New Shows LolaBasyang.com and #ParangNormalActivity on TV5

Typhoon and rain was outside but no one could stop TV5 from launching new shows as they held the grand press conference of two new shows, LolaBasyang.com and Parang Normal Activity. The brains behind this child project is the Perci Intalan and Jun Lana headed production house The Idea First Company that worked with the happiest network in the country TV5 so they could bring brand new spanking shows in your homes starting this Saturday/weekend. 

I still remember the time when legendary comedienne Chichay and Luz Valdez played the role of Lola Basyang. She was the iconic grandma who always got her grandchildren learn about Filipino values by telling them stories, legends and have them sometimes in it too. It's a pretty epic story line for its time and I must say, kids were a little obsessed to sit in front of their TV's or drag their parents on movie houses just to see it. This show though will have one of the greatest actresses in Philippine showbiz industry, Ms. Boots Anson Rodrigo. She says "It's the same type of stories, same legends that Filipinos loved. The only difference is you've got a more hip Lola B telling her grandsons/daughters about the usual. What kind of Lola B? For starters, her name is that way, her hair ain't white (she's dyed her hair), she's not on a rocking chair, she's not wearing a "Saya" anymore and wears pretty colorful clothes, neither is she just reading off a book as she's now on a tablet. She also is a blogger and she's going to be seen in almost all those popular social media channels most people are on and things are going to be told in a grand way every week."

The first episode will be a story about Maria Makiling. A really gorgeous fairy that lives in a mountain based on Philippine folklore to be played by TV5's princess Jasmine Curtis Smith. She wasn't at the press conference but one of the co-stars hunky Carlos Agassi was there and we asked about how he ended up on the show. I also asked about what he's been doing in the past few months/weeks since he's not that quite visible doing projects like these, and he says "I'm doing "Swak na Swak" in ABSCBN and also taped Imbestigador in GMA Channel 7 just a few days ago. I'm a free agent and nobody's managing me right now so everyone can go directly to me if they want to get my services. When this project was offered to me, I was more excited to have the chance to work with some great people in a different channel, all good!" Meanwhile, Vin Abrenica was there too together with Yna Asistio because they'll star in another story in the LolaBasyang.com series called "Ang Plawtin ni Periking" (Periking's Piccolo), which is about a small magical flute which you'll see in the coming weeks.

Lights went off and the spooky soundtrack played... it did actually frighten the kids a bit and when they got off the stage, these three teen boys came out hunting for what seems to be an entity... perhaps a ghost. I'm sure everybody had their own horror stories and these guys are putting in a little fun into it by getting some full blown stories that would make you laugh, smile, think and be a little frightened in between if you watch their show called #ParangNormalActivity.

This show may have a horror component to it but Director Perci Intalan assures that all the episodes were designed to just be light and wouldn't scare the pants out of your kids when it premiers this Saturday on TV5. You'll meet the ghost named Charlie played by the bubbly and pretty Ella Cruz. She'll be together with Carl Guevarra, Ryle Paolo Santiago, Andre Garcia and new discovery Shaun Salvador. You might be thinking almost all these boys and Ella hail from ABSCBN but they've been properly asked to do this specifically, they're also in between work so it was the perfect time for them to do it here.  

It's a mix of young love, comedy, playfulness, horror, mystery, adventure and everything in between but of course, it's not all rainbows and butterflies because they're going to be a little miserable when the characters of Jester Hernandez, Nico Nicolas and Joshua Joffe. In the succeeding episodes, they'll tackle a different story, a different creature or a different mysterious happening that will make the audience stay at the tip of their toes but still laugh in the end because it's still going to be a happy ending. Eunice Lagunsad and Kiray Celis (who just revealed she's got a big crush on Tom Taus) will add a little more spice to the stories, so don't discount them from any episode (and see her flying!) every Saturday!

Again, make sure to watch both of these programs LolaBasyang.com and #ParangNormalActivity this July 11, 2015 on the happiest channel in the Philippines TV5!

