Aiko Melendez wins Best Actress Awards at the London International Filmakers Festival of World Cinema

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Aiko Melendez has proven once more her acting caliber. She recently bagged the highly-coveted Best Lead Actress in a Foreign Language Film award from the 7th International Filmmakers Festival of World Cinema in London for Direk Louie Ignacio’s Asintado (Between the Eyes).

Photo: aikomelendez instagram

Aiko bested seven other actresses from different countries in the same category - international actresses Charlotte Munck for “Meeres Stille,” Marianna Panagidou for “Butterfly,” Sveva Alviti for “Borderline,” Jung Ho for “Diary,” Anqi Liu for “Belief,” Laia Forte for “Distanza,” Thaila Ayala for “(Des)Encontros,” and Shahana Chatterjee for “Picnic.”

The movie, which is an official Cinemalaya entry last year, is Aiko’s first foray into indie film. In Asintado, Aiko plays Julia, a widowed mother of two who finds herself at the crossroads of choosing between saving her older son or risking her younger son’s safety. The story is situated in a town in Nueva Eciija and takes place during the Taong Putik festival.

Aiko was not able to attend the grand event in London because of prior showbiz commitments: she is part of the cast of ABS-CBN’s Inday Bote and an indie film titled Daluyong. Asintado director, Louis Ignacio, accepted the award for Melendez.

“This award somehow boosted my confidence and it made me love myself more,” says Aiko. “But the honor isn’t just mine alone. It’s for every Filipino.”

Aiko also expressed her gratitude for the recognition through her Instagram account. She dedicated her award to her children Andrei Yllana and Marthena Jickain.

Aiko is a Backroom artist. For inquiries, call Backroom Inc at 4351108, 4351120 and 9280717 or email us at backroominc@hotmail.com. 

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TV5’s Happy Wife, Happy Life and Healing Galing welcome summer season

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TV5, the Kapatid network officially welcomes the summer season as its back-to-back daytime programs “Happy Wife, Happy Life” and “Healing Galling” tackle various topics that will surely benefit every Kapatid viewer.

On Monday, March 9, the morning reality and lifestyle show “Happy Wife, Happy Life” (hosted by Danica Sotto-Pingris, Lj Moreno-Alapag, RR Enriquez and Jeck Maierhofer) gives mothers loads of suggested activities which they can do at home to bond with their kids. Learn the fun tricks of creating rainbow foam and slimes and watch as the four hosts put a twist on one of the most popular summer treat for the kids – the “ice candies”. Also, former The Amazing Race Philippines Season 2 racer and champion body builder, Mommy Luz, shares with viewers her journey on how she became a fitness buff. Find out how the heart of this “iron mama” instantly melts for her kids.

The “Happy Wife, Happy Life” hosts feature world-class talent this Tuesday as they get to know more about the well-known Musical Director of Hong Kong, Rony Fortich, who is now making waves in the international scene. 

On Wednesday, Danica will be walking on the catwalk as she introduces the latest trends in fashion this summer and help moms come up with the coolest wardrobe matches for their kids. LJ, on the other hand, will give tips on how to breastfeed newborn babies, with breastfeeding advocate Christine Bersola-Babao providing helpful insights on its advantages. Join Jeck on Thursday as she retells the story and struggles of PBA player Willy Miller on how he successfully regained his hardcourt fame when he joined the Talk ‘N Text team. On Friday, RR will be spending time with Sexy Chef Rachel Alejandro as they share the most effective diet tips in order for mommies out there to achieve the coveted bikini body this summer.

Following “Happy Wife, Happy Life” is TV5’s latest informative television program where eastern and western medicines meet: “Healing Galing”. Hosted by Dr. Edinell Calvario, who advocates natural alternative medicine, and Dr. Hayden Kho, who focuses on classic western medicine, this television program aims to help and educate Kapatid viewers regarding possible solutions to various health problems.

For this week, “Healing Galing” address some of the health problems people encounter or experience during summer season. Starting off with the discussion on heart attack this Monday, Dr. Edinell and Dr. Hayden Kho will give their insights and tips on how to prevent this serious health problem. On Tuesday, football player Chuck Severino will join the discussion as he shares his story on how players usually experience sprains during and after the game. 

Meanwhile, Dr. Edinell and Dr. Hayden will discuss one of the most common problems of women today, with special guest singer and songwriter Abby Asistio sharing her inspiring story on how she battled hair loss or alopecia. 

