Filipino Actors in Hollywood

[anya]

---

tig.tanaw mo og One Tree Hill?! sa second season, dba naa man to duha ka new characters, si Felix and his sister...well, Felix is Filipino!!...gwapo kauu cya..! hehe....kana pud ang lesbian sa Queer Eye For The Straight Girl, her father is Filipino then her mom is Ukranian..

[skylee_swoop]

@tagaisla: kung makakita ka ana niya... nahhh... tingalig maghimo jud kag poster nga dako taptap sa bongbong sa imo room... hehehhe

[diem]

@bycane, i think it was rob schneider's mom who is pure-blooded Filipina who is from Baguio. She did some cameos in some of his movies.. for example in The Animal, she was in the beginning--just look for the old Asian lady.

[gr3]

Kirk Hammet of Metallica is half Filipino

[DebutsAndIDos]

saw the movie... nice story... but wasn't satisfied sa role ni papa ceasar.... gamay ra.

Hmmm, i have to agree.
I know the role called for it. But, I dont want to see Ceasar Montano typecasted into Asian-with-an-accent roles.

[Beetlebum]

Lengthy article from PhilippineNews

Filipinos making it in Hollywood
Janet Susan R. Nepales, Nov 30, 2005
LOS ANGELES --- When Kuh Ledesma (as Tiger Lily) and Bembol Roco (as Kumar) were cast in the Peter Weir-directed and Oscar award-winning movie “The Year of Living Dangerously” in 1982, Filipinos had their eyes glued on the two Pinoy actors. They were proud that their kababayans were doing an international movie.

Of course, way before this casting coup, there was Barbara Perez, dubbed during her time as the Audrey Hepburn of the Philippines, who co-starred with Jeffrey Hunter in “No Man is an Island” in 1962. It is said that after doing the movie, she was offered a five-year movie contract by Universal Studios but she turned it down because she was pregnant. She decided to marry her boyfriend, actor Robert Arevalo, instead. Ronald Remy also starred in the said movie.

It is always exciting to watch Filipino actors sharing the screen with their Hollywood counterpart. We are thrilled to see and hear a Pinoy actor delivering Tagalog phrases in an international movie or a Filipino movie title or ad in a Hollywood publication.

Seeing Cesar Montano as the guerilla leader Juan Pajota in “The Great Raid” with Benjamin Bratt was a thrill. We were also delighted to see Ramon de Ocampo as Agent Meadows in “XXX: State of the Union” with Willem Dafoe, Samuel Jackson and Ice Cube. Let us not forget FilAm actors and brothers Dante and Dion Basco who appeared as Philly and Flip, respectively, with Lisa Bonet in “Biker Boyz.” Watch for Dante, who appeared as a child actor in Robin Williams’ “Hook,” since he will be seen with Antonio Banderas in January 2006 in the musical movie, “Take the Lead” as Ramos.

These FilAm newcomers in Hollywood are following the footsteps of their predecessors such as FilAms Lou Diamond Phillips, Rob Schneider, Alec Mapa, Tia Carrere, Tamlyn Tomita, Nia Peeples, producer Dean Devlin (he also did some acting initially), Jose Llana (he portrayed Ross in “Hitch” with Will Smith and Eva Mendes), Lea Salonga (she did the Hallmark Hall of Fame movie, “Redwood Curtain,” with John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels in 1995), singer-actor Prince who some described as a “closet-Pinoy.” There are also TV personalities Filipino-Canadian Von Flores (portrays FBI agent Ronald Sandoval in the sci-fi “Earth: Final Conflict”) and Filipino-American heartthrob Brandon Baker (portrays Cray on NBC’s “One World” and was lead in Disney’s “Jungle Book: Mowgli Story”).

Filipino directors have also made their presence felt in international cinema via their critically acclaimed films, which became mainstream theatrical releases. We had the late Lino Brocka’s “Macho Dancer” in 1988 (his earlier splash in Cannes with Insiang” was a milestone). Later, in 1999, Brocka’s former assistant, director Mel Chionglo made his “Burlesk King.” Chionglo followed in his mentor’s footsteps by having his similarly gay-themed movie released in the US.

Recently, there has been a surge of Pinoy movies and actors making waves on American screens.

Publicist Winston Emano defines what he would consider a film with “mainstream theatrical release.” He explains, “This would be a film having at least a week-long, published critic-reviewed, non-festival-related exhibition in at least one major city. Films like ‘Sigaw’ would not be listed because they have screened only via the film festival route.”

