The much-anticipated pairing of two of the country’s biggest stars–Alden Richards and Bea Alonzo, will be seen for the first time before the Filipino audience, hopefully when the local cinemas are back in its operations this month of March.
There is no pressure in the shooting of the film A Moment to Remember (the Philippine adaptation of the Japanese drama Pure Soul) because the productions are still waiting for the cinemas to open.
Viva Communications Inc. President and COO stated, “We will hold out until such time na nag-normalize na ‘yung cinema operations. Kasi ‘yung movie is meant to be seen sa big screen rather than sa small screen.”
Both Alonzo and Richards will start shooting for their film at the end of March or April this year.
To date, three major film outfits have joined forces for Asia’s Multimedia Star and New Generation’s Movie Queen‘s first-ever movie together.
GMA Pictures, APT Entertainment, and Viva Films sealed their partnership on March 2 to co-produce the much-talked-about film.
Present at the contract signing were GMA Films Inc, President and Programming Consultant to the Chairman and CEO Atty. Annette Gozon-Valdes, APT Entertainment Inc. CEO and President Mike Tuviera, and Viva Communications Inc. President and COO Vincent del Rosario.
The 2001 Japanese romantic drama Pure Soul was also adapted in a South Korean film, A Moment to Remember. Son Ye-jin (Crash Landing on You) and Jung Woo-sung (The King) starred in the Korean adaptation. It topped the Korean box-office for two consecutive weeks after it was released in 2004.
“We want to give this movie an international flavor talaga lalo na we’re having both Alden and Bea together in it. So, we feel that this project is perfect talaga for the both of them,” GMA Pictures president Annette Gozon-Valdes said in a statement.
The story tells a young couple’s journey who encounter difficulties as a result of the Alzheimer’s disease suffered by one of the characters.
In an interview with 24 Oras, Richards admitted that he felt happy but at the same time nervous in portraying the role.
“Wala akong matututunan kung laging doon lang ako sa mga comfortable roles. Pero ngayon, after ko siyang basahin, masaya ako na mas lamang ‘yung kaba kasi hindi biro ‘yung role,” the Kapuso actor confessed.
The award-winning actress likewise admitted that she felt the pressure in playing the role. But later, she said she already become comfortable with the actor.
“Sa totoo lang, nakaka-pressure. Kanina coming here I was so anxious, kinakabahan talaga ako because hindi ko rin naman alam what to expect. But then right now, I feel so comfortable,” said Alonzo.
“I feel comfortable with Alden, I feel comfortable with the ones I just met, the bosses of these three film outfits.”
Last August, Richards revealed that working with Alonzo in a film was a dream come true for him, admitting that he admires her pairing with John Lloyd Cruz.
The actor-host revealed, “Gusto ko siyang maka-work sana sa movie kasi nasubaybayan ko halos lahat ng movies nila ni John Lloyd Cruz.”
Little did he know, Alonzo is also excited to work with the Kapuso actor.
“Ang hindi niya alam gusto ko rin talaga siyang makatrabaho. Kasi I have seen his movie with Kathryn (Bernardo) and I thought he did a very good job with the character. I wanna be able to have that chance to actually work with him in a project and develop characters with him.”
Alonzo and Richards have already started a workshop with their director Nuel Naval, and the next workshop is scheduled, including a look test and story conference.
The 29-year-old Richards said he was grateful for the opportunity to show his versatility on the big screen.
“It’s my first remake, and there’s always comparison. What we wanted as actors is to do our own take on how we understood the role. Ang ganda ng material, sobra. Kung babalik na ‘yung cinema, it’s really for it. Mas dama mo ‘yung istorya,” he said.
The 33-year-old Alonzo shared that she was looking forward to the challenge of adapting a movie for the Filipino audience.
“I’m excited na makakapagtrabaho na kami this time. We’re very happy na nag-inject sila ng Filipino culture doon sa script. We are working around the parameters of what Korea wants us to do, of course, to also maintain and respect the original title but we will make sure that it’s going to be good one. It’s going to be extra challenging and also very inspiring.”
In 2019, Alden Richards top-billed Cathy Garcia-Molina‘s film Hello, Love, Goodbye alongside ABS-CBN actress Kathryn Bernardo. The romantic drama film was declared as the top-grossing Filipino film of all time after earning over 880 million pesos gross revenue worldwide. The film was considered a casting coup since Bernardo and Richards were prime stars of the two competing networks.
Meanwhile, Bea Alonzo also starred in another Cathy Garcia-Molina‘s box-office romantic drama film with longtime onscreen partner John Lloyd Cruz. 2015’s A Second Chance was declared as the sixth highest-grossing Filipino film of all time which earned over 556 million pesos gross revenue worldwide. The film was the sequel to Molina’s 2007 movie One More Chance.