On Thursday, Dr. Hayden will educate viewers regarding lupus. Lastly, comedian actor Bearwin Meily will give tips on weight loss as viewers now prepare for their most anticipated trips this season.

Join TV5 every morning as the Happy network continuously makes morning more fun, exciting and at the same time educational.

Be inspired everyday as Danica, LJ, RR and Jeck give inspiring stories on “Happy Wife, Happy Life” every Monday to Friday at 10am, followed by the tandem of Dr. Edinell and Dr. Hayden on “Healing Galing” at 10:45am, only on TV5.

Fashion Evolution, the Metro Blogger Edition Model Finalists Revealed!

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Metro Blogger Finalists

Watch out on March 28, 2015, the day of the great reveal, when out of the 44 finalists, one male and one female model will emerge the winners at the fashion show cum runway model search entitled “Fashion Evolution” a must-attend event mounted by Metro Blogger, the Philippines’ newest social circle for bloggers around the metro.

Rigorous go-sees and screening done, the next step for Metro Blogger’s fashion show cum runway model search entitled “Fashion Evolution” finalists are now down to 44.

Last January, more than one hundred hopefuls filled the go-see venue as excitement started to rise for the show which Metro Blogger will do for the first time as a special Bloggers’ Night Out event.

L-R: Jovy, Pretty Young Thing; Sharmaine, Pretty Young Thing; Ong Pang Seng, CEO of Rapid Cloud Singapore; Miriam, Pretty Young Thing;  Agnes Degamo, Country Manager of Emerge Systems Sdn. Bhd, Philippines; Mr. Jess C, Metro Blogger Founder and Kathy Prodigalidad, E-Commerce and Marketing Executive of KL Tower.

Metro Blogger was founded founded last 2014,  it came up with Bloggers’ Night Out which was a fun, face-to-face mingling event among bloggers. The organization aims to serve as an avenue for disseminating information on event invites, new products, campaigns and services to a diverse group of members with different interest but share the same passion in blogging.

“In today’s highly connected world, blogging matters. It has now become a significant source of online buzz with consumer interest in blogs continuing to grow,” Mr. Jess C, Metro Blogger founder said. “Metro Blogger is a special community for bloggers. We help provide connect them with numerous companies that are reaching out for branding purposes, product marketing and more. We at Metro Blogger also give bloggers the chance to interact and socialize with other like-minded creative individuals like them through our online community and social events such as our upcoming Fashion Evolution.”

All 22 male and 22 female model finalists will have lots of chances to strut their stuff before the final night. This February, a photo shoot, a press conference and a meet and greet session will give these contenders more than one chance to wow their followers and judges prior to the finals, which will be held at the Century City Mall, Makati.

“We’re proud to announce that we have been able to partner with some of the country’s young and talented fashion designers to dress up our model finalists,” said Choy Suarez, Director of Fashion Evolution, the Metro Blogger Edition.

Ian Mallabo, Dino Bancoro, Jian Lasala, Yves Camingue, Hanna De Los Reyes and Charles Anito will all be debuting their latest fashion collection during the fashion show.

Two winners, one male and one female, will each receive cash prize plus an all-expense paid 4days/3nights trip to Singapore complete with a photo shoot project with Singapore fashion brands. They will also receive a one-year fitness contract with Slimmers World Philippines.

VIP access to Fashion Evolution by Metro Blogger—which is sponsored by its partner brands Rapid Cloud Singapore, a top Singapore Web Hosting and E-Business Consulting; Emerge Innovating Technology, Southeast Asia’s premier enterprise website and e-commerce solutions provider; Century City Mall— official venue partner, KL Tower Serviced Residences— official hotel partner, 71 Gramercy— official after-party partner, Hawkbag, Geesha Secret, Tree Top Adventure, Suesh Make Up Toolkit, Bellhaus Entertainment, Inglot, Lujo Jewelry and Slimmers World International—is limited to 100 tickets. Proceeds of the show will go to Bantay Bata 163 Foundation.

SPOTTED: ABS-CBN’s TVplus “Ang Mahiwagang Black Box” is now available at Lazada.com.ph!

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Last February, the Philippine TV giant ABS-CBN pushed yet another envelope and this time it’s all about enriching the TV viewing experience of many Filipinos through their latest innovative offering – the ABS-CBN TVplus which is more popularly coined as the “Mahiwagang Black Box”. 

