A Tale of Two Dinners

 

baked lasagna and shrimp cocktails

Last week I was invited to a taste test of a local resto-bar whose specialties are prepared by three young chefs. Three days later together with some local entertainment media reporters we get to share a light cocktail/dinner with celebrated film director Peque Gallaga.

 

 

 

 

It was a night of good food that is during a taste test of Trellis offering of selected western cuisine. Manning the kitchen that time was a couple of 25-year olds; Divine Magtoto, who is a Hotel and Restaurant Management graduate of the College of St. Benilde in Manila and Peter Jason Yusay another Manila-trained chef.

They managed to whip up a delectable course consisting of cream-of-asparagus soup, baked lasagna, and their must-try shrimp cocktails. Divine and Jason together with another 20-something chef Juls Marmon, are into a very young (month-old) catering venture which they named Paramount Catering Co.

The catering company specializes on traditional western cuisine. Which is different from other caterers that focus on traditional Filipino dishes, Divine, who oversees the business operations side of the catering says that she observed that some people were looking for western food mostly Mediterranean and European cuisine .

According to Jason, who along with Juls trained at the International School for Culinary Arts and Hotel Management in Manila says that the team doesn’t compromise quality for quantity. “We really give importance to quality. We never scrimp on ingredients” Says Jason. He then emphasizes their driving principles “Food is a passion, even if you have the knowledge and equipment but if you don’t have the passion or love what you’re doing its going to be different. You must love your work. He adds.

Divine, who is the younger sister of Ram Magtoto, who owns the Ram’s chain of lechon manokan then imparts her kuya’s advice.  “There are times when you don’t earn profit as long as the customers are satisfied, when your clients are satisfied the returns will be long-term.”

 

The lovely 25-year old who also runs Trellis Resto-bar has plans to offer various Paramount menus at the five-month old establishment located at Bangkal just along Mcarthur Highway in what was once her Kuya Ram’s restaurant. Divine is also planning to bring their gastronomic offerings to their family-owned Casa Maria Inn (located at Eco-West drive, near SM), which recently opened its door to one of Philippine Cinema’s most influential filmmakers.

Cocktails with Peque

The person that brought films like Oro Plata Mata, Virgin Forest, Scorpio Nights, Shake Rattle and Roll and Tiyanak and who introduced Pinoy filmgoers to Anne Curtis and Joel Torre, iconic film director Peque Gallaga, breezed into town for a one-day directing workshop for the Guerilla Filmmaking Workshops.

Amidst an abundant course of platter food( fried lumpia, pork barbecue, hotdog and mallows on stick, pizza crackers) provided by Dish Avenue. Direk Peque shared to a small group of local entertainment media his take on the current film situation in the country and on his career.

Now based in his native Bacolod City currently teaching film direction, Direk Peque goes around the country to conduct workshops such as this. The most recent one was in the Cordilleras attended by about 200 participants.

Direk Peque says that there are budding localized film movements all over the country. They can be found in Bacolod, Cebu, Lipa, Bicol and here in Davao. Each with certain quirks, In Lipa, he observes, the films there are very violent. While Bacolod films try to delve on the criminal mind; Davao filmmakers he says, is very liberal especially about SEX, a comment which elicited a quizzical but curious response from my colleagues.  

When direk Peque was one of the jurors during the Mindanao Film Festival in 2005, he noticed then that the films were teeming with sexuality. He says he recently talked to workshop participant who described to him the film she will be doing for the upcoming festival, which just confirms his perception. “Basta very daring” he tells us. “Must be the people here are repressed.” He jokes, but direk says that they must continue studying that aspect because it tells you something deeper than what is being shown.

Direk tells us that producers would no longer get him. He tells us that many of our major film producers in the country are no longer young. “They don’t play Warcraft, they don’t play PSP, they don’t ride the MRT they don’t know what people are into nowadays, that is why they still make movies we’ve seen 20 years ago.  There’s nothing new.”

