The Queen of Philippine Soap Opera, Judy Ann Santos is finally back.
She is out to star in her first movie in years, together with Sam Milby.
Titled, “The Diary of Mrs. Winters,” the horror-drama thriller is the duo’s first onscreen project since “Huwag Ka Lang Mawawala.”
Of course, Juday is excited about it.
“Na-miss ko na rin kasi talaga sobra so, I’m happy and excited that finally, a very good project such as this landed on my lap,” she told us.
But she has her apprehensions.
The film is to be shot in Canada in the middle of winter and Juday admitted she is worried this early.
Why? well, apparently she is afraid of snow.
She shared, “May matindi akong trauma sa snow. Siguro para sa iba parang nakababaw ng rason. ‘Ano ba naman ang arte-arte? Sa snow natatakot…’ (Pero) nung bata pa kasi ako, when I was in Toronto with my mom, ang feeling ko talaga wala na akong tainga (dahil sa lamig). I was 14. Since then ayaw ko na maka-experience ng snow.”
“But then again our children gustong-gusto nila maka-experience ng snow. So, now, I will be turning 45 this year, and I think it’s the perfect time for me to face my fear. Gusto ko ma-surpass ang takot na ‘yon para ma-enjoy namin as family kapag nagka-chance na ng snow with them ma-enjoy namin pareho.”
Sam is thrilled with the project mainly because he wanted to work with Judy Ann again.
“I didn’t have to read the script. Juday pa lang ‘yes’ na agad. After reading the script ang ganda ng kuwento, it’s something really different. As an actor you want to do new roles and new experiences. So first time ko ‘yung horror so I’m really, really excited. Ang ganda ng kuwento,” he said.
Directing the film is Rahyan Carlos, the only accredited teacher of the Chubbuck Technique in the Philippines.
“This is a story of redemption. Ako kapag gumagawa ako ng horror hindi nananalo ‘yung demonyo. Good always win over evil. It talks about fighting for the people you love most, it talks about overcoming fear,” he shared.
Rahyan wrote the film with National Artist for Film and Broadcast, Ricky Lee.
“Matagal namin itong kinonceptualize. Ibinato ko kay Ricky Lee ‘yung kuwento nung 2018 and nagawa namin ang script ng mabilisan. Natulog, nag-pandemic until I found a producer,” Carlos related.
Putting into spotlight a unique career, “The Diary of Mrs. Winters” is about a Filipina bio-forensic assistant cleaner in Canada named Charity played by Judy Ann, whose life is cursed after keeping the diary of an old lady who committed suicide. A series of unfortunate events happen to her, including the death of her loved ones, forcing her to fight for her true love, Victor, played by Sam.
“To say that this is a dream project is an understatement. Not only because of the fact that I will be reuniting with Ricky Lee as this is our second collaboration, but also because we will be joined by Judy Ann and Sam. We are looking forward to work with both of them as we know that they are artists of world-class caliber. This is also the first full-length Filipino film to be shot amidst the panoramic Ontario, Canada” said Rahyan.
The much-awaited film is slated to be released by the 3rd quarter of the year both locally and internationally.
(Seating L-R) Joy Mangilit- Tarce
Producer Happy Karga Films (HKF), which was founded in 2021, is the brainchild of Rahyan and Joy Tarce. Their dream was to use their passion and expertise in filmmaking to create relatable and relevant stories.
Co-producer, AMP Studios Canada (AMP Studios) is an artist training and production company that was founded in 2019 in Ontario, Canada. It provides education and training programs to aspiring artists in various aspects of the performing arts.
“When I first started HappyKarga Films with my business partner, Joy Tarce, we knew that we would bank on talents and collaboration both from other film outfits and from the artists. And we couldn’t be more grateful to have found a likeminded individual such as Rechelle Everden of AMP Studios Canada who also believes in the cutting-edge Filipino talent in terms of bringing stories into the big screen,” explained Rahyan.