Now, you can get your hands on this “talk-of-the-town” product effortlessly and risk-free through Lazada.com.ph for PhP 2,500 – you can either pay via cash on delivery or credit/debit cards or even PayPal and have it delivered to your doorstep or to your loved ones’ doorstep with Lazada’s free nationwide shipping! It’s that easy!

So how “magical” exactly is this “Mahiwagang Black Box”? Well, let’s just put it this way: imagine yourself watching free-to-air TV but with noticeable crispness and clarity. 

The ABS-CBN TVplus is a digital black box that delivers digitally clear picture and sound that is comparable to seeing a movie on DVD – a far cry from the prevailing blurry and grainy images of analog TV. The“Mahiwagang Black Box” has been developed to work with all kinds of TV sets as long as it has an AV or RCA connector. On top of ABS-CBN and ABS-CBN Sports+Action, the ABS-CBN TVplus allows you to access four more exclusive free-to-air channels once you connect it to your TV sets.

The ABS-CBN TVplus is initially available in Metro Manila, Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Pangasinan, Benguet, and Metro Cebu. But for those living outside of these areas, never fret as the magic of the “Mahiwagang Black Box” will be available to your areas soon!

So what are you waiting for? Get your hands on the “Mahiwagang Black Box” and see for yourself what’s the latest buzz all about! You can purchase the ABS-CBN TVplus by clickingwww.lazada.com.ph/abs-cbn-tv-plus-dttv-blackbox-with-free-abs-cbn-mobile-sim-380722.html. 

To know more about the offerings and deals for the ABS-CBN TVplus, subscribe to the Facebook Page of Lazada Philippines via www.facebook.com/LazadaPhilippines

Celebrities endure ‘tougher’ Yellow Cab Challenge Philippines Subic-Bataan

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Coming from a very successful inaugural race last year, the Yellow Cab Challenge Philippines Subic-Bataan showcased multi-awarded triathletes from different parts of the world last February 21, including some of the country’s celebrity triathletes.

TV host Drew Arellano races his way out of the pristine waters of Subic Bay.

TV host and active triathlete Drew Arellano finished strong despite lack of training after clocking in at 5:58:41, ranking 9th in the 35-39 year-old category.

TV personality Drew Arellano finished strong after a recorded time of 5:58:19, ranking ninth under Men’s 35-39 category.

“Wala [kaming special training], just the usual. It’s just really hard to prepare properly coming from a Christmas vacation and this is still early in the season so people are still making kapa, people are just starting have better fitness levels,” Arellano said.

“There are flats, there are rolling hills, [and] definitely there are mountains to climb, so this course was probably the hardest… It’s challenging but the trade-off is it’s very enjoyable and not boring,” Arellano added.

GMA News Anchor Kara David, on the other hand, was part of the Powerpops TriKings 3 for swim, while TGIS alumnus Onemig Bondoc also participated in the relay for run.

News Anchor Kara David of Powerpops TriKings 3 (mixed relay category) finishes the race after clocking in at 7:00:29.

David’s mixed relay group clocked in at 7:00:29 while Bondoc’s all male team, Powerpops TriKings 1, registered a 6:29:30 record.

Former PBB housemate Paul Jake Castillo was also among the race finishers of the 1.9km swim, 90km bike, and 21.1km course.

The PBB alumnus clocked in at 7:07:11, finishing 17th under the 30-34 year-old category. “Despite so little training, I finished the toughest and hardest triathlon in the Philippines,” Castillo posted on his Instagram account.

After being dubbed by the TRIMAG Asia as the most prestigious triathlon event in the Asian region last year, this year’s race in Subic-Bataan is already being called as one of the toughest race in the world by a lot of triathletes and fans.

On the other hand, the race’s broadcast coverage extends to over 82 countries worldwide, showcasing the Philippines as the most desired lifestyle and sports destination.

TV host Drew Arellano had a strong showing in the Yellow Cab Challenge Philippines Subic-Bataan last Feb. 21 after finishing 65^th overall against more than 700 athletes.

The world-class season opener for long-distance racing in the Philippines—and all other festivities—were held at the Camayan Beach Resort, Subic Bay, and at the rugged and beautiful province of Bataan.

On June 14, the team will stage another race, this time in CamSur, where multi-awarded world champs and local celebrities are expected to join. This one is touted to be one of the fastest races in the world.

For more details about the race and future races, please visit the Challenge Philippines website athttp://challengephilippines.com.ph.