He says the Filipino movie industry died about five years ago. The problem is these producers keep making movies people don’t want to see. He says Direk Peque also rued that the mainstream filmmaking nowadays is run by a committee, unlike before when directors are given full creative control. Nowadays he says you shoot, you give the copy to these committee with members whose credentials you don’t know. “Then they say, oh bigyan niyo ng close-up itong mukha ni Maricel, we need to see her in this angle. nawalan na ng creative control ang mga directors ngayon”

He says he sees hope in the digital indie movies, filmmakers must concentrate on telling good stories.” Direk Peque says. Along with its promise he sees its problems particularly on the lack of facilities and that the majority of the Filpinos are not seeing them.

 

With this, Direk Peque has proposed to Tony Boy Cojuangco of Cinemalaya a scheme which he says involves cutting the 10 Cinemalaya finalists (fund grantees) to only five; the savings generated would be used to build five special digital movie capable theaters in Metro Manila, Cebu and in Davao. 

It’s heartening to know that the man whose name was synonymous with big-budgeted Filipino movies in the 80s and 90s is now on a mission to help passionate and creative indie filmmakers all across the country, a calling which still stays true to the maverick character of direk Peque Gallaga. 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy L.A.

Leonardo Ramos Avila III was just 18 years old when he became a Disc jockey for DXUM in 1975. The radio stint proved to be young man’s watershed that would eventually redefine his career as one of Davao’s top FM DJ leading to a successful career in local City politics.

 

Leo Avila adopted Happy L.A as his radio moniker and his radio program was named Pinoy Rock and Rhythm, playing mostly rock and roll and folk. The program attracted many local musicians who would give demos of their original songs.

 

“Pero pag-pakinggan ko parang ni-record sa banyo.” (When I listened to it. it sounded like it was recorded in the bathroom.) Happy L.A. said. He then got an idea, gathering different bands with original materials they set out to record their songs just to get the quality fit for radio airing. And thus began the golden age of the Davao music scene.

 

We began recording, “there were times when we would record for three straight days.” Said Happy L.A., recording were set-up in Student Center (then located along Claveria), UM Technical School in Bangoy where they would set up for a live outdoor recording sessions, Yamaha-Yupangco building which had a 24-track recording studio. The recording was an ex-deal as Yamaha would get free plugging in Happy LA’s program.  Then there was DEMS Recording studio, a well-equipped recording studio in Matina run by a Non-Government Organization.”

 

In the late 70s his was the most listened radio program. “I remember the program would be at 6 to 6:30 p.m. when people would relax at their homes or be with their friends drinking tuba. Life was simple then. They would just listen to the radio and relax.” Happy L.A. said.

 

And aside from recorded materials, musicians would drop by and jam on the program live, he recounts seeing Joey Ayala, Bong Durias, Eric Dalisay and Popong Landero as among those artists who would drop by at his program. The music those days were of folk and rock and roll, influence by Seals and Crofts, Crosby Stills and Neil Young.

 

Happy L.A. remembers a young boy, the son of Bong Durias who would tag along at the station. “ang liit-liit pa siya nuon. Pero ngayon ang laki na.”  Literally and figuratively, Happy L.A. was describing Jay Durias of South Border.

 

Aside from recording, Happy L.A ventured into producing concerts and gigs. During those days two bands would stand out developing some sort of musical rivalry, these were the JBM band (which later became Sticky Stones) and the Aldaba band. Happy L.A managed the Sticky Stones and remembers the popularity of the two bands and the well attended concerts.

 

“During a concert at the then Davao Y Gym we headlined the face-off between the JBM and Aldaba bands, there were so many people during the event that the gate to the gymnasium was destroyed.” He recalled. Aptly named Pinoy Rock and Rhythm concerts, the organizers would eventually tie up with schools to conduct school tours (Pinoy Rock and Rhythm School tour) and would visit other nearby cities and provinces (Pinoy Rock and Rhythm on the road).

