GINA ALAJAR TO COMBINE HER 'DIAN LAMITAN' & 'ZENY' ROLES IN PROTEGE

In an interview with entertainment bloggers last Saturday, July 8, veteran actress, director Gina Alajar said that she will combine her ferocious Dian Lamitan character in the GMA epic series “Amaya” and her motherly character as Zeny in the recently concluded afternoon soap, “Hiram na Puso” in her new stint as one of the mentors of the upcoming artista search “Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break.” 

“Binabase ko rin yan sa pagtuturo ko sa mga workshop e.  When you spoon feed someone, halos nakadepende na siya sayo, halos hindi na siya magtatrabaho because you’re giving him/her everything na, there’s no challenge for him na kasi you’re giving it to him/her in a silver platter.  Samantalang kung maghihigpit ka nang konti at ipapakita mo sa kanya na ‘hindi, huwag kang tatamad-tamad, magtrabaho ka, you should learn and you should learn by doing. ’ So combination yan.  Anyway, I have the Dian Lamitan side and the Zeny side all in one nandito kay Gina (laughs),” she said.

Asked what her bases are in selecting her proteges, she said that she is not very strict at this point in the screening although she emphasized that looks is one of the first factors she looks into.

“Kailangan mga artistahin na talaga tapos nandun na yung talent, nakikita mo na yung pwedeng madevelop, tapos madaling sumunod, madaling turuan.  Importante rin na meron siyang karisma, meron siyang “It”, yung mamahalin siya ng madla.  Mahirap yun e kasi hindi lahat na-chacharm ang taong bayan.  So, kailangan meron siyang gaang, meron siyang magandang bukas ng mukha para i-embrace siya ng tao,” she explained. 

“Mejo mahirap hanapin yun and I think dun palang natin malalaman yan kapag inintroduce na siya sa mga tao.  Pero ngayon sa akin, my initial reaction is: meron ba siyang mukha, meron ba siyang tayo, meron bang pag lumakad siya sa isang kwarto ay magtitinginan sa kanya lahat, nakaka-attract ba siya ng attention, yung ganon,” the director added.

So how’s her search for the ultimate protégé going so far?

“Nag-decide ako sa sarili ko na since artista search, glamour talaga yung hinahanap mo e.  Pwedeng pwede mo na dapat siyang ilakad sa red carpet.  I think hindi ganun kalaki yung time para i-build up siya, kailangan maisabak na siya kaagad.  I would say I would go for the looks first kasi yun yung importante as of this point.  Kasi I do believe, na kahit hindi masyadong innate yung talent mate-train yun, it can be honed.  Lalo na kung masipag yung tao, pwedeng pwede, magiging mabilis yun.”

Gina’s main predicament is finding the perfect blend among the many factors that make up a completely-packaged “artista.”

“Yun nga yung nagiging problema e, kasi meron namang hindi masyadong kagandahan at hindi masyadong kagwapuhan pero nandun naman yung talent, kaya lang it will not stand alone e sa search natin.  If it’s only pagalingan lang ng pagiging artista, wala yung looks, pwede yun pero very thin ang line ng pagiging artista.”

Gina and the other four mentors will present their protégés to the viewing public for the very first time on August 5, during the show’s first gala night, which will be hosted by Dingdong Dantes and Carla Abellana. 

Will their proteges pass the scrutiny of the judges?  We’ll find that out soon on Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break only on GMA Telebabad.

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BROKEN VOW airs final episode this Friday

GMA Network’s top-rating afternoon drama, Broken Vow, starring Bianca King, Gabby Eigenmann, Luis Alandy, Rochelle Pangilinan -- concludes with an explosive finale episode this Friday, June 15.

Broken Vow has been one of the network’s top-rating teledramas in the Afternoon Prime block since it premiered last February 6. The captivating story and characterization constantly intrigued and thrilled the televiewers and managed to pull off a victory in the ratings game, consistently registering high in the charts.

This Friday, the tension between Felix (Luis) and Roberto (Gabby) escalates and ends with a fatal conclusion. Only one will survive this dramatic confrontation and Melissa is caught in between these two men. Who will Melissa choose to save? Will Melissa be finally reunited with her daughter Eva? Or is happiness too far to reach for Melissa and Felix?  

Broken Vow also stars Marco Alcaraz, Juan Rodrigo, Carmi Martin, Matet de Leon, Jace Flores, Pancho Magno, Lou Sison, Melissa Mendez and Ms Celia Rodriguez and is directed by Gil Tejada Jr.

The finale of Broken Vow should not be missed this Friday, June 15 right after Kasalanan Bang Ibigin Ka? on GMA Afternoon Prime.

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GMA Network hits P13.083 billion consolidated revenues in 2011

(Quezon City, Philippines – April 10, 2012) – GMA Network, Incorporated (GMA), the leading broadcast media company in the Philippines, hit consolidated revenues worth P13.083 billion in 2011.

Notwithstanding the absence of P2.054 billion worth of revenues from political advertisements generated in 2010 and the global impact of financial crisis in Europe and slow economic recovery in the US last year, the Company delivered a fairly competitive business performance.

In fact, despite the cutback in the advertising budget of top multinationals whose headquarters are based abroad, the Network’s leadership in nationwide ratings won for the Company a substantial portion of the available ad spend.

GMA Channel 7, the Company’s top performing business unit and the country’s most watched television station, posted an eight-percent revenue growth from regular advertising during the financial period versus the preceding year, more than double the gross national product (GNP) growth rate of only 3.5 percent in 2011.

The channel also raised its ad loading minutes by 2.1 percent even with rate adjustments that took effect in February of 2011. ABS-CBN, meanwhile, suffered the hardest hit by the ad spend cutback among local broadcasting companies with a 7.1-percent drop in ad loading minutes during the comparable period.

GMA Radio, with improved ratings both in the AM and FM bands, delivered a 15-percent revenue growth from regular advertising. GMA Regional TV made a 21-percent hike year-on-year in recurring ad placements.

Meanwhile, GMA International ended 2011 with a six-percent growth in revenues in US dollar terms, but the growth rate slowed down to only four percent in peso terms due to the appreciation of the Philippine peso exchange rate. Total revenues from subscription, licensing and advertising revenues made thru overseas operations reached P965 million.

GMA International runs the Network’s flagship international channel GMA Pinoy TV (GPTV) and the Filipino lifestyle channel GMA Life TV (GLTV) with estimated global viewer counts of two million and one million, respectively.

Both channels can be accessed thru a number of channel carriers in Filipino viewer-rich territories abroad such as the US, Canada, Middle East, Africa, Japan, Guam, Saipan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Diego Garcia, Europe, and the Carribean.

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