For more information about their network:

TV5 Manila

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http://www.tv5.com.ph/

Carl Guevarra, Ella Cruz Stars In "Parang Normal Activity" On TV5

Now this ain't your run of the mill Wattpad Presents program, they're actually going to start a new show together with Carlo Guevarra and teen star Ella Cruz plus these good looking guys Ryle Paolo Santiago, Andre Garcia and Shaun Salvador. It's called "Parang Normal Activity", a horror comedy flick plus a little cutesy romance in the mix made by the production house of Perci Intalan and Jun Lana called The IdeaFirst Company in cooperation with the happy network TV5. 

Direk Perci and Jun Lana pitched this last year and got the nod just recently. They've already made a few days worth of the series and were quite happy about the fresh new take on the genre which they've been gunning for. This is a thrilling show with mystery solving adventures that will involve 3 geeky boys with a ghost that became their friend too. We saw the trailers and there were really some funny scenes we should all look forward to when it shows on July 11, 2015.

I was amazed at how Ella Cruz's Wattpad Series got really good ratings and this time, Star Magic was gracious enough to have her do a full show which I felt she was really happy to do when I talked to her. She said "We all know that right after doing a show, you kinda have to stay in the sidelines because we have tons of stars in ABSCBN's stable. Since I'm available and will do a show months from now, I got the chance to do this including the Wattpad thing I did a few weeks back. I'm happy that Direk Jun and Perci trusted me."

Direk Perci says "Thanks for coming! Our show is going to be very young, a little different in energy. This is one of the two projects we created for TV5 knowing what the people want for entertainment. In this case, we're doing horror and it has worked in the past on TV but we're making it a little shocking, with new fresh faces and I hope you'll love the premise of the characters. Ella Cruz plays Charlie the little pretty ghost from the 90's, while the three guys play Third, Red and Makoy (Ryle Paolo Santiago, Andre Garcia, Sean Salvador).who put up a Paranormal Club in school. They also have different stars as their parents and guardians, different sets where even the funny Mystica is going to be a part of. Sean Salvador auditioned for the case and we knew we needed new faces especially in the horror flick we're making. The first thing in mind we wanted to have is someone who could carry the group even without looking at her. Some of our production staff worked with Ella during the Wattpad Presents filming and we talked to Star Magic so we could work with her. Paolo and Andre also came in from Star Magic and they were casted."

Sean says "This is my first show but I did commercials in the past. This is my first acting job, my first show. I tried auditioning for Star Struck and failed but this is my biggest break. We feel like  brothers and sisters because we bonded through the workshop they had us do. With the three episodes we did, it felt like we're just having fun."

Talking to Andre he says "I'm Joseph Andre, 15 and I'm still studying in Kostka. I really liked Super Inggo and I always watch the show, we were having dinner and some production people who discovered me were there. I then did commercials, and do VTR's, they approached my Aunt so they could get me for Kungfu Kids which was on ABSCBN. I did commercials for Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs, Angel Evap and Vaseline so that added to the experience. Working for TV5 was really nice, when we asked Star Magic to do this we didn't have any problems since I didn't have a regular show yet. We already did 3 taping days, almost 4 episodes and we're doing that so we won't get backlogs. I worked with Ella in Going Bulilit in the past so it was comfortable to work with her in this show. I'm Red here, son of a single Mom played by Mystica. It's the first time I've worked with her and I was a little shy. She was so nice to me, I play a nerd here who is a part of a group that put up the organization for the paranormal. We did it because we liked to have adventures. Sometimes we shoot in the house here in Manila, then go as far as Laguna and far flung places there for other scenes. I'm really very thankful that this was given to me, it's a new genre to be seen on TV. I like challenges and having this opportunity is just a welcome thing. I hope I'd get to do more projects with them real soon because these guys and everyone at TV5 were so nice to me!"

There's more to the show than just frightening scenes in Parang Normal Activity and they say they're not really seeing how their characters will fare out yet because that will be divulged in the coming weeks too. Ella doesn't even know why she's a ghost here and that's something that would be exciting to know especially to those who follow her in social media, they might have their own stories to tell and theory on why she ended up that way. They also told me there would be some kilig scenes in between that would likely have you at the edge of your seats. You'll love to see them every weekend and see what mysteries unfold in each episode too. Make sure you watch them this July 11 on the happiest network in the country, TV5!

For more information about their network:

TV5 Manila

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

http://www.tv5.com.ph/