 

However the DXUM partnership ended when the station reformatted favoring a more mellow pop sound. The station was sending signals that Pinoy Rock and Rhythm was out of place with the station’s new Mellow Fever format. The unhappy Happy L.A. left and accepted the longstanding offer of DXXL.

 

“In 1980 I got married (to Lorelyn Trinidad), it was a change of priorities na rin. Dati when I was in DXUM I was still single.” Happy L.A. said. With higher pay and added responsibilities to his job he gave up being the band manager of Sticky Stones though he continued to be the band’s adviser until they disbanded in the early 80s.

 

 In the early 1980s peace and order deteriorated in the City and the local performing scene was temporarily silent. But his love for Rock and roll and the local musicians never waned. Despite being in a Top 100 format radio station, Happy L.A would still inject music of local bands though not as often as his DXUM days. “Sundays nalang sila ma-feature. He recalls the tagline “Flying High on a Sunday” which describes the Sunday format of DXXL.”

 

When peace returned to the City, Happy L.A organized concerts featuring local musicians. “Those were the Araw ng Dabaw concerts, the Mamamayan Ayaw sa Droga (MAD) events.” The anti-drug concerts were held in PTA grounds (now the People’s Park), Uyanguren Avenue and the newly opened Sandawa avenue.

 

Happy L.A fondly recalls the Sandawa MAD concert; “there was a very huge crowd, we even managed to get Mayor Duterte to go to the stage and deliver a message, when the Mayor went to the stage, he saw a very young boy sporting an earring and the Mayor admonished the boy right in front of the stage.” Happy L.A. recalls amusingly, remembering his young DJ/rocker days when he was sporting earrings and wearing torn jeans.

 

But Happy L.A was not a believer of a dirty rock lifestyle. “I shun drugs, even as a band manager it was a big no, no for my band to perform when they are high on drugs. You must play for the audience and not for yourself, when you play for the audience you must be responsible.” He said.

 

In 1988, Happy L.A has become a household name as one of Davao City’s top FM radio personalities; during the 1988 local elections he took a gamble and ran for a seat in the City Council where he eventually won.

 

In 1991, now Councilor Avila left DXXL and transferred to DXBM (now Love Radio). In 1999, together with Ernie Ortonio of Polyfusion Studios he produced a compilation of songs from different local musicians; the compilation was named Durian Jam.

 

Featuring a slew of rock songs, romantic ballads and upbeat ditties which are all original compositions (Happy L.A. recalls Panacan Barangay Captain Dante Apostol as the drummer of the Apostol band which was part of the Durian Jam album) the album was in keeping with his philosophy of promoting local music. “The only way for a musician to be known was for the local talents to compose your own songs.”  He said.

Durian Jam Files: Majid Jadali-A taste of showbiz

To us, he is our friendly Persian known for his mouthwatering kebabs, biryanis and his other delectable Iranian cuisines with his stall along Rizal street which has become a must-go -to gastronomic destinations in this city. Mr. Majid Jadali is not just the owner/proprietor of his Majid Kebab. He is an accomplished film actor as well with over 70 films (yes seventy!) in his filmography.

Mr. Majid is one of the most sought-after character actors/stunt/bit players during the heyday of Filipino movies in the 1980s when the country was producing more than 200 films per year, he also appeared in foreign productions when the country was still being preferred for shooting locations by cost-conscious international film companies.

He has appeared with several of the country’s finest and popular actors and actresses like Vilma Santos (in Baby Tsina), Dolphy, Richard Gomez, Aga Muhlach, Jean Garcia, Anthony Alonzo, Nida Blanca, Gloria Romero among many others. His stint in foreign productions also gave him the chance to work with international stars like Susan Sarandon, Richard Harris (known for playing Albus Dumbledore in two Harry Potter movies; Chamber of Secrets and Sorcerer’s Stone ) , Chuck Norris, Chuck Connors, Lou Ferigno, Nicholas Hammond, Davide Carradine, Linda Blair.