So these films by Filipino directors that would fall into this “mainstream theatrical release” category are Laurice Guillen’s “American Adobo” (2002), Mark Meily’s “Crying Ladies” (2003), Gil Portes’ “Small Voices (Mga Munting Tinig)” (2003) and Rory Quintos’ “Dubai” (2005).

For mainstream theatrical releases done by Filipino-American directors, we would include Francisco Aliwalas’ “Disoriented” (199, Dom Magwili’s “Much Adobo About Nothing” (1999), Rod Pulido’s “The Flip Side” (2000), David Maquiling’s “Too Much Sleep” (2000), Noel Izon’s documentary “An Untold Triumph” (2002), Lorene Machado’s “The Notorious C.H.O.” (2002), Gene Cajayon’s “The Debut” (2003), Mark Decena’s “Dopamine” (2003), Ramona Diaz’s “Imelda” (2004) and Q. Allen Brocka’s “Eating Out” (2005).

There are also those films which feature Filipino content and storyline but not directed or written by a Filipino like “A Rustling of Leaves” (198, “Better Luck Tomorrow” (2002) and “The Great Raid” (2005).

We are highlighting some of the Pinoy movies, actors and directors who have recently been in the spotlight and have made all of us proud to be Filipinos.

The Movies

“Imelda”

This award-winning documentary about the controversial former First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos by filmmaker Ramona Diaz was not only critically acclaimed but a box-office success as well. It grossed $200,000 in the US and played five weeks in New York at the prestigious Film Forum. The documentary got positive reviews from the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. It won in the Sundance Film Festival for Best Cinematography. It is also the winner of the International Documentary Association’s ABC News/Videosource award, beating fellow nominee, Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11.”

Diaz was inspired to tell the whole world about Imelda after a 15-minute interview turned into a five-hour conversation. When the documentary was about to be shown in Manila, the former First Lady herself tried to stop it from being shown because she believed Diaz made a mockery of her (Imelda’s) life and deceived her. The temporary ban was lifted and “Imelda” was shown.

Filmmaker Ramona Diaz is currently looking for Filipino nannies as subject for her next documentary entitled “The Other Mother.”

“American Adobo”

Following the tradition of such movies as “Eat Drink Man Woman,” “Tortilla Soup,” “ABCD,” and “What’s Cooking?,” “American Adobo” gives the American audience a peek into the lives of a group of New York-based Filipino-Americans.

Directed by ace helmer Laurice Guillen, “American Adobo” stars veterans Dina Bonnevie, Christopher de Leon, and Cherry Pie Pecache (who won the Philippines’ version of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress) as well as Paolo Montalban and Ricky Davao.

“American Adobo” is the first Filipino film to play simultaneously in Manila, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. This film, written by Vincent Nebrida, played six weeks in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco and 10 weeks in Honolulu. It grossed $350,000 and would have grossed more but its distributor Outrider went under because of post 9/11 financial woes.

“American Adobo” got good reviews from Los Angeles Times film writer Kevin Thomas and New York Newsday movie critic John Anderson. It earned five Urian nominations, including Best Director.

“Crying Ladies”

The movie, which stars Sharon Cuneta, Hilda Koronel and Angel Aquino, is about three paid-for mourners or weepers during Chinese funerals. A heartwarming comedy, it shows the travails of the ordinary people living in the back streets of Chinatown.

“Crying Ladies” got positive reviews from the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times. It won Best Picture and other major awards at the 2003 Metro Manila Film Festival – Eric Quizon (Best Actor), Hilda Koronel (Best Supporting Actress) and Best Child Performer (Julio Pacheco).

The movie was the official Philippine entry to the Best Foreign Language Film competition in the 2004 Academy Awards. It opened in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Honolulu. It won Best Picture at the Kerala Asian Film Festival and was the official selection at the Montreal International Film Festival.

Sharon Cuneta also won Best Actress in last year’s Brussels International Film Festival. The film grossed $130,000 -- not bad at all for a foreign language film in the international market.

“The Debut”

Director Gene Cajayon’s movie, “The Debut,” which is a touching coming-of-age comedy, grossed over a million dollars and was critically acclaimed in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and other places in the US. Featuring actor Dante Basco as Ben, the movie shows the discord of growing up as a Filipino-American in the US.

