IT WASN’T a grand presscon, after all. Ang tinutukoy namin ay ang nakansela pero natuloy ring presscon ng Feng Shui last Wednesday.
For a Kris Aquino movie, and a festival entry at that, the event was lacklustre. Idagdag pa ang pagiging two hours late ng dadalawa sa cast members (Kris Aquino and Coco Martin) when the absentees like Cherry Pie Picache and Carmi Martin would have been equally interesting—if not more—subjects.
The height pa ang pagiging disorganisado ng mga Star Cinema staff when raffle time came. Their huge number sowed confusion all the more.
Hindi sa pagiging taklesa ni Kris (who revealed that Biboy Arboleda, Coco’s manager, went under the knife particular ang mukha raw nitong nagkasugat-sugat), o sa pagiging matatas magsalita ng Ingles kami nagulat, kundi sa malalim, mapuso at matalinong pagpapaliwanag ni Coco sa mga tanong during the open forum.
Aware of his limitations pagdating sa pagsasalita ng Ingles, Coco found an equally intelligent way kung paano niya maitatawid ang kanyang nasa sa loob, even using a figure of speech (tumaob na bangka) in describing his recent struggle in life. Bukod tangi raw si Kris ang umalalay sa kanya, giving him James Yap’s lawyer’s contact number.
“Brilliant” kung ilarawan ni Kris si Coco bilang aktor, likewise a flattering remark from Direk Chito who—for the first time—got a lead actor for his horror film.
A self-confessed greenhorn in the genre, inaral daw ni Coco ang mga techniques ni Direk Chito. Pero higit daw na mahalaga, “Hindi lang kasi dapat may chemistry ka sa mga co-actors mo, dapat may rapport din kayo ng direktor mo.”
Incidentally, isa si Coco sa mga stakeholder ng Feng Shui through the prodding of Kris na nasa co-production business na rin.
IT WAS at a production house along Pasay Road in Makati City nang maimbitahan kami more than two years ago to watch the sneak preview of Erik Matti’s Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles. Mala-AVP ‘yon—kundi man AVP na nga—ng nasabing pelikula on split screen: sa bandang kaliwa was the raw shoot minus the special effects on a green screen vis a vis the digitally enhanced scenes.
Instantly, hinangaan naming ang creative genius ni Direk Erik (nagpapiktyur pa nga kami with him). Close to home na masasabi ang material, ‘ika nga. Himself an Ilonggo who grew up exposed to timeless, ancestral tales tungkol sa mga aswang, kapado ng aming naging instant idol ang kanyang subject—a far cry sa kanyang mga Joyce Jimenez skin flicks sa Viva Films noon.
Two years later, the male tiktiks of Pulupandan have found their blood-thirsty counterparts, hence, ang sequel nitong Kubot na ang bibida naman ay ang mga babaeng aswang with long hair na magmimistulang mga tentacle na puwedeng lumapirot ng mga laman-loob ng kanilang bibiktimahin.
Unlike Feng Shui which—we suppose—is Kris Aquino’s convenient outlet para tumili nang bonggang-bongga—Kubot is a “three-in-one” marriage among action, adventure and comedy.
And speaking of three, ang franchise na ngayong The Aswang Chronicles has involved GMA Films, Reality Entertainment and Agosto Dos, kung saan producer din ang lead actor na si Dingdong Dantes.
At yaman din lamang na ang nais lang ni Kris ay bumalik nang doble ang ipinuhunan nilang tatlo (talk about three again!) nina Coco Martin at Direk Chito Rono, let Kubot be the second topgrosser in this year’s MMFF.
By the way, thanks to Ms. Rikka Dilim who sent the text invitation para sa presscon nito. We even had to double-check kung sinong Rikka ‘yon, baka kasi hindi para sa amin ang paanyayang ‘yon like a stray bullet.
Or a stray kubot for that matter.
Pepperoni
by Ronnie Carrasco III