Majid was born 54 years ago in Tehran, Iran. After finishing a compulsory 2-year military training, Majid decided to study civil engineering in the Philippines enrolling at Far Eastern University, however a year after, a revolution jolted his homeland. The Shah of Iran, the country’s monarch was deposed by Islamic fundamentalists led by Ayatollah Khomeini. Majid decided not to return to his country. In 1983 after graduating from FEU, with his country’s future uncertain, Majid decided that he will stay in the Philippines for good.

“Before I left, my country was ruled by a Shah, it was a very westernized country, very much like Europe.” Majid said. “I decided to stay, because its magulo back home, and with that decision my focus now was on how to survive here in the Philippines.

“One day in 1983, a German buddy, who was appearing as a bit player in an international film being shot in Laguna invited him to try out as a bit player. Sensing it as a means to make income, Majid agreed. The German introduced him to film director Teddy Chiu and was given his first screen role; a gangster. “My role was to carry a suitcase full of drugs.” Majid said smiling.Teddy Chiu liked what he saw in Majid and invited him in some of his other productions. “He asked for my number where he could contact me and that’s how I started in the movies.” Majid said.

Majid became an extra and also became a stuntman in many foreign productions and also Filipino movies. “My role at first was contravida, I was a gangster, a Colombian druglord, a rapist, a terrorist, I was really a criminal.” Majid said of his early roles. Among his foreign movies include Missing in Action, Seals 2, Delta Force I, Women of Valor (TV movie) and Blood Chess. However Majid roles progressed in movies like “Trident Team” a Filipino-international venture which starred the late Anthony Alonzo, “I was part of the elite Trident Team,” said Majid.

He also was a supporting actor in Black Cobra 2 with Fred Williamson and Nicholas Hammond (famous for portraying Friedrich Von Trapp in the very famous Sound of Music movie and played Spiderman in the Adventures of Spiderman TV series in the late 70s).

Majid says among the memorable actors he worked with were Chuck Connors (famous for his cowboy roles in the TV series “The Rifleman“), “very friendly, a very nice guy, he recounted. Majid also remembers a fine actress named Susan Sarandon, who shot a World War II made for TV movie “Women of Valor.” “She is very mabait, very friendly.” One night while he caught Shall we Dance (which stars Ms. Sarandon with Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez) he can’t help but recall his movie days with the friendly Ms. Sarandon. Sabi ko “nakasama ko na iyan, nakasama ko na iyan sa pelikula.”

 Aside from foreign productions, Majid became involved in many Filipino movies. Where he appeared as stunt man and extras to many films, he acted in films directed by Cirio Santiago, Eddie Garcia, Peque Gallaga, Marilou Diaz-Abaya and the late Eddie Rodriguez.He had roles in Vilma Santos-starrer Alyas Baby Tsina and the Dolphy comedy Nang kinagat ni Adan and Mansanas ni Eba where Majid remembers he played a TV reporter trying to interview a pregnant Dolphy.

In 1989, came his most memorable Tagalog film role in the horror flick Impaktita. “I played the role of Boy Bombay in that movie and was the stunt double for Jean Garcia in her aswang scenes. I remember the death scene where the aswang Jean Garcia was inside a burning house, I was the one inside being her double. I remember that it was very hot, the house was really on fire. Majid remembers working with Richard Gomez, Aga Mulach, Vilma Santos, Dolphy (very mabait), Gloria Romero and the late Nida Blanca. “They were really nice, very friendly people,” said Majid. According to him, the reason he was able to have many movies was the fact that he was the only foreigner stuntman in the Filipino movie industry at that time. “I was the only foreigner-looking stuntman that’s why I have lots of movies.”“There were many Filipino movies being produced and also there were lots of foreign productions here because it was very cheap to shoot here.” Majid said. I enjoyed my movie career very much. Its lots of fun, you make money and you do not work very hard. And also movie work is not boring especially when you are a supporting actor because you have many projects, you have many roles.

