Cathy Garcia-Molina with “Partners in Crime” actors Vice Ganda, Ivana Alawi, Enchong Dee and Eian Rances. Image: Facebook/Ivana Alawi
Known primarily for rom-com movies, director Cathy Garcia-Molina feels that her latest outing, “Partners in Crime” is a “comedy with a heart.”
She initially feared that the movie, an entry in this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival, was a big gamble for her, as she would be directing Vice Ganda and is her first partnership with Ivana Alawi.
“Takot ako (I am afraid),” the director unabashedly admitted during the movie’s grand media conference last Nov. 30.
“Tatanggapin kaya nila ‘yung fusion namin kasi ang kaya ko laging i-offer is heart. (Will they accept our fusion, because all I can always offer is heart). So, this is a comedy with a heart,” she said. The movie is the director’s second MMFF movie.
“Ako naman (For me), regardless whether it is for Christmas, the vision and motivation as to why I make films has always been there and will always be there. It is always for the people. It’s always to entertain them. I think this is no different, MMFF is no different. Whether I am doing rom-com, comedy or kahit rom-drama ‘yan, the intention of entertaining people has always been there,” she said.
She admitted that her initial fear was how to match both Vice Ganda’s and her brands of comedy.
“We cater to different people at meron ka pang Ivana Alawi (and we also have Ivana Alawi) so it was very hard for the fusion of this kind of comedy. Ang comedy ni Vice Ganda ay iba sa comedy ko and vice versa (Vice Ganda’s comedy is different from my comedy and vice versa),” she said.
With that, the first agenda was “how to marry our film na hindi mae-alienate ang audience mo (without alienating the audience) who love you for comedy and for my supporters also who’ve been supportive of me.”
“Alam mo (You know), it was hard when you think of it. But then you do it kasi nga sobrang hindi madamot si Vice Ganda (because Vice Ganda is not stingy). If there’s one thing I would admire Vice Ganda talaga na nangyari sa paggawa ng pelikula (when the movie was being filmed), it’s that,” she said. /ra
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