Even though he was saying this as a matter-of-fact, Direk Joey explains that reason why all producers are competitively vying for a slot as finalists in this film festival is because a) screening is every Christmas season and b) for one week, foreign films are banned from being shown in cinemas (which ensures a week of ticket sales). 

If you take a look at the line up of movies below (with the first two movies expected to top the charts), Direk Joey believes that My Househusband is worth your time, money and slot in that "top three". What are your choices?

Enteng ng Ina Mo (Star Cinema & M-ZET Productions / Fantasy)

After the block buster hit Agimat ni Enteng (combining Agimat and Enteng Kabisote) last year, here's another fusion of two MMFF previous entries (Ang Tanging Ina Mo and Enteng Kabisote). Ina Monticello (played Ai-ai Delas Alas) gets lost in the world of Enteng (Vic Sotto) and the adventure to Engkantasya awaits.

Ang Panday 2 (Imus Productions & GMA Films / Fantasy-Action)

It will be about another quest for the Pinoy blacksmith hero, Panday (Bong Revilla) as he saves his love interest (Iza Calzado) from his evil nemesis Lizardo (Philip Salvador) and new villain Dragona (Marian Rivera). Expect this to be a so-called visual spectacle due to its "advance" CGI (computer-generated-imagery) technology is reportedly to be released on 3D.

Shake Rattle & Roll 13 (Regal Films / Horror)

On its 13th installment, viewers seemed fed up of this movie franchise. However, producers of the movie promises new twists featuring casts that include Kathryn Bernardo, Albie Casino, Mart Escudero and Eugene Domingo.

Segunda Mano (MJM Productions & Star Cinema / Horror)

Kris Aquino is back with another superstition-based movie about a second-hand item in her possession, which turns out to be connected to a ghost who can't let go.

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (Studio 5 / Drama)

After the success of Rosario, Studio 5 (funded by Manny V. Pangilinan), comes up with story of a family (starring Gabby Concepcion, Maricel Soriano, Lovi Poe, Jericho Rosales) who faces a tragedy that befalls them and moves on from it.

Hototay (Regal Films & SMDC / Comedy)

Mother Lily describes that the plot is an extension of the Mano Po series but instead of drama, it will be a laugh trip involving culinary, Chinese family and other nationalities (Indian).

My Househusband (OctoArts Films / Drama-Comedy)

Real-life couple Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo star in a family-oriented dramedy about a man who lost his job and is forced by circumstances to take care of his family and do house chores, while his wife has to be the one to take on a job.

Why should you give the movie a chance? 

Contrary to popular assumptions that this will be a stereotypical under the saya movie, Direk Joey vouches that My Househusband is the only movie the closely mirrors reality. Isn't obvious that almost all the entries are fantasy stories? Aside from that, the movie tackles a a phenomenon that is very current right now. Undeniably, a lot of households in our society today no longer have men as the main family provider.

The movie is an honest depiction of the reversal of roles happening within families - about men learning to do housework because of economic, financial and practical necessities. It's about men, enlightened at how equally hard it is to be a housewife; and a realization that the role of a wife is not just about being a mother and taking care of the house, but as an individual who is capable of being a professional.

Direk Joey explains that its concept is to defy the whole idea of Pinoy machismo and open Filipinos to the changing sex roles in the world today. He stresses further its relevance and selling point, that it deals with real people and the audience will be laughing at real life situations captured on big screen.

Like My Househusband, Ikaw Na! on Facebook

Follow Direk Joey Reyes' blog
Photo Credits: Aisa and Anton