Supported by FilAm producer Dean Devlin (“Independence Day”), “The Debut” is also the directorial debut of Cajayon. It earned raves from movie critic Roger Ebert. Cajayon went the extra mile by promoting and marketing his movie by going to each city, caravan style, handing out flyers at churches and community centers.

“Small Voices (Munting Tinig)”

Gil Portes’ movie “Small Voices (Munting Tinig),” the Philippines’ 2003 entry to the Academy Awards’ best foreign language film category, tells the story of a simple schoolteacher who wants to make a difference in the lives of her poor students by entering her class in a singing contest. The movie stars Alessandra de Rossi, Dexter Doria, Gina Alajar, Amy Austria and Bryan Homecillo,

“Small Voices” received rave reviews in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

“The Flip Side”

Rod Pulido’s “The Flip Side” is the first Filipino American feature to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. It is about a FilAm family whose members are trying to embrace their Filipino culture in America. It addresses issues about identity crisis, social as well as cultural complexities.

Pulido, who financed the movie by substitute teaching for three and a half years at the Bellflower Unified School District, won a free Aaton camera after winning the Panavision New Filmmaker Award. He used his new camera for the entire shoot.

During post production, Pulido was awarded a grant by the National Asian American Telecommunications Association (NAATA), which, he confessed, helped him finish the movie and not substitute teach for another 20 years.

“Too Much Sleep”

Writer-director David Maquiling’s movie, “Too Much Sleep,” was well received in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, New Jersey, Washington and other parts of the US.

The New Jersey-raised son of an immigrant Filipino surgeon, Maquiling tells of the odyssey of Jack Crawford (Marc Palmieri), a 24-year-old security guard living with his mom in Jersey and who, in search of his stolen gun, eventually tries to find himself.

New York Times describes this directorial debut of Maquiling as “a nightmare comedy on the order of Martin Scorsese’s ‘After Hours’ or David O. Russell’s ‘Spanking the Monkey.’ ”

“Dubai”

Rory Quintos’ “Dubai” is the first Filipino film to be shot in the Middle East. It is about the lives and loves of overseas Filipino workers in the emirate. It stars Aga Muhlach, John Lloyd Cruz and Claudine Barretto (Fay). The movie narrates the story of orphans Raffy (Muhlach) and Andrew (Cruz) who are working hard in a courier service company in Dubai to be able to save money and migrate to Canada. It tells of their exploits as they get in contact with other overseas Filipino workers in the Middle East.

“Dubai,” which was shown in the US as well as in Milan, Vancouver, Vienna, Saipan, Guam and, of course, Dubai, is from the script of award-winning Ricky Lee and Shaira Mella Salvador.

“Dopamine”

Writer-director Mark Decena’s “Dopamine” was showcased in the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. It had a 10-city release and is named after the natural amphetamine that human bodies produce when they fall in love. It is the story of two computer programmers who have created an artificial intelligence life form and inspires one of the programmers to engage in a dialogue about the nature of love with a woman he likes.

Decena’s “Dopamine” received critical acclaim and has been compared to the movie “The Matrix.”

“An Untold Triumph”

Noel M. Izon’s “An Untold Triumph: America’s Filipino Soldiers” is a documentary recounting the heroism of the Filipino World War II veterans. The 84-minute film, narrated by Fil-Am actor Lou Diamond Phillips, tells of the achievements of the Fil-Am soldiers during World War II.

“Eating Out”

Writer-director Q. Allan Brocka, the nephew of the late Lino Brocka, is following the footsteps of his uncle. He has directed a comedy entitled “Eating Out.” It is about crisscrossing gay and straight romances where a straight guy pretends to be gay to be able to get close to a girl he likes.

Q. Allan Brocka has said that the idea of “Eating Out” started as a joke in his screenwriting class at the California Institute of the Arts. He was required to write one feature-length screenplay and he added a lot of intense gay *** scenes. Then one day, Michael J. Shoel from Ariztical Entertainment, approached him looking for a script. This paved the way for the younger Brocka’s big break.

“Eating Out” has won several awards, some of which include the Best Feature Film in the Rhode Island International Film Festival, the San Diego Film Festival, Rome Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and the Istanbul Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.

The Actors

Cesar Montano

Born Cesar Manhilot, Cesar Montano achieved international recognition with his role as Juan Pajota in “The Great Raid.” Director John Dahl was so impressed with his performance in Marilou Diaz-Abaya’s film, “Muro Ami,” which was the determining factor for his being chosen to play Captain Pajota.

