John Sayles' AMIGO and A Moment in the Sun out at last.
I am privileged to announce the wedding of Bobby Savoca- Guay to our Cheska Barroga. Can you believe it? Here’s a photo of them climbing into Dieter’s multi-cab after the civil service at the Maribojoc City Hall. It was very sweet, with Mayor Leoncio Evasco, Jr. officiating, and many friends in attendance including John and me, Dieter and Bee, Maid of Honor Melany Clarin, and John Arcilla who led us in singing their song,
“I Can’t Help Falling in Love With You”.
Bobby is one of our US Background Soldiers. Go back in the blog to March 22, 2010 and you’ll see Bobby in the middle of the second row, grinning. Cheska is the granddaughter of our wonderful Makeup/Hair/Prosthetics expert, Tita Cecille Baun, and was her assistant.
Bobby and Cheska’s wedding is not the first to come from one of our films, but this is the first time that along with Joel Torre John and I have been ninong and ninang (godparents) since Plummy and Mario were married during “Sunshine State”.
Very sweet.
Video to follow. And a US wedding late Summer, early Fall- at our house!
Next stop, Cooper has organized a fantastic Soiree/Fashion Show by the newly formed Baryo/Amigo Performance Group.
The Bohol premier organizers (including Melany Clarin, absent here) have designed a wonderful MADE IN BOHOL poster. We are getting a lot of mileage out of Stills Photographer Mary Cybulski’s beautiful images.
The event features our Baryo Villagers, dressed in their stand-out costumes designed by Gino Gonzales. The audience of students from Tagbilaran couldn’t be less interested in John and me when we talk, but when the show begins they are rapt. They go wild for the little girls (they have grown and their skirts no longer touch the ground). How did Cooper organize such an excellent show: after their many days performing in AMIGO the villagers are disciplined, at ease and even sassy, and anyway Cooper is a miracle worker. I am so proud.
We are met at the airport by our friends and Lakbay Amigo Bohol organizers Dieter and Cooper who whisk us off to BQ Mall and lunch at Gerry’s Grill. No faces could be more welcoming.
I’ve just read that Gerry’s Grill is expanding to the US. I hope they’ll become sponsors of AMIGO when we open there, in San Francisco and Southern California. (Gerry’s Grill, are you listening?)
Why do we love Bohol? Just look at what we see from the air right before we land. Recognize the channel between Tagbilaran and Panglao, Baryo/Amigo friends?
We arrived in Manila on February 4- sacrificing Chinese New Year to the International Dateline-and spent two nights at the lively house of Cecille Baun. (We miss you, Tita Cecille). I put on my Ninang/Producer hat and planned a civil wedding: guess who or read on!
Our excellent Philippine distributor Origin8 has organized a screening for educators at My Cinema, Greenbelt 3, graciously offered to us by Don Jaime Zobel who is a fan of AMIGO, I am happy to say.
Bembol Roco and Joel Torre with John at Figaro’s and then at My Havana with Ronnie Lazaro an unnamed waiter (“Can I take a picture”) and Dong Alegre (producer of the hugely successful Philippine tour of MISS SAIGON.
We are so happy to be seeing our cast, who have become our friends, and grateful for their support of AMIGO.
John had lots of meetings for the screenplays he is writing, and I hung out with my friends. Here we are in Orange County, seeing it Ham’s Way. That’s Stephane Gauger, writer Oliver Eustis, Ham Tran half-hidden, and Andersen Le next to me, Chapman Film Prof Nam Lee, JS Himself, and our pal Cate Park grinning after a delicious meal at Favori and lots of discussion about marketing movies to Asian communities in the US.
Many of the group are fans of Dylan Marchetti (read on).
Cerritos, we’ll see you in August!
Here in the Philippines now for more than a week, and it’s hard to remember the Winter we left behind, home in Clinton Corners. I don’t mean to gloat, friends back home, but it’s lovely to be back in the Philippines and to be warm again.
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