By 1989 Majid saw himself improving as an actor in terms of facing the cameras, working with the dialogue and playing on the right camera angles. His roles were also progressing, he has become a major supporting player, in fact his last film Black Cobra 2 he was already billed in the supporting cast.

During the aftermath of the December 1989 coup d’etat, the government became strict and a moratorium on renting firearms to film companies was implemented, during that time action films temporarily stopped productions for a few months, for Majid it meant a temporary break from movie work.

However in January 8, 1990 while driving to visit his friend in Angeles City. Majid met an accident where he sustained a hipbone fracture and that signaled an end to his film career. Majid’s entrepreneurial survival instinct drove him to totally severe his ties with the movies and focus on his business which is making Pita bread and running his Persian carpet enterprise.

For many years, his friends doggedly urged him to go into food business, “my friends who like my home-cooked kebabs urged me to go into that business. And in 2001, I decided to come here to Davao City, which is the place of my wife Arlene.” Majid said. And the rest is perhaps history, from a small three table stall; Majid Kebab has became a favorite with many Dabawenyos addicted to its tasty Persian kebabs and after a few years Majid has expanded his Kebab eatery into two branches (Rizal, Gaisano Mall).

Tidbits:While eating at Majid’s Kebab at the Rizal street stall, you can gaze at some of his movie pictures which he has posted at the eatery’s nook. You can ask him of his showbiz life and the ever-friendly Majid will not hesitate to tell you of his interesting life as one of the most in-demand character actors/stuntman in the 1980s.

Durian Jam: The J.D. experience

A visitor from Manila recounted to me her Beyonce Experience, a lucky front-rower she got the fortune of being near the phenomenal Creole beauty who is known for her hits with the girl group Destiny’s Child and her equally meteoric solo career which has expanded also to the silver screen with her box-office hit movie “DreamGirls”.

The concert held last November 7, at the Taguig Open Field drew in one of the biggest crowds in the country’s concert history with about 50,000 people in attendance at the event that has ticket prices ranging from P20,000 to P600.

Anyways this unfortunate writer could only listen in envy to her story; the nearest thing to having a Beyonce Knowles here in DC is a concert from visiting sexy celebrities who could do Beyonce covers with an added version of Beyonce’s “booty-shaking” gyrations.

But fortunately last Saturday night, I was treated to a rare musical experience, though not in the magnitude ala Beyonce, it was an experience of watching a proud Dabawenyo returning to his home and playing music for his fellow kababayans, he is no other than Jay Durias, more known for being the genius behind the success of one of the country’s premiere R&B bands South Border.

The Venue became a showroom of the J.D. factory where he performed for a gig aimed to promote his solo project entitled “Songs I Grew Up With.” And if the solo project would connote anything, Mr. Jay Durias hastens to explain that he is still with South Border, the band is still intact.

The new project contains the songs that according to Jay were the ones that he grew up listening as a teenager and as a young musician here in Davao City. “My father would tag me along sa mga gigs niya dito. He was a folk singer here in Davao.”  Jay recalls his early influence from his dad Bong Durias.

At a young age he became a musician, and performed at Insular Hotel and then was a regular at the Apo View Hotel, he also did front-acts for visiting artists like Jun Polistico, Miriam Pantig and Raymond Lauchengco. He was just 16 years old when he formed South Border. And it is where he was introduced to a musical genre that would redefine his career.

“When South Border came, it was a sudden turn of events, coz I grew up with jazz, I grew up with folk and listened to the Police and to Sting. With South Border it was R&B it was different, actually it became R&B because of Brix…Brix Ferraris.”