Montano’s passion for acting was first seen in Dulaang UP’s stage productions where he performed under the guidance of director Tony Mabesa. He signed a three-picture deal with Miramax, the first of which is “The Great Raid.”

Paolo Montalban

Tall and handsome, Paolo Montalban was a pre-med graduate at the Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey before he grabbed the Prince Charming role in the 1997 TV version of “Cinderella” with singers Brandy, Whitney Houston, Bernadette Peters and actress Whoopi Goldberg. After that, he bagged a lead role in the TV series, “Mortal Kombat: Conquest,” as Kung Lao.

Now reprising his Prince Charming role in the Broadway musical, “Cinderella,” Paolo was featured in “The Great Raid” as Sgt. Valera and was critically acclaimed in his role as Raul in “American Adobo.”

The son of chemistry professionals turned computer programmers, Montalban grew up in a musical family. His father played the piano. His mother was involved in theater while in college, and his two aunts studied violin and piano at Julliard.

Montalban, who recently shared the stage with Tony Award-winning star Lea Salonga in her Carnegie Hall debut, was named one of People magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People of 1998.” Incidentally, Lea herself starred in the Hallmark made for TV movie, “

Ramon de Ocampo

Son of former finance secretary Roberto de Ocampo, Ramon carved a niche for himself in Hollywood by being featured in the $115-million movie “XXX: State of the Union.”

De Ocampo received good reviews in his stage appearance in “The Romance of Magno Rubio.” He told us he will always remember when he co-starred with Bill Cosby in 1999 in the latter’s self-titled TV sitcom. Cosby rewrote a scene just for De Ocampo.

De Ocampo was featured in the movie, “Happy Endings,” which starred Lisa Kudrow, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Laura Dern and Tom Arnold.

Dante Basco

Dante Basco, whose other brothers Derek, Dion and Darion are also actors, played the lead in Gene Cajayon’s “The Debut.”

Born in Pittsburg, California, the 30-year-old actor has directed and produced his own movie, “Naked Brown Men” in 2003. He has done several television appearances including doing the voice for Jake Long in the “Lilo & Stitch: The Series” and the voice of Fukushima in “Kim Possible.”

The Directors

Gil Portes (“Small Voices”) and Laurice Guillen (“American Adobo”) are two veteran directors who have made their presence felt in international cinema due to their outstanding movie vehicles.

Let us know meet the new breed of Pinoy and Filipino-American directors who are making a name for themselves in world cinema.

Mark Meily

Mark Meily’s critically acclaimed “Crying Ladies,” followed by his equally outstanding comedy film, “La Visa Loca,” simply confirms his excellence in his craft.

Both these movies received a top grade of “A” from the Cinema Evaluation Board of the Film Development Council of the Philippines.

He is currently working on a story about the Tasadays, the lost tribe supposedly discovered in the Philippines during the ’70s that turned out to be a government-sponsored hoax.

Rory Quintos

One of the most prolific directors in Philippine cinema, Rory Quintos directed “Dubai.”.

Quintos directed Vilma Santos in “Anak” that won Star Cinema Best Screenplay (FAP Awards), Best Picture (Star Awards) and Best Film (Catholic Mass Media Awards). She directed the successful fantasy teleserial “Krystala” with Judy Ann Santos and the hit soap opera, “Esperanza.”

Ramona Diaz

Ramona Diaz made a name for herself via the acclaimed documentary on the former First Lady Imelda Marcos. We are hoping that she will duplicate her success or even surpass herself with the coming “The Other Mother.”

Rod Pulido

Rod Pulido explained that in “Flip Side,” he wanted his first feature to deal with the identity crisis that a Filipino-American like him experienced because he grew up not seeing any images of people who looked like him in the American media.

Gene Cajayon

Gene Cajayon did not leave any stone unturned to be able to promote and market his feature film, “The Debut.” He even phoned FilAm producer Dean Devlin to get involved in the project. “The Debut” has grossed close to two million dollars in ticket and merchandising revenues in over two years.

Noel Izon

Producer, director and editor of the documentary “An Untold Triumph: America’s Filipino Soldiers,” Noel M. Izon received the 1988 Media Fund award for this movie which tells of the plight of the men and families of the First and Second Infantry Regiments of the US Army. Izon was acclaimed for being able to narrate through film the experiences of these men and their fight for citizenship. It is the story of 7,000 immigrants and sons of immigrants and the war that changed their lives forever.

