The casting coup of Sharon Cuneta and Alden Richards as headliners in the 2023 Metro Manila Film Festival entry A Family of Two easily catapults CineKo Productions to being a major player in the Philippine film industry.
More so if the entry would outperform in the box office the other MMFF entries topbilled by the couple Dingdong Dantes-Marian Rivera, the time-tested tandem of Vilma Santos-Christopher de Leon, the remarkably handsome and seasoned actor Piolo Pascual, and Matteo Guidicelli whose movie is produced by Viva Films.
Cuneta’s talent fee as an actor is certainly not paltry. It can probably fund two to three indie films budgeted at P2 million to P3 million only. Cuneta’s fee is surely higher than Richards’, who also commands a considerable figure considering his stature in the industry.
On the sidelines of the media conference for the movie, we cornered the film’s quite genial director, Nuel Naval, and told him, “Ang yaman ng producer (Enrico Rowue, the mayor of the little town of Pandi in Bulacan) n’yo. Na-afford n’ya sina Sharon at Alden!”
Big-time businessman
Naval said Roque wasn’t bothered about the fees of his lead stars. Roque was already a big-time businessman in Pandi before he was elected mayor there in 2010, owning a chain of appliance stores and Amana Water Park, a huge resort for which Pandi has become well-known.
Roque is a warm, chummy guy who loves watching movies, which led him to go into the filmmaking business when he was already a town mayor.
CineKo’s 2023 production funds were invested not only in A Family of Two but also in three co-productions beginning as early as February.
The first one was 10 Little Mistresses, a comedy-thriller inspired by an Agatha Christie opus. It’s about a wealthy widower (John Arcilla) who one fine day gathered 10 of his mistresses for a grand party but ended up being murdered by one of them.
The mistresses were played by Pokwang, Agot Isidro, Kris Bernal, Arci Munoz, Adrianna So, Kate Alejandrino, Sharlene San Pedro, Christian Bables (as a transwoman) and Iana Bernardez. Jun Lana directed the film from his own script.
In April, the company was one of the two co-producers of lawyer Joji Alonso’s Quantum Films in Here Comes the Groom, an entry in the 2023 Summer MMFF. It was topbilled by Enchong Dee, Maris Racal, Keempee de Leon, Gladys Reyes and Eugene Domingo, with major support from transwomen actors including Kaladkaren and Iya Minah.
After April, CineKo co-produced with Viva Films and Rein Entertainment a movie mainly shot in Singapore in October, simply titled Elevator and headlined by Paulo Avelino, Kylie Verzosa and Singaporean actor Adrian Pang.
Jolly pair
For all his money, Roque remains a mayor with an unblemished reputation. This 2023, Pandi was awarded the Seal of Good Governance by a group of evaluators who are public servants themselves.
Beyond the pairing of Cuneta and Richards, what else can help make A Family of Two among the 2023 MMFF highest grossers? We dare say the script by Mel del Rosario and Naval’s direction. Their tandem was behind Family Matters last year. Ditto for Viva Films’ Miracle in Cell 17, an entry in the 2021 MMFF headlined by Aga Muhlach and child actor Xia Vigor.
At the media conference for A Family of Two, Cuneta and Richards were at their jolliest. We have attended media conferences separately involving them, and they were never as gleeful as in their media huddle for A Family of Two at Novotel in Cubao, QC. They really behaved like mother and son to each other.