Tuesday, March 26, 2013

NORA AUNOR TOPBILLS CINEFILIPINO ENTRY 'ANG KUWENTO NI MABUTI'

Direk Mes De Guzman and Nora Aunor on the set of 'Ang Kuwento ni Mabuti'.
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De Guzman’s film is actually a morality tale about Mabuti, a faith healer who maintains a positive outlook in life despite her poverty. But that was until she found herself in a moral dilemma after accidentally finding a bag containing P5 million in cash that could bring an end to her family’s problems.
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By Edwin P. Sallan
InterAksyon.com ·
Tuesday, March 26, 2013 · 5:19 pm

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When the eight finalists for the first CineFilipino Film Festival were introduced last January, one filmmaker immediately stood out from the rest of the pack.

Fresh from his big win for “Diablo”(Best Film and Best Director) in the New Breed category of last year’s edition of the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Festival, Mes De Guzman naturally was expected to be the odds-on favorite to win the top awards even before his cameras started rolling.  It looks like the veteran indie director is already living up to expectations as his film, “Ang Kuwento Ni Mabuti”, is off to a rousing start with the casting of no less than superstar Nora Aunor in the title role.

Not to be confused with the Filipino literary classic by Genoveva Edroza-Matute, De Guzman’s film is actually a morality tale about Mabuti, a faith healer who maintains a positive outlook in life despite her poverty. But that was until she found herself in a moral dilemma after accidentally finding a bag containing P5 million in cash that could bring an end to her family’s problems.

Like most of De Guzman’s films, including “Diablo”, “Ang Kuwento ni Mabuti” is also being shot in his home province of Nueva Vizcaya.
Like “Himala”, which the director listed as one of his all-time favorite films in the online forum of PinoyDVD.com, his new film also casts Nora Aunor as a faith healer and even reunites her with “Himala” co-star Ama Quiambao, who also won the 2012 Cinemalaya Best Actress for her lead role in “Diablo”.

Rounding up the cast are indie veterans Sue Prado (“Ang Bangka Sa Pagitan ng Dalawang Ilog”), Arnold Reyes (“Graceland”), Mara Lopez (“Palitan”) and what De Guzman calls “a bevy of non-actors from Nueva Vizcaya”.

Dubbed by De Guzman as one of the country’s best cinematographers, Albert Banzon (“Haruo”, “EDSA XXX”) has been tapped as the director of photography for “Ang Kuwento Ni Mabuti”.

As with his other films produced by Cinelarga Productions, the film company he co-owns with his wife Rhea, Direk Mes does not expect any hitches in the production of his new film. “It’s an indie policy of our production outfit to stick to our budget and production schedule”.

With the P1.5 million seed money granted by CineFilipino, which is a bigger amount than the P500,000 grant of Cinemalaya that they had to work with in “Diablo”, audiences can expect to see even higher production values for “Ang Kuwento ni Mabuti”.

Along with seven other finalists, “Ang Kuwento ni Mabuti” will be showcased during the CineFilipino Film Festival that will take place at Araneta Center’s Gateway Cineplex and Ali Mall Cinemas as well as at the Newport Cinemas at Resorts World from June 26 to July 2.

Monday, March 25, 2013

MGA LARAWAN SA LIKOD NG KUWENTO

NORA AUNOR AS FOLK HEALER


Fresh from her victory as Best Actress at the 7th Asian Film Awards (AFA) in Hong Kong, Ms. Nora Aunor follows up her internationally acclaimed performance in Brillante Mendoza's masterpiece 'Thy Womb' with Mes de Guzman's 'ANG KWENTO NI MABUTI.'

Nora Aunor is cast as a folk healer.

The Best Actress of Asia-Pacific shares the screen with fellow award-winning performers:


AMA QUIAMBAO
The Best Actress at the 2012 Cinemalaya Philippine Indie Film Festival for Mes de Guzman's 'Diablo' started her acting career by co-starring with La Aunor in Ishmael Bernal's classic 'Himala' 30 years ago.

MARA LOPEZ
The Best Actress at the 2012 Cinema One Originals for 'Palitan' scored an upset over seasoned performer Gina Alajar.

SUE PRADO
The Best Actress at the 1st Sineng Pambansa National Film Festival for 'Ang Bangka sa Pagitan ng Dalawang Ilog' (2012) has also won Best Supporting Actress at the Gawad Urian for her performance in Raymond Red's 'Himpapawid" (2010). She's one of the most highly-sought actresses in the Philippine indie scene today.

ARNOLD REYES
The Best Supporting Actor awardee at the Cinemalaya Philippine Indie Film Festival has also won Best Actor at the Aliw Awards for Theater.

The DIRECTOR: RAMON "MES" DE GUZMAN


Portrait of the prize-winning writer as the most critically acclaimed Filipino filmmaker of his generation.

Aside from his several awards from the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, Mes de Guzman has also won the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Grand Prize for his first novel 'Rancho Dyanggo.' 

His short film Rags (2001) won the Grand Prize for Short Film at the Marrakesh International Film Festival in Morocco and Best Short Film at the Gawad Urian. 

His feature film 'The Road to Kalimugtong' won the New Director's Prize Special Mention at the 2006 San Sebastian International Film Festival on top of winning the Best Director award at the Gawad Urian. 

He also won Best Director and the Lino Brocka Prize for 'Sa Kanto ng Ulap at Lupa' at the 13th Cinemanila International Film Festival. 

His winning streak continued at the 2012 Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival where his film 'Diablo' hauled four major awards (Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, & Best Cinematography). An all-around indie cinematic craftsman, de Guzman not only writes and directs his own films but also works as a designer, editor, and producer, etc.

SYNOPSIS



Mabuti accidentally finds a stash of money that could bring an end to her family's financial problems. But is the solution that simple or is it loaded with complications?


The film tells the story of an impoverished healer named Mabuti from Nueva Vizcaya. "Ang konsepto nung pelikula ay paano tayo maging mabuting tao."