Lorene Machado

Lorene Machado is largely associated with comedienne Margaret Cho whom she has directed, edited and produced in movies such as “The Notorious C.H.O.,” “Margaret Cho: I’m the One That I Want,” “Revolution” and “Bam Bam and Celeste.”

Machado previously produced and directed for ABC News’ “Life 360.” She was the coordinating producer on the “Bob Hope Specials” on NBC for several seasons.

Mark Decena

Writer-director Mark Decena got critical acclaim with his movie “Dopamine” which won the 2003 Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film prize. The story of a San Franciscan computer animator who falls in love with one of his creations in the days after the dot.com boom, the movie features American actors John Livingston and Sabrina Lloyd.

David Maquiling

Born and raised in the suburbs of Holmdel, New Jersey, David Maquiling recently relocated to Los Angeles. A magna cum laude graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, he made his feature film debut with “Too Much Sleep” and has received numerous awards.

He is working on his next movie, “Another Deep Breath,” which explores the marriage of a Filipino American husband and wife as it faces a challenge.

Q. Allan Brocka

The writer-director won the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and received a cash prize of $10,000. He is known for his popular Lego-animated “Rick & Steve” series about the “happiest gay couple in the world.” It starred RuPaul and Guinevere Turner.

This younger Brocka was named as one of the top five gay and lesbian directors to watch by a trade magazine and was featured in AMC’s reality series “Gay Hollywood” which followed openly gay men as they try to build careers in the entertainment industry.

[Flame alchemist]

Mark Meily

Mark Meily’s critically acclaimed “Crying Ladies,” followed by his equally outstanding comedy film, “La Visa Loca,” simply confirms his excellence in his craft.

Both these movies received a top grade of “A” from the Cinema Evaluation Board of the Film Development Council of the Philippines.

He is currently working on a story about the Tasadays, the lost tribe supposedly discovered in the Philippines during the ’70s that turned out to be a government-sponsored hoax.

Mark Meily is one of my favorite local directors, it's a shame really na ni flop ang La visa Loca diri sa Pilipinas, I hope it does well outside.

Q. Allan Brocka has said that the idea of “Eating Out” started as a joke in his screenwriting class at the California Institute of the Arts. He was required to write one feature-length screenplay and he added a lot of intense gay *** scenes. Then one day, Michael J. Shoel from Ariztical Entertainment, approached him looking for a script. This paved the way for the younger Brocka’s big break.

“Eating Out” has won several awards, some of which include the Best Feature Film in the Rhode Island International Film Festival, the San Diego Film Festival, Rome Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and the Istanbul Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.

he didn't actually know na Sii Lino Borcka ang iyang uncle until her aunt brought up something about a filmmaker in the family.

[Blongkoy]

And while we are at this, I can only ask "but where does Nilo Rodis-Jamero figure in all these?

Nilo is a Cebuano and graduate of Don Bosco Technical High School (1974 or 1975) in Punta Princesa, Labangon.

He was a leading persona at the Industrial Light and Magic Corporation at the Lucas Ranch where he was the Effects Design Director of Tobe Hopper's "Poltergeist" and became copyright owner of Star Wars character R2D2, 3CPO, Chewbaca, etc.

He left ILM to produce the "Never-Ending Story" series, the hit "Fire in the Sky", the badly crafted "Johnny Mnemonics" and the Walt Disney's remake of "The Absent-minded Professor" titled "Flubber." His realtives here in Mabolo said that he was also closely involved but uncredited in "Hulk".

Nilo is now permanently settled in the US after he married his sweetheart from STC named Elizabeth. He is still active in Hollywood but so low key he is not even recognized.

[Blongkoy]

For a Tasaday story mentioned elsewhere, try to watch Neil Fraser's "The Vanishing Earth" of the Columban-affiliated Interim Media Production Center in Ozamis City. This was followed by "Earth Voices."

Neil is an Australian and an ex-Columban. He was an Otis awardee; Otis being Australia's version of Oscar.

One of his deeply moving films was the "Simbako Layo, Tabukon Pito ka Lawod" and his earlier world view of "Nagnong Kabus Man si Juan?" Neil was a forerunner of the old Beta system and editing his raw via the analog monster called "1680/RM 440."

[tagaisla]

guys have u seen sa nterview ni jessica soho sa pinay na make-up artist ni beyonce knowles, jlo & mariah? she's really making it big in hollywood sikat na au cya na make-up artist, klimot lang ko sa iya name