Where’s the excitement in Pinoy entertainment these days?
It’s on television, the websites and the streaming platforms.
(FROM left) Kathryn Bernardo, director Petersen Vargas, writer Marionne Dominique Mancol, creative manager Carmi Raymundo and creative supervisor Daniel Saniana.
There aren’t that many Pinoy films in moviehouses. The only promising one is a forthcoming Kathryn Bernardo and Dolly de Leon film, A Very Good Girl, which has begun shooting under the direction of Petersen Vargas. Produced by Star Cinema, A Very Good Girl is billed as a dark comedy, with a 2023 playdate.
Unbreak My Heart, the much-vaunted collaboration series between content supplier ABS-CBN and the Kapuso Network and funded by the Hong Kong-based Viu, streamed for 48 hours before its TV broadcast in the Philippines on GMANetwork.com and iWantTFC, as well as in 16 territories outside of the Philippines via Viu.
In the Philippines, it is now airing Mondays to Thursdays on GMA Telebabad, Pinoy Hits and I Heart Movies at 9:35 p.m. and 11:25 p.m. on GTV.
‘UNBREAK My Heart’ stars Joshua Garcia, Gabbi Garcia, Jodi Sta. Maria and Richard Yap.
Unbreak My Heart seems to be Joshua Garcia’s most adult screen character so far: He has passionate kissing scenes with fellow lead stars Jodi Sta. Maria and Gabbi Garcia (to whom Joshua is not related at all in real life, as Gabbi’s real name is Gabrielle Ortega Lopez). It’s only his second time to lock lips with a partner or partners on screen. The first ones were in separate scenes with Jane de Leon and Janella Salvador on ABS-CBN’s Darna last year.
Joshua, as Renz, is a Pinoy in Switzerland struggling to make ends meet. He drinks his sorrows away and one night finds himself by the bridge ranting, crying, slapping himself and attempting to end it all. Rose (Sta. Maria), passing by, hears and sees what he is about to do and stops him. Eventually, they fall in love. Can the May-December affair result in a happier life for both of them?
The series has a long, intricate storyline featuring major actors playing complex characters, among them Romnick Sarmenta, Laurice Guillen, Eula Valdes, Nikki Valdez, Sunshine Cruz and Victor Neri.
Dionne Monsanto, a former ABS-CBN talent now residing in Switzerland with her Swiss husband since 2019, is also in the cast, along with young stars Bianca De Vera, Will Ashley, PJ Endrinal, Marvin Yap and pesky comedian Maea Bautista.
The collaboration seems to be more of the Kapuso network lending its stars to ABS-CBN, though the series was actually produced by Dreamscape, a leading in-house producer for ABS-CBN. Dreamscape is behind such projects as FPJ’s Batang Quiapo, FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano, the Richard Gutierrez-topbilled Iron Heart and the cast-heavy drama of mostly damaged characters, Dirty Linen.
Richard Yap tops the list of GMA Sparkle stars lent to Dreamscape, though Yap used to be with ABS-CBN where he was paired with Sta. Maria in the hit series Please Be Careful With My Heart in 2012.
Gabbi Garcia is a GMA homegrown star, and so are Bianca de Vera and Will Ashley. Guillen has been identified with the Kapuso network for some years now as a director. Her appearance in Unbreak My Heart is her first acting job in about 10 years, since the GMA series Carmela in 2014.
Eula Valdez and Sunshine Cruz have been appearing mostly in GMA 7 shows since 2021, though they starred in many ABS-CBN series before 2021. It was in ABS-CBN that Valdez solidified her reputation as a consummate contravida.
Neri was a GMA lead for some years but has since become a free agent in movies and on TV.
Unbreak My Heart directors Emmanuel Quindo Palo and transwoman Dolly Dulot are mainstays in the ABS-CBN creative pool.
Will there be a more substantial and dynamic collaboration between GMA and ABS-CBN?
‘Drag You and Me’
No, there is no plan to suddenly turn Andrea Brillantes’ role as a drag queen wannabe in the ABS-CBN series Drag You and Me into a bisexual, just because new Miss Universe Philippines Michelle Dee has just revealed that she knew she is bisexual since she was 15 years old.
Dee made the revelation in an interview with Mega magazine, which came out on Monday, 29 May, with the beauty queen on the cover.
Drag You and Me premieres on 2 June on the ABS-CBN-owned streaming website iWantTFC. In it, Brillantes plays the only child of a gay couple, portrayed by Romnick Sarmenta and real-life transman Ice Seguerra.
A character in the series is played by Christian Bables, who turned up in a fabulous drag outfit during the grand media conference for the series held recently at a real gay bar in Bonifacio Global City.
Most of the characters playing drag performers in the series turned up in typically flamboyant outfits, including Brillantes and Bables, KaladKaren, Jon Santos, Drag Race runners-up Brigiding, Viñas Deluxe, Xilhouette and others.
No one explained why Sarmenta and Drag Race grand winner Precious Paula Nicole were no-shows at the event.
JC Alcantara, who plays a drag performer hiding from his parents, turned up in a man’s blazer outfit.
The TV show is actually a family story. It’s not all drag performances as written and directed by JP Habac (Love You Long Time, Bola-Bola, I Love You I’m Drunk) since the series has a lot of hetero characters, too.
Also in the cast are Cris Villanueva, Albie Casiño, Lance Carr, PJ Endrinal, Jeric Raval, Amy Nobleza, Noel Comia Jr. and Yves Flores, with special guests from the Home for the Golden Gays, Flor Bien Jr. and Rico Reyes.
Stream Drag You and Me starting 2 June on the iWantTFC app (iOs and Android) and website.
Visit bit.ly/iWantTFC_TVDevices for a complete list of compatible devices, sign-in instructions, and account activation.