“It became very interesting for me tung gi-start namo ang South Border kase that time wala pa’y naga R&B na band mga 1990-1993 so yun after that nagbuo kami South Border.” Jay cited how he embraced R&B.

Together with Brix Ferraris on vocals South Border catapulted to national fame with their ballad Kahit Kailan. It was 1996 and was the height of rock bands like the Eraserheads, Siakol, the Teeth, Rivermaya among many, many others. South Border captured the hearts of many with their refreshing and unique pop, R&B sound encased in heart-tugging ballads.

More than a decade after, and four vocalists later (Brix Ferraris, Luke Mejares, Vince Alaras and Duncan Ramos) South Border behind Jay’s creative genius still possesses that unique sound and the band is steadily moving up to gain a foothold in the global music scene.

We are pursuing a dream of bringing our music into the international scene. Says Jay of their overseas foray, and according to their Myspace account the band is currently based in Los Angeles. “The band is not solely based in the U.S., we’re based here and we’re based there.” Jay clarifies South Border’s set-up, saying that the band has not totally migrated to the U.S. nor has it closed the doors on its motherland.

We’re musicians, fortunately I can bring music everywhere,” Jay said. He added that some of the band members are currently in the United States. Slowly gaining recognition in the U.S. the former Apo View habitués are performing in capacity crowd concerts of which 90% of the audience are non-Filipinos.

Jay’s Venue concert was well-attended by many ranging from Jay’s family and relatives, his classmates at Davao City High and the South Border fans who came in full force as well.

Unlike my Manila friend who got a booty shaking Beyonce experience, there was no serious thubthumping at the Venue in fact he opened the show with a song about the joy of falling asleep, their South Border original “Tulog.”

Jay was accompanied by well-known sessionists led by Dabawenyo guitarist Pido Lalimarmo who was one of the original guitarists of Side A and the band Pido with Takeone. The group took on playing with Jay’s distinct style the tracks in the album which included Light and Shade from Fra Lippo Lippi, You can do magic by America Captain and Tenille’s “Do that to me one more time,” “Goodnight girl,” a Wet Wet Wet original and “My Cherie Amour” from Stevie Wonder.

“It is something that every musician’s dream of coming out with something they love.” Jay explains his Songs I Grew Up With album, which is a collection of his favorite songs during his days as a young musician in Davao. “With South Border I put my heart in it, with my arrangements with other artists I also put my heart in it, pero its been a long while that I haven’t done something for myself.

He says the album is a way of saying thanks to the musicians which have helped him hone into what he is right now. But apart from an album of purely covers, Jay adds a 10th track the only self-penned song in his album, “Sa Hangin,” tells the deep personal effect from listening to the songs, even though with his very successful career as a pop and R&B musician, the songs of his youth still stayed with him.

Puso’t isipan ko kayhirap baguhin
Burahin nang mabuti ay andun pa rin
Ika’y mantsa sa aking daigdig
Parang nakabaon sa hangin

During the show he comes up with a Rey Valera medley, a tribute to his OPM influence, then nearing the end he launches into a medley of South Border songs (Love of my life, Rainbow, Habang Atin Ang Gabi, Ikaw nga).  The crowd launches into a very generous applause, cheering for every familiar hit done in a unique Jay Durias style.

“I’m proud to be an individual from Mindanao, especially from Davao, kasi I noticed musicians from the south they come in strong.” Mr. JD recalls his Davao days and how it shaped him. “Back in the days we were so serious in what we were doing, even before South Border “dili man dula ang ginahimo” (we do not just play around) we are serious with our craft, we are blessed na rin that we crossed over to the pop scene. Our only purpose here is to do music and at the same time inspire a lot of musicians, inspire a lot of people.”

Tidbits

Mr. Jay Durias, solo album “Songs I Grew Up With” is now out in the market, it features 10 tracks including the original “Sa Hangin.”

Special thanks to Muzika del Sur’s Kim Castillo for helping me in the interview and to Mark Limbaga for the pics and also to the Venue management for access to Mr. Jay Durias.
 

  

Durian Jam: an interview with Abe

Aside from homegrown bands, local filmmakers and visiting showbiz celebrities Durian Jam is lucky to have the opportunity to hobnob with international movie actors ranging from Hollywood actor Josh Hartnett who recently shot a movie in Diwalwal　to Majid Kabab proprietor Majid Jadali who once appeared in 70 international and Filipino movies in the 1980s either as a stuntman or character/supporting actor working with the likes of Susan Sarandon, Chuck Norris and Richard Harris.

This time, the column will be featuring Mr. Abraham “Abe” Pagtama, an American-based Filipino actor, who for 25 years has portrayed a multitude of screen roles in different productions ranging from independent Fil-Am shorts to big-budgeted Hollywood flicks.

Mr. Abraham “Abe” Pagtama was born in Waipahu, Hawaii sometime in the late 1940s. His family later transferred to Kidapawan, North Cotabato where he grew up spending high school in Central Mindanao Colleges, he then spent a year of college here in Davao City at the University of Mindanao before he went back to the United States.

Abe is married to Rodulfa Chan, a native of Camiguin Province, Mr. Pagtama is a very proud father of his two children who are currently following in his footsteps; his son Gabe, is a video artist and a budding filmmaker currently working on his full-length screenplay, while daughter Karen is one of the producers for the top-rating US reality TV cooking show Top Chef.

Los Angeles-based Abe got a screen role in Keanu Reeves 2005 supernatural thriller Constantine where in one scene he plays one of Constantine’s exorcism assistant. He also appeared in the music video of the Black Eyed Peas’ APL Song alongside several Filipino-Americans like Chad Hugo (a Grammy award-winning music producer, together with Pharrell Williams formed the famed record production duo the NEPTUNES ) and Dante Basco ( one of the stars of the movie Take the Lead with Antonio Banderas)

Durian Jam: How did you pursue your acting or filmmaking career? What motivated you to pursue acting?  What roles did you play?
 
Abe: After I got back from Germany, where I was stationed when I was in the US Air Force, due to boredom, I started taking acting classes in Hollywood and started doing theater and then started acting in films.  My roles are mostly Japanese, Chinese and Hawaiian. I never had any Filipino role.

DJ:  what can you say are the highlights of you acting or filmmaking career?   
 Abe: When I was cast in a commercial or what you called in the Philippines a commercial model for Pepsi in 2004 it was shown in the Super Bowl 2004 and was seen by 130 million viewers around the world, and was shown in the Academy Award that year.

DJ: I’ve seen you in Constantine, how did you grab that role? How was the experience of making that exorcism scene? What were your impressions on working with Keanu Reeves? What was he like in person?
 
Abe: There was an audition and they called for roles of that scene and was lucky enough to be part of the cast, the exorcism scene was fun, but it was also exhausting because the mirror that we used was actually cast iron, and we have to carry that all the time while we were filming and it took us almost a week to shot that scene, I actually worked on that project for 2 1/2 weeks. Mr. Reeves was very nice, I would say he is a very shy person, he keep calling me sir, Very accommodating.

DJ: Aside from Mr. Reeves were there instances that you’ve worked or with other Hollywood celebrities? How would you describe the experience of working with them.
 
Abe: Yes, I have worked with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Bruce Willis, Demi Moore, Tom Hanks, James Brown, Gary Shandling, Tina Turner, George Lopez, Kurt Russell and many more I don’t remember everybody now, I’ve been in this business for almost three decades, all of them are really nice, they come from humble beginning and they know its a hard business, there is no guarantee that you can make it, they know you need luck also to survive in this show business.
 
DJ: What does it take to be working as an actor in the U.S.? What values, attitudes and skills or looks are needed in order to succeed?
 
Abe: Patience, perseverance, love of the craft, theater training will be a good one, Looks will help but most importantly roles have to be written about us, and that’s what is lacking for now.
 
DJ:  What is your take on your role in “My father, the actor” (short film) any updates about the movie, I’ve read that it is shown in three cities in the U.S.
 
Abe: My role in My Father, The Actor, is kind of parallel to I guess a story of most struggling actors in which they believe that they are good and that’s the only thing they want to do, a one-track mind in that whatever it takes, they can afford to lose everything including their families but not the love of acting, if it comes in their way that’s what they have to do.  It’s finally being accepted a lot in film festival circuits?
 
DJ: The short (My Father the Actor) is a work of Fil-Am filmmakers,  can you describe the Fil-Am filmmakers and the Fil-Am filmmaking scene? I heard that they’re pretty active, how are they doing?
 
Abe: Don DeLeon is a young filmmaker, her mother is originally from Cebu, and his father is an American, we also have David Maquiling, the first Fil-am that is a member of  DGA (Directors Guild of America) and is a professor in USC Film School, Patrick Genelsa, who directed most of Black Eyed Peas apl.de.ap’s videos (Bebot, APL song), Patrick Epino, who just directed the movie Mr Sadman, Justin Quizon, nephew of Dolphy, he just finished a short movie called Rival Sibling I am co-starring in his project. Edward Malilim just finished a movie called Brown Soup Thing; I have a cameo in this movie with Manny Pacquiao. And of course Debbie Formoso’s Nagpapanggap (Pretend) which just won as the best short film at the Hawaii International Film Festival, we actually shot this movie in the Philippines, yes we are very active, and hopefully we will also get funding soon, and don’t forget our own Yam Laranas “ECHO”, just finished shooting in CANADA.

DJ: Any film projects you’re busy with (I’ve read you are appearing in Mr. Sadman)? Any roles you want to tackle?
 
Abe: I played a magazine vendor in Mr Sadman, at this moment I just want to get busy; I like to play different roles, with the exception of a Shakespearean character. And if somebody wants to hire me I like to do movies in the Philippines, don’t forget I speak Cebuano, Ilocano, and Tagalog, Spanish, and a little bet of English (pun intended) hehehe.

DJ: what was your reaction on the alleged racial slur heaped by several US shows (one particular was an episode in ABC’s Desperate Housewives) against Filipinos.

Abe: Good and bad have come up with that show, but I believed it’s a wakeup call for us Filipinos. We have been a yes sir, yes ma’am, group we never complain. But I think for us just being agreeable all the time, its time to voice our opinion, it is true that with all the medical practitioners in the U.S. Filipinos out number all ethnicities that are working in the medical field from the janitorial to the specialized field like doctors, nurses, secretaries across the board we work on those fields, but somehow we are invisible to the eyes of Hollywood, they think that all Asian-looking nurses  or doctors are Chinese, Japanese or Korean, so I say Filipinos wake up and call ABC and tell them to do more research and get your story right?

 That’s the reason why Filipinos don’t want to get in the entertainment field because they don’t see themselves that that they can be successful as a writer, producer or an actor due to lack of opportunity in this field, I believed we of Filipino-descent, are very talented as actors, writers, producers, we need the mainstream media to give us a break.

DJ: Your message to other indie filmmakers, who are pursuing their dreams despite the many odds they faced.

 Abe: Keep making movies, keep writing, and have fun, send your project to film Festivals, who knows it might get distribution and keep the DREAM alive, ITS FREE… to DREAM.

hellow

This is my first blog. many of these would be based on my past articles from my Durian Jam column at Sunstar Davao and the segments for the Mindanao-wide cable TV show Muzika del Sur.   Davao has a surprisingly evolving entertainment scene this blog contains interviews of musicians, filmmakers, showbiz personalities and features of entertainment events like concerts, gigs, film shootings, film festivals, visits of showbiz personalities etc.