THE STARS OF – “Artists are now the stars of Philippine showbiz.”
That’s producer-director Perci Intalan speaking at the launch of IdeaFirst Company, which he and partner director-writer Jun Robles Lana own and manage.
And by Artists Perci does not mean only lead actors and actresses. They include – and perhaps even more important – producers, directors, writers, supporting performers, and all those technical and creative people who collaborate in making a good film, even a great one.
More from direk Perci: “People are now buying tickets if they see that a film has a good story made by good storytellers performed by a good cast of actors and actresses. This is the new winning formula: good story plus good cast. That’s why when we formed the IdeaFirst Company the vision was to put artistry at the core of our business.”
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BRAVE – Yes, it’s a brave new world for showbiz.
Indies become blockbusters. The box-office is no longer monopolized by mainstream pictures. Think “Die Beautiful” and “Kita Kita.”
Digital shows are the talk-of-the-town hit programs.
Fresh talents both onscreen and off are sought after.
Perci and Jun are facing, embracing that brave new world via IdeaFirst Company.
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IMPRESSIVE – IdeaFirst’s array of talents is indeed impressive.
Consider the five directors on its stable: Prime Cruz, Miko Livelo, Ivan Andrews Payawal, Dominic Lim, and Sigrid Andrea P. Bernardo.
Ms. Bernardo is the talk (envy?) of the town. She directed “Kita Kita,” now on its fourth or fifth week, grossing almost R300 million…and still counting.
Her previous credits were “Thelma” and “Huling Cha-Cha ni Anita,” fine films which didn’t make money. But they won awards. Still there’s nothing like a box-office hit.
The actors of IdeaFirst are Cedrick Juan, Adriana So, and Christian Bables, the sensational discovery of 2016. Thanks to “Die Beautiful.” He’s now the busiest actor in town – shuttling from one movie and TV set to the other.