CinemaBravo

“Excited na po akong tumalon sa billboard,” Kapuso actor Edgar Allan Guzman blurted in jest during the cast reveal-cum-story conference of his upcoming film ‘Karnabal,’ to be directed by Adolfo Alix, Jr. under B.C. Entertainment Production. Filming will begin soon.

“Ito pong project na ito po, kaya nagpapasalamat kami kay Miss Kaye ng BC Entertainment dahil binigyan niya kami ng pagkakataong magawa ang project na ito,” EA said, referring to the film’s producer Karen Ortua.

The event’s reveal was also graced by seasons artists Gina Alajar, Ricky Davao, and Joel Saracho. Not available that day were their co-actors Jaclyn Jose, and EA’s real-life girlfriend Shaira Diaz (who will have a special participation in this drama thriller).

Origin and treatment of the story

During his presentation of the story, Direk Adolf shared the origin of the story of Karnabal.

“In a nutshell, alam kong marami na sa inyong nakakaalam ng mga kuwento tungkol sa mga biglaang umaakyat sa billboard, tapos nagkakagulo… Iba-iba sila ng rason ng pag-akyat sa billboard.

“Matagal na ‘tong materyal na ‘to, kaya lang no’ng minsang nagkuwentuhan kami ni EA, kasi magkasama kami ngayon sa isang series na ginagawa namin sa GMA, yung ‘Atty. Matias’ kasama si Jo Berry, napagkuwentuhan namin.”

Adolf also reminisced how young EA was during their first-ever project together. The two first worked as a director-actor tandem in the 2008 romantic drama film ‘Imoral,‘ which starred Katherine Luna, Arnold Reyes, and Paolo Paraiso.

“Yung huli namang pinagtrabuhan magkasama [ay] Coming Home, kasama si Ms. Sylvia Sanchez. Sabi ko, parang gusto ko (at niya rin) ng pelikula na kakaiba. Naalala ko yung concept namin ng writer na si Fudge De Leon. Isang materyal na matagal na namin din hinahanapan kung sino’ng pwedeng gumawa. So kinuwento ko sa kanya at na-excite naman siya.”

One ultimate challenge

Direk Adolf told us he had made an attempt to shoot a long-take film through an unreleased title. This time around, he is set to face the ultimate challenge of spearheading the theatricals including the logistics of fulfilling this dream project.

“Ang pinakakakaiba lang siguro dito sa pelikulang ‘to: ishu-shoot namin siya nang isang take — wala pong putol.

“Yung 1 hour and [30] minutes, we will shoot it nang walang cut. Medyo challenging pero kaya sila nandiyan, tutulungan nila akong ma-mount yung pelikula.”

What’s with the title?

Karnabal is the Filipino word for carnaval, a season or instance of merrymaking, feasting, or masquerading.

“Maganda lang ding habang nag-a-attempt siyang umakyat sa billboard, si EA, kaya Karnabal yung title kasi parang iba’t ibang points of view: yung [sa] mga nanonood, reporter, mga kasama niya sa trabaho, wife niya…

“Doon iikot yung kuwento. Parang totoo kayong nanonood ng isang lalaking umakyat sa building,” he explained further.

EA on working with thespians

When asked about how he feels that he’s working with veteran actors, EA mentioned that he had worked already with everyone except Jaclyn.

“Ang sarap lang sa feeling kasi alam namin natin kung ga’no sila kahusay,” he emphasized. “Ako, ang gusto ko lang din naman ay makatrabaho sila, yung mga mahuhusay.”

His excitement cannot be contained as takes on the challenge on experiencing all the rehearsals needed to master the entire course of the film, which will be shot without any cuts.

“Excited ako! Kung excited sila, mas excited ako. At the same time, natatakot, pero ang iniisip ko lang yung mga taong nakapaligid sa ‘kin sa pelikulang ito. I’m sure na talagang magagawa namin — sana magawa — at magagawa namin nang tuloy-tuloy at one take lang na shooting.”

Synopsis of the film ‘Karnabal’

In a real-time one hour and a half, Caloy goes berserk and wants to jump on a billboard.

As we learn of his reasons why he decided to do such an act, we get a glimpse of the drama in a pain- staking procedural involving the people in his life – his wife, his mother, his angry supervisor, the maddening crowd, the reporters, the angry Barangay Captain and the bystanders- capturing the microcosm of feelings and prejudices of the Filipino society.

The film unfolds in one long take.

About the director

Born October 1978 in Makati City, Philippines, he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Mass Communications and started as a scriptwriter for films and television.

Since his debut as a director in 2006, he has become one of the acclaimed Filipino filmmakers with his films screened at various international film festivals including Cannes, Toronto, Rotterdam, Busan, Warsaw, Moscow and Mar del Plata among others. He has also served in the jury at the Busan, Shanghai Film Festivals and the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Alix was listed by The Hollywood Reporter in its Next Generation Asia, which features the top 20 young entertainment personalities in the region deemed “the best and the brightest among their peers”.

He currently works for GMA Network and and has directed various anthologies and series for television including the New York Festival winners “WAGAS,” “KARELASYON” and “ALAALA.”

About the production company

This is BC Entertainment Production’s company profile in toto.

We are a company that accommodates the ever changing and various need of the media and entertainment industry. With our combined, growing list of diverse clients, we made sure to have a wide range of media verticals from Photography, Video Production, Events, Digital Marketing, Communications, Fabrication and a lot more.

Our company believes that the best way to serve the client is to stay true to their vision while we make it a reality in terms of our production. And while we do it all creatively, we never forget the strategic side of all the projects that we handle.

We do not just give results, we deliver excellence.