Fear Something New With This Judy Ann Santos, Lorna Tolentino and Chanda Romero Starrer ESPANTAHO

When we heard Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo was participating in this year's Metro Manila Film Festival, we were really excited about particular film she's doing; they call it "ESPANTAHO". The term actually means a "scarecrow", a thing that's pretty common in farmlands, especially in agricultural countries like ours.

It's been a while since she's done something like this, but it was promised to her by Director Chito Roño who called her for the project. Judy Ann says "It's been a while since I've worked with Direk Chito Roño. Before I was a young lady, but now I already have a daughter. I'm happy because when he called me for a horror film, I didn't say anything, just "let's do it!". This is a dream, I wanted to experience it, he's calmer now, but still has a mic when he does sarcastic lines. I'm not the one he's getting mad at these days, but when you do it with him, it is fulfilling!"

This film was prepped for a year before they got to make the script. When the writer Christ Martinez presented it, he got "good" feedback from Direk Chito, and things started rolling from that. Atty Joji remarks how this has been a collaborative experience for them, and since Direk Chito is a master Director, they wanted to make a great film with them during their 20th Anniversary. The only issues they encountered were mostly because of the weather, but they adjusted with the season to fit the story. 

JC Santos likened Direk Chito to his former theater mentors, because once he asks for one more shot, it means you would need to do better on the scene. If he says "next scene", that means you're good. Most of them nodded in agreement, and Direk Chito felt he was getting roasted during the press conference (they had a laugh about it). 

Here's the press conference on video, of course! I got you!

They let us in on a secret, that painting on the left side of the stage will play a significant part in the film so if you see this in any theaters they'll be showing ESPANTAHO, go take a photo with it!

Ms. Lorna Tolentino took time to talk about love, family and a few more things about the movie after the press conference, listen in to the conversation:

In a nutshell, you would need to watch this film because of the caliber of actors that are in it. Not to mention how big of a horror director Chito Roño is, and how he's come to embrace new technology, special effects, and face a new crowd of movie goers eager to see something new, as you introduce a brand new entity to fear because they don't know what lurks behind that painting that you base the story on.

Hope this forms a cult following, perhaps a sequel too! The film will show on December 25 together with other MMFF 2024 entries, but consider watching this first especially if you're a Judy Ann Santos Agoncillo fan. This is produced by Cineko Productions, Purple Bunny Productions and Quantum Films. They promise that this will be the scariest film you're about to see on MMFF 2024.

35 Strong Years of Celebrating EVERY WOMAN: Philippine WACOAL Corporation

35 strong years of celebrating EVERY WOMAN, this is the journey of Philippine Wacoal Corporation.

Having been able to support and dress the Filipina intimately in the Philippines, this retail brand showcased their latest products through a fashion show in Okada's Grand Ballroom last June 20. Their executives including Philippine Wacoal Corporation President Ms. Ann Christine Palisoc, award winning celebrities Janice de Belen, Gelli de Belen, comedienne Candy Pangilinan, actress Natalie hart, Trina Candaza, Arlene Muhlach, legendary Eva Darren and several Sparkle stars during that evening. 

They also had Ms. Karen Davila as guest speaker, and recognized 4 icons Ms. Lorna Tolentino, Ms. Glenda Garcia , the gorgeous Ms. Glenda Dela Cruz and the heavenly Jamie Rivera. Power belter Ms. Sheryn Regis and a few acts also graced the show and performed for the audience including the fashion show depicting empowered women in 4 acts.

Here's the whole show on video, please enjoy!

They called it HER (for Ms. Glenda), HEALING (for Ms. Glenda Garcia), ARMOR (for Ms. Lorna Tolentino), and TRANSFORMATION (for Ms. Jamie Rivera). They named it after their personal experiences, the battles they've fought, and the things it represents.

They also made sure we felt how WACOAL has encompassed the matters of race, body type and the importance of how women should always exude confidence. This show didn't just celebrate their anniversary, but WOMEN. WACOAL also isn't stopping there, because they now have a huge sale in their stores, boutiques, and online via their website wacoal.ph.

Here's hoping for another year, more milestones and even more empowered women in the country!

PS. The fashion show and program was also organized by V-Works Events Management. They handled it quite well and did put up a great show. Congratulations on that!

Beautéderm Opens Corporate Headquarters and Beauté Beanery in Pampanga

It must have been her great dream to to one day, cement her brand and put her business in one roof hence the new Beautéderm Corporate Headquarters in Angeles City, Pampanga. Ms. Rei Ramos Anicoche Tan and the Beautéderm team finally opened the new building (which houses several of her brands) and the newly launched Beauté Beanery (a coffee shop) in this location. It's also Beautéderm Corporation's 14th year in the business and this was the opportune time for us to see what they've done with the place. It was absolutely gorgeous from outside!

This is welcome news for the multitude of their loyal customers who have always patronized their skin, body, fragance and health booster products known for its efficacy and quality. This isn't just a business for CEO and founder Rhea Tan because it provides resellers, their distributors and franchisees something that could change their lives. The new building has been 2 years in the making and it was meant to be the main base of operations in the country.

The place was absolutely posh. They had marble and nice tiles, gold fixtures from floor to ceiling. They also had several designer trunks here and there which made it look even better. They also had the BeautéHaus which provides skin services and we were greeted by several of their people, it felt quite welcoming. Since it's also the first time we're seeing this building, they invited several artists to make the event sparkle!

Artists include singer Alynna Velasquez, character actress Ynez Veneracion, internationally awarded actress Ms. Sylvia Sanchez, the gorgeous Jane Oineza, the iconic Ms. Lorna Tolentino, international sensation Darren Espanto, premier broadcaster Korina Sanchez Roxas and the beautiful Bea Alonzo.  There were also several social media influencers in attendance and a lot of media entities from Pampanga, broadsheets, tabloids and bloggers.

Beautederm Execs, Celebrities, Ms. Rei's Mom during the launch

Darren even gave a small song number after being egged by the press

Ms. Rei and Bea Alonzo

The new Beauté Beanery on the other hand concocted several hot and cold coffee variations, also prepared hot food, cakes and pastries. It'll surely be a nice spot for remote work, dates or just usual coffee breaks if you're in the area.

Ms. Sylvia Sanchez also obliged us with an interview about how she feels about being an endorser of Beautéderm and her whole journey. We also asked he a bit about Ria Atayde's recent milestones as the newest calendar girl.

Ms. Rei was very optimistic that this will just be the first of 10 buildings she wants to put up all over the country. I've seen them grow over the years and I'm so happy that a Filipino corporation has achieved so much in such a short amount of time. She had very humble beginnings, her life story is quite inspiring and it teaches you that anything is possible if you put your mind, your heart and hard work into it.

Congratulations to the men and women who have made it possible for Beautéderm to